In 1834 Fort Laramie started as a
fur trading post in southern Wyoming. It was first called Fort
William, then Fort John, and finally Fort Laramie. It was a place
where the Cheyenne and Arapaho traded. Fort Laramie sat at a
location along a natural route across the continent. By the 1840s,
wagon trains bound for Oregon, California and Utah rested and re-supplied
here.
In 1849 the Gold Rush of California
drew more people westward. Fort Laramie became a military post.
For the next 41 years Fort Laramie would help shape major events in the
struggle for domination of the northern plains. In 1876, during the
"Great Sioux War", Fort Laramie served as a center for military
operations, communication, supplies, and logistics. Fort Laramie
closed 1890.
