Fort Bernard
Encyclopedia
Fort Bernard was a small trading post
in Wyoming
, along the North Platte River
on the Oregon Trail
. It was established in 1845 on the site of an older fort established in the late 1830s. It was located about 8 miles southeast of Fort Laramie, and had been operated by the American Fur Company
.
Bernard Pratte
and his partner had previously owned Fort Platte
on the west side of Fort Laramie but abandoned it in 1845 and enlisted Joseph Bissonette to move the operation to the east to attract travelers on the Oregon Trail before they arrived at Fort Laramie. The new fort was either named for Pratte or his father, General Bernard Pratte who had been a fur trader in his own time.
In December of 1845 the fort was sold to the American Fur Company and was put under the control of Bissonette and trader John Richards. The fort did excellent business in 1866, enough to cause concern with the owners of nearby Fort Laramie. Unfortunately, the fort burned down sometime during the summer of 1866 while Richards was acquiring new supplies in New Mexico and was never rebuilt.
A trappers' trail connected from Bent's Fort on the south. Traders on the Santa Fe Trail
freighted flour here to trade to emigrants during the 1866 season.
Trading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
, along the North Platte River
North Platte River
The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and is approximately long counting its many curves, It travels about distance. Its course lies in the U.S...
on the Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
. It was established in 1845 on the site of an older fort established in the late 1830s. It was located about 8 miles southeast of Fort Laramie, and had been operated by the American Fur Company
American Fur Company
The American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
.
Bernard Pratte
Bernard Pratte
Bernard Pratte was the eighth mayor of St. Louis, Missouri, serving between 1844 and 1846.- External links :* at the St. Louis Public Library: St. Louis Mayors website....
and his partner had previously owned Fort Platte
Fort Platte
Fort Platte was a stronghold and trading post established by Lancaster Lupton that was active between 1840 and 1846. The fort competed with Fort Laramie which was only one mile away and quickly surpassed it due to a superior supply system...
on the west side of Fort Laramie but abandoned it in 1845 and enlisted Joseph Bissonette to move the operation to the east to attract travelers on the Oregon Trail before they arrived at Fort Laramie. The new fort was either named for Pratte or his father, General Bernard Pratte who had been a fur trader in his own time.
In December of 1845 the fort was sold to the American Fur Company and was put under the control of Bissonette and trader John Richards. The fort did excellent business in 1866, enough to cause concern with the owners of nearby Fort Laramie. Unfortunately, the fort burned down sometime during the summer of 1866 while Richards was acquiring new supplies in New Mexico and was never rebuilt.
A trappers' trail connected from Bent's Fort on the south. Traders on the Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1822 by William Becknell, it served as a vital commercial and military highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880...
freighted flour here to trade to emigrants during the 1866 season.