12/27/08

On our way back from the infamous Big Sky land, we decided to take a side trip to Fort Laramie. Neither of us had ever been, though NPCA did an assessment a while back that was not well-received, so I knew a little about the National Historic Site’s history. Walking around was akin to Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, so despite the blue skies and ravenous sun, I was chilled through my windbreaker to the bone for most of the fieldtrip.

The historical recreation/preservation of the site is quite interesting and very well done. Some buildings have been well-taken care of, while other are purposefully allowed to remain in a state of ruin. Some have been entirely refurnished and recreated to their appearance in the 1880s, while others are maintained as they are. What I found curious (and not a little upsetting to me, personally) was the lack of interpretation for anything prior to the military occupation of the fort. The area itself had been used for over 50 years as a trading post, home to both American Indians and white traders seeking solace from the busy east, and, while those buildings have largely been replaced by newer, military-style barracks and posts, that history has been glossed over as if it were a mere smudge on the timeline. Fort Laramie played a huge role in trade relationships with oft forgotten indigenous people, as well as during the mass migration of restless whites known as the Oregon Trail. But you could hardly tell by taking the self-guided walking tour. While I don’t doubt that park staff are quite knowledgeable about this history, interpretation is limited to the fort’s military existence, which I think cheats history out of its right, and cheats American who grew up playing Oregon Trail on an Apple IIe out of their desire to see Fort Laramie as they did on their computer screen, however pixilated it might have been.

Jonmikel standing on the porch of the oldest building in Wyoming!