Fort Laramie National Historic Site,

Wyoming

As America expanded westward,this outpost in the Wyoming wilderness played a crucial role in the transformation of the West, first as fur-trading center, then as a military garrison. For over five decades, it was a landmark and way station for the cavalcade of trappers, traders, missionaries, emigrants, Pony Express riders, and miners wending their way westward. It was also an important staging point for the U.S.Army in its dealings with the plains tribes displaced by migration and settlement.

The fort stands as a reminder of the force necessary to protect the lives of the emigrants who were pouring into the region who were traveling across the country on the Oregon Trail. The Great Migration of 1843 brought close to a thousand people to the fort.

Our guide, Natalie, gave us a two hour tour of the fort. She was dressed the part and was very interesting and extremely knowledgeable about the history of the fort and the area.

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