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Fort Lisa (North Dakota)
Encyclopedia
The first Fort Lisa also known as the Fort Manuel Lisa Trading Post and as Fort Manuel, was started by the notable fur trader Manuel Lisa
of the Missouri Fur Company
in 1809. It was located near the Gros Ventres
village located between the mouth of the Little Missouri
and that of the Big Knife rivers in what is now North Dakota
. This fort was likely where Sacagawea
died; she had been the guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition
.
Fort Lisa superseded Fort Raymond, the first outpost built by Lisa in 1806-1807 at the mouth of the Bighorn River
in Montana
, as the uppermost post of the Missouri Fur Company on the Missouri River
. In 1812 Lisa built a replacement fort downriver near present-day North Omaha, Nebraska
, which he also named Fort Lisa.
. This was the first permanent structure of its kind on the Upper Missouri. It was at first just "two rooms and a loft". Lisa named it after his son, but traders also called it Manuel's Fort or Fort Manuel. Lisa built it for the company he and William Clark jointly owned, which was called the St. Louis Missouri Fur Company.
In 1808 George Drouillard, a member of Lewis and Clark's Corps of Discovery, was tried for the murder of a deserter from Fort Lisa whom he mortally wounded while trying to capture. (Given the date, this source is probably referring to Lisa's first fort, Fort Raymond/Manuel.)
In 1809 Lisa was one of the founders of the St. Louis Missouri Fur Company, later known as the Missouri Fur Company
, which included members of the Chouteau family, founders of St. Louis. On his fur expedition in 1809 with 300 men, Lisa and his company built another fort further east, near the Gros Ventres village located between the mouth of the Little Missouri and that of the Big Knife rivers in what is now North Dakota. This was named Fort Lisa, or, as in the excerpt below, Fort Manuel Lisa Trading Post. He abandoned Fort Raymond/Manuel and shifted operations to the new post. The famous Astor Expedition
would have stopped at Fort Lisa in 1811.
The notable Native American guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition
, Sacagawea
, died at the first Fort Lisa on December 20, 1812. An 1811 journal entry made by Henry Brackenridge, a fur dealer at Fort Manuel Lisa Trading Post on the Missouri River, stated that both Sacagawea and Charbonneau were living at the fort. He recorded that Sacagawea "...had become sickly and longed to revisit her native country." The following year, John Luttig, a clerk at Fort Manuel Lisa recorded in his journal on December 20, 1812, that "...the wife of Charbonneau, a Snake Squaw
, died of putrid fever." He went on to say that she was "aged about 25 years. She left a fine infant girl."
Documents held by Clark show that Sacagawea's son Jean Baptiste had already been entrusted by Charbonneau into Clark's care for a boarding school education, at Clark's insistence." Fort Lisa was abandoned soon after.
Because of difficulties with Indians and shipping at this location, in 1812 Lisa built a third fort downriver about 12 miles north of present-day Omaha
. He named this Fort Lisa, too, and shifted his operations to this location. This became the main post of the Missouri Fur Company
and its successors under various names.
At the time of its establishment, Fort Raymond/Manuel was the first permanent structure of its kind on the Upper Missouri. Lisa established the only trading post in the Great Plains
region. This made the Fort instrumental in American relations with local tribes, as well as the early settlement of the Nebraska Territory
.
Manuel Lisa
Manuel Lisa, also known as Manuel de Lisa , was a Spanish-American fur trader, explorer, and United States Indian agent. He was among the founders in St. Louis of the Missouri Fur Company, an early fur trading company...
of the Missouri Fur Company
Missouri Fur Company
The Missouri Fur Company was one of the earliest fur trading companies in St. Louis, Missouri. Dissolved and reorganized several times, it operated under various names from 1809 until its final dissolution in 1830. It was created by a group of fur traders and merchants from St...
in 1809. It was located near the Gros Ventres
Gros Ventres
The Gros Ventre people , also known as the A'ani, A'aninin, Haaninin, and Atsina, are a historically Algonquian-speaking Native American tribe located in north central Montana...
village located between the mouth of the Little Missouri
Little Missouri River (North Dakota)
The Little Missouri River is a tributary of the Missouri River, 560 mi long, in the northern Great Plains of the United States. Rising in northeastern Wyoming, in western Crook County about west of Devil's Tower, it flows northeastward, across a corner of southeastern Montana, and into South Dakota...
and that of the Big Knife rivers in what is now North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
. This fort was likely where Sacagawea
Sacagawea
Sacagawea ; was a Lemhi Shoshone woman, who accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide, in their exploration of the Western United States...
died; she had been the guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
.
Fort Lisa superseded Fort Raymond, the first outpost built by Lisa in 1806-1807 at the mouth of the Bighorn River
Bighorn River
The Bighorn River is a tributary of the Yellowstone, approximately long, in the western United States in the states of Wyoming and Montana. The river was named in 1805 by fur trader François Larocque for the Bighorn Sheep he saw along its banks as he explored the Yellowstone River.The upper...
in Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, as the uppermost post of the Missouri Fur Company on the Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...
. In 1812 Lisa built a replacement fort downriver near present-day North Omaha, Nebraska
North Omaha, Nebraska
North Omaha is a community area in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. It is bordered by Cuming and Dodge Streets on the south, Interstate 680 on the north, North 72nd Street on the west and the Missouri River and Carter Lake, Iowa on the east, as defined by the University of Nebraska at Omaha and the Omaha...
, which he also named Fort Lisa.
History
Although dates vary according to account, at some point in 1806-07 fur trapper Manuel Lisa established Fort Raymond at the mouth of the Bighorn River, where it entered the Yellowstone RiverYellowstone River
The Yellowstone River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately long, in the western United States. Considered the principal tributary of the upper Missouri, the river and its tributaries drain a wide area stretching from the Rocky Mountains in the vicinity of the Yellowstone National...
. This was the first permanent structure of its kind on the Upper Missouri. It was at first just "two rooms and a loft". Lisa named it after his son, but traders also called it Manuel's Fort or Fort Manuel. Lisa built it for the company he and William Clark jointly owned, which was called the St. Louis Missouri Fur Company.
In 1809 Lisa was one of the founders of the St. Louis Missouri Fur Company, later known as the Missouri Fur Company
Missouri Fur Company
The Missouri Fur Company was one of the earliest fur trading companies in St. Louis, Missouri. Dissolved and reorganized several times, it operated under various names from 1809 until its final dissolution in 1830. It was created by a group of fur traders and merchants from St...
, which included members of the Chouteau family, founders of St. Louis. On his fur expedition in 1809 with 300 men, Lisa and his company built another fort further east, near the Gros Ventres village located between the mouth of the Little Missouri and that of the Big Knife rivers in what is now North Dakota. This was named Fort Lisa, or, as in the excerpt below, Fort Manuel Lisa Trading Post. He abandoned Fort Raymond/Manuel and shifted operations to the new post. The famous Astor Expedition
Astor Expedition
The Astor Expedition of 1810-1812 was the next overland expedition from St. Louis, Missouri to the mouth of the Columbia River after the Corps of Discovery, led by Lewis and Clark.-History:...
would have stopped at Fort Lisa in 1811.
The notable Native American guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
, Sacagawea
Sacagawea
Sacagawea ; was a Lemhi Shoshone woman, who accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide, in their exploration of the Western United States...
, died at the first Fort Lisa on December 20, 1812. An 1811 journal entry made by Henry Brackenridge, a fur dealer at Fort Manuel Lisa Trading Post on the Missouri River, stated that both Sacagawea and Charbonneau were living at the fort. He recorded that Sacagawea "...had become sickly and longed to revisit her native country." The following year, John Luttig, a clerk at Fort Manuel Lisa recorded in his journal on December 20, 1812, that "...the wife of Charbonneau, a Snake Squaw
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
, died of putrid fever." He went on to say that she was "aged about 25 years. She left a fine infant girl."
Documents held by Clark show that Sacagawea's son Jean Baptiste had already been entrusted by Charbonneau into Clark's care for a boarding school education, at Clark's insistence." Fort Lisa was abandoned soon after.
Because of difficulties with Indians and shipping at this location, in 1812 Lisa built a third fort downriver about 12 miles north of present-day Omaha
Omaha
Omaha may refer to:*Omaha , a Native American tribe that currently resides in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Nebraska-Places:United States* Omaha, Nebraska* Omaha, Arkansas* Omaha, Georgia* Omaha, Illinois* Omaha, Texas...
. He named this Fort Lisa, too, and shifted his operations to this location. This became the main post of the Missouri Fur Company
Missouri Fur Company
The Missouri Fur Company was one of the earliest fur trading companies in St. Louis, Missouri. Dissolved and reorganized several times, it operated under various names from 1809 until its final dissolution in 1830. It was created by a group of fur traders and merchants from St...
and its successors under various names.
At the time of its establishment, Fort Raymond/Manuel was the first permanent structure of its kind on the Upper Missouri. Lisa established the only trading post in the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
region. This made the Fort instrumental in American relations with local tribes, as well as the early settlement of the Nebraska Territory
Nebraska Territory
The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebraska Territory was created by the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854...
.