Discovering Colorado: Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site

Bent's Old Fort Nat. Historic Site
		William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the original fort on this site in 1833 to trade with plains Indians and trappers. The adobe fort quickly became the center of the Bent, St.Vrain Company's expanding trade empire that included Fort St. Vrain to the north and Fort Adobe to the south, along with
*DiscoveringColorado.Com Home National Parks • State Parks • Cams • Skiing • Photos* company stores in Mexico at Taos and Santa Fe. The primary trade was with the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians for buffalo robes. Bent's Old Fort is located in southeast Colorado, near the town of La Junta. The park is accessed via U.S. Highway 50 and Highway 194. From La Junta, Colorado on U.S. Highway 50, take Highway 109 north 1 mile to Highway 194, then east on Highway 194 six miles to the fort. From Las Animas, Colorado, on U.S. Highway 50, take Highway 194 west 13 miles.