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Bent's Old Fort National Historic Sitekids at the cottonwoods
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Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site
Natural Features & Ecosystems
The topography of the Arkansas River Valley in the vicinity of the fort is gently sloping. The bedrock is Bridge Creek Limestone, a member of the Greenhorn Limestone Formation. The river valley has quarternary alluvium deposits from the Wisconsin age that is overlaid with recent alluvial deposits. The museum collection has several examples of fossils. The region has a potential for oil and minerals but to date no exploration or development is planned.

- August 26th, 1870, Peter G. Scott describes in his diary the river and its banks outside the fort.
--"It runs quite rapidly, is clear and has a fringe of . . trees along its banks most places and a narrow strip of green grass, behind which rise sand bluffs."
Trapper teaches trapping to the visitors  

Did You Know?
One of the most educated and well traveled men at Bent’s Fort was a humble hunter named Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. This highly regarded Bent employee started out life as the infant son of Sacajawea and accompanied his mother on the famous Lewis and Clark expedition.

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Last Updated: July 25, 2006 at 00:23 EST