Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site

Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site preserves the resources associated with the Bent–St. Vrain trading empire, which radiated from Bent's Old Fort into what is now Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Nebraska, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, and Missouri. The fort solidified one of the most important and last established trading cartels in the Rocky Mountain West.

William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the original adobe fort on this site in 1833 to trade with Plains Indians and trappers. The fort quickly became the center of the expanding holdings of Bent, St. Vrain & Company, including Fort St. Vrain to the north and Fort Adobe to the south, along with company stores in Taos and Santa Fe. The primary trade was with the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians for buffalo robes.

For much of its 16-year history, the fort was the only major permanent white settlement on the Santa Fe Trail between Missouri and the Mexican settlements. The fort provided explorers, adventurers, and the U.S. Army a place to get needed supplies, wagon repairs, livestock, good food, water and company, rest and protection in this vast "Great American Desert." During the war with Mexico in 1846, the fort became a staging area for Colonel Stephen Watts Kearny's "Army of the West." Disasters and disease caused the fort's abandonment in 1849.

Bent's Old Fort was an important point of commercial, social, military, and cultural contact between Anglo-American, Native American, Hispanic, and other groups on the border of United States Territory. The fort served as a point of exchange for trappers from the southern Rocky Mountains, travelers from Missouri and the east, Hispanic traders from Mexico, and Native Americans, primarily from the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Comanche, and Kiowa Tribes.

Today, Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site features a reconstructed version of the 1840s adobe trading post. Archeological excavations and original sketches, paintings, and diaries were used to replicate the features of the fort, which was reconstructed during the country’s bicentennial and Colorado’s centennial in 1976. The reconstructed fort and its historic setting allow visitors to “step back” in time to learn about and reflect on the westward expansion of the United States.

Things to Do

Take a guided tour Take a tour with a Park Ranger to learn more about Bent's Old Fort. Each tour lasts approximately forty-five minutes and begins in the plaza. Tours are limited to fifteen participants and will explore the historic use of the site and the reconstruction of the fort in the 1970s.

Hike trail to history From the visitor parking lot to the fort entrance is a one-quarter mile paved path. There are two benches installed along the way for your convenience. As this stretch has no cover, please bring water, sunscreen, and a hat during warm weather. In windy, snowy, and rainy conditions, dressing in appropriate weather-proof layers is recommended. Comfortable and protective walking shoes are also advised. Public water fountains, restrooms, picnic tables and a shade shelter are located within a few steps of the parking lot.

Arkansas River Visitors can enjoy meandering beside the Arkansas River among the blue grama and buffalo grasses hemmed by cottonwood groves all year round. The pinks and yellows of the showy milkweed and prairie sunflower bring the trail to life in late spring and summer. Our wetlands provide cover and habitat for several local and migratory bird species such as ring-necked pheasant, turkey, snow geese and American coot.

Plan Your Visit

Getting Here Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site is located along the Arkansas River in southeastern Colorado.. The park is accessed via U.S. Highway 50 and Highway 194. From La Junta, Colorado on U.S. Highway 50, take Colorado Highway 109 north 1 mile to Colorado Highway 194, then east on Colorado Highway 194 six miles to the fort. From Las Animas, Colorado, on U.S. Highway 50, take Colorado Highway 194 west 13 miles. Set your GPS to 35110 State Highway 194 E., La Junta, CO.

Getting There By Plane: There are commercial airlines to Pueblo (75 miles) and Colorado Springs (110 miles).
Getting There By Train: Amtrak trains have a stop in La Junta. Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site is located eight miles east of La Junta and 15 miles west of Las Animas on Colorado State Highway 194 in Southeast Colorado.
Getting There By Bus: TNM&O bus stops in Rocky Ford, Colorado, 16 miles west of Bent's Old Fort NHS.

Park Hours 9:00 AM–4:00 PM

The park grounds are open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., except on New Year's Day, the Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr, Washington's Birthday, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. During the off-season [October-March annually], the grounds are open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., except for the holidays listed above.

Get Involved

Volunteer Volunteers-In-Parks (VIPs) contribute thousands of hours to Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site each year. We genuinely appreciate your interest in volunteering at Bent's Old Fort. VIPs can include couples, individuals, school groups, scouts, clubs, and organizations. VIPs may donate several months at a time or perhaps just a few hours. Bent's Old Fort provides several unique opportunities in the National Park Service for volunteers. Below are some of the positions that can be found on volunteer.gov.

Donate We genuinely appreciate your interest in supporting Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site. Donations are graciously accepted and go directly towards benefiting the park. These funds allow us to provide educational programs, engage in community outreach, provide visitor services, and assist in the preservation of cultural sites and historic buildings within the park. Donations help us share Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site with our youth, preserve the park for future generations, and fund research to better understand the unique ecology and history of your national park.

Associated Tribal Nations of Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site

Tribal Trust Responsibilities To honor our legal trust responsibilities with tribal nations, Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site consults with and co-stewards the site with 14 federally recognized tribal partners. These tribes have longstanding cultural, historical, religious, and spiritual connections to these parklands prior to establishment of Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site. Each sovereign nation has their own unique culture and language.

Tribal Partners of Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site:

Apache Tribe of Oklahoma
Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma
Comanche Nation, Oklahoma
Fort Belknap Indian Community of the Fort Belknap Reservation of Montana (Gros Ventre/Assiniboine)
Jicarilla Apache Nation, New Mexico
Kiowa Indian Tribe of Oklahoma
Northern Arapaho Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, Wyoming
Northern Cheyenne Tribe of the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Montana
Pueblo of Picuris, New Mexico
Pueblo of Jemez, New Mexico
Southern Ute Indian Tribe of the Southern Ute Reservation, Colorado
Pueblo of Taos, New Mexico
Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Colorado
Wichita and Affiliated Tribes: Wichita, Keechi, Waco and Tawakonie (Anadarko, Oklahoma)

Commitment to Respecting Tribal Sovereignty and Meaningful Consultation We respect Tribal sovereignty and are committed to meaningful consultations seeking common agreement, appropriate treatment, and respect for Tribal interests in all undertakings that may affect traditional, cultural, and spiritual resources of park-associated Tribes.

Access and Traditional Use of Ancestral Lands We are committed to supporting access to cultural sites, ethnographic resources, and traditionally harvested resources for traditional and religious purposes by park-associated Tribes and Tribal members. We are committed to creating formal agreements, partnerships, and programming with mutual benefit to Tribes and the public that foster education, ethnographic study, and Traditional Use of Ancestral Lands by park-associated Tribes and Tribal members.

Cultural Activities in the Park As a unit of the national park system, all are welcome to enjoy and recreate respectfully within Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site. We are committed, through tribal trust responsibilities with park-associated Tribes, that tribal members and communities are provided an opportunity to participate in organized group events involving resources of significance in Ancestral Lands. Depending on the nature of the activity and location, expressed support from a park-associated Tribal Nation may be required.We are committed to ensuring Tribal Nations are provided an opportunity to have an active role in ownership and distribution of cultural knowledge to the public at large. Tribal sacred ceremonies and gatherings involving religious, private, or family knowledge, or activities protected under the American Indian Religious Freedom Act or other federal Indian laws shall be respected.