The following history of the fort is a reprint of “Fort Laramie” by David L. Heib, a National Park Service Historical Handbook Series No. 20, Washington, D.C., 1954.

Early Fur Trade on the Platte
Fort William
Fort Platte and Fort John on the Laramie
The First Emigrants
The Mormon Migrations, 1847-48
Fort Laramie Becomes a Military Post
The California Gold Rush
The Fort Laramie Treaty Council, 1851
The Emigrant Tide and Indian Troubles
The Grattan and Harney Massacres
Handcart to Pony Express
The Civil War and Uprising of the Plains Indians
Peace Talk and War on the Bozeman Trail
The Treaty of 1868
The Fight for the Black Hills
Last Years of the Army Post
The Homesteaders Take Over
Efforts to Preserve the Fort