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Discover Mid-America — September 2008

Fort Osage: ‘Homeland
Security’ in the early 1800s

East of Kansas City, high on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River, is a restored slice of American history with origins in the Lewis & Clark Expedition of 1804. Accessible by modern travelers going north from I-70 or east on Hwy. 24, and then through the village of Sibley, Fort Osage in its original form served as one of North America’s frontier outposts and trading centers.

On June 23, 1804, William Clark, admiring the dominating view offered by a high bluff on the riverbank, wrote in his journal: "The wind was against us this morning...were obliged to lie-to during the day at a small island...directly opposite, on the south, is a high commanding position, more than 70 feet above the high water mark, and overlooking the river...This spot has many advantages for a fort and trading house with the Indians."

Construction of the fort began in 1808, two years after the Corps of Discovery returned to St. Louis. It was on the site earlier envisioned by Clark, using his plans.

The country needed the fort to protect its interests — especially the fur trade — and the vast chunk of real estate bought by Thomas Jefferson in 1803. France had threatened to seize much of the new territory by military force. Spain, though in a weaker position on the North American continent, was just as covetous of the unprotected wilderness Jefferson had acquired. And Great Britain still considered much of the vast area its rightful territory in the New World.

Further prodding action by the fledgling U.S. Congress were the Osage Indians, who had the best claim to the neighborhood of the new fort. It was in the heart of their nation, where they fished and hunted, and traded with various tribes along the great river. But whites were building settlements along that river in increasing numbers, and one of the fort’s mandates was to defend them from attack. The U.S. offered the Osage the use of the new fort as a defense against hostile tribes and as a trading post in exchange for their commitment to give up their hunting grounds east of the fort and south to the Arkansas River. In the year Fort Osage was built, dozens of Osage lived in two nearby villages and others visited the fort daily. Later treaties would shrink the Osage lands further, until they were finally relocated to a reservation in southern Kansas in 1825.

In 1809, the fort was completed. George Sibley was named “factor” or government trade representative. Sibley ran a “tight ship,” and Fort Osage became one of the most prosperous of the forts in the factory system.

A visitor to the fort in the early years would have found about 100 soldiers and officers billeted there. Living quarters for enlisted men were austere, with wooden boards serving as beds. Officers lived in comparative luxury, with the factor and his family enjoying the best accommodations of all. (Although Sibley wrote one winter in his diary that he “awoke to find his drinking cup frozen over.”)

In 1816, Sibley married 16-year-old Mary Easton, the daughter of a prominent St. Louis banking family. His bride brought with her several keelboat-loads of household goods as well as her younger sister. She was accustomed to a pampered lifestyle in St. Louis, and continued to enjoy the same at Fort Osage, The couple’s living quarters were located on the upper floor of the factory building.

According to John Peterson, curator, Fort Osage was closed during the War of 1812 with Great Britain. “The fort was too remote to defend,” he said. “After the war, the Osage weren’t thrilled about coming here. Other tribes were pushing in, and the Cherokee were given land near the Arkansas River, forcing the Osage to defend their interests there.”

By the 1820s, many Osage had left the area, and the frontier had moved westward to what would become the Kansas Territory. Peterson said the factory system was abolished in 1822, largely due to complaints by fur traders that the government was underselling their products. By 1827 with the construction of Fort Leavenworth, Fort Osage was abandoned, and its lumber used on neighboring farms.

More than a century went by, with the fort’s foundations hidden by weeds and brush. In 1941, the Jackson County Court, with the cooperation of the Native Sons of Kansas City and other groups, began the process of locating and restoring the historic fort using the original plans. By 1948, the first blockhouse was dedicated. Over the next dozen years, the remaining blockhouses, factory building, officers’ quarters, soldiers’ barracks and log stockade were completed.

In 1961, the fort was recognized as a National Historic Landmark. Today, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an archaeological district.

Visitors are received at the new Educational Center, where they can learn about the fort and understand more about what they are about to see. Photo galleries, a video and a model of the fort can be seen at the center.

At the fort, Mike Duwane, dressed in period garb, takes visitors “back in time” as he describes life at the fort in the early 1800s. Using deerskins, tools and other artifacts, he describes how the factory system worked — and how it failed.

“The government heavily subsidized the items sold at the fort,” he said, “and only the Osage and their invited guests could buy them. This led to complaints by fur traders and other settlers whose goods were priced out of the market.”

Fort Osage is open Tues.-Sun., 9-4:30 March 1-Nov. 15. From Nov. 16 to Feb. 28, it is open Saturday and Sunday only. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for youth and seniors. Children under 5 are free.

Upcoming events include the Bicentennial of Fort Osage Sept. 6-7, and the Grand Festival of Chez les Canses Sept. 13-14. A Territorial Militia Muster is planned for Oct. 25-26.

Call 816-650-5737 or go to www.fortosage.nhs.com.

Ken Weyand can be reached at kweyand1@kc.rr.com

> Traveling with Ken Archive — past columns