Bainville in Roosevelt County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

An Imposing and Elaborate Establishment

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 16, 2019

1. An Imposing and Elaborate Establishment Marker

Inscription. Fort Union, one of the largest and best known trading posts in the American West, was located on the Missouri near the mouth of the Yellowstone, about 14 miles southeast of here. Built in 1828, it was the headquarters for the American Fur Company’s newly created Upper Missouri Outfit. From the fort, the company ruthlessly crushed its opposition while conducting a profitable trade with the Assiniboine, Gros Ventres, Mandan, and Blackfeet Indians. Fort Union was a substantial post with stone blockhouses on opposite corners of the stockade, which enclosed the manager’s opulent residence, a barracks, warehouses, a powder magazine, and stables. Guests to the remote outpost were comfortably housed, well-fed, and lavishly entertained by the company’s manager. There was also, however, a dark side to the post. Its history was “a continuous series of conspiracies, family feuds, sieges, pitched battles, drunken brawls, and cold blooded murders.” By 1840, the price of furs and hides fell and Fort Union began a long decline. In 1865, the U.S. Army took over the post. Two years later the army dismantled the buildings and moved them across

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the Missouri to construct Fort Buford.

Erected by Montana Department of Transportation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and Castles • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1828.

Location. 48° 8.795′ N, 104° 10.377′ W. Marker is in Bainville, Montana, in Roosevelt County. It is on U.S. 2 at milepost 666 near Highway 405, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Bainville MT 59212, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Missouri River Country.

It is also in the American Mountain West,

in the Lewis & Clark Corridor,

on the prairies,

on the Great Plains,

and specifically on the Northern Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 12 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Stepping "Off the Map" in the Louisiana Territory (approx. 11.8 miles away

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 16, 2019

2. An Imposing and Elaborate Establishment Marker

in North Dakota); River Interstates (approx. 11.8 miles away in North Dakota); Gravel Pits (approx. 11.8 miles away in North Dakota); Lewis and Clark Trail (approx. 11.8 miles away in North Dakota); The Prairie (approx. 11.9 miles away in North Dakota); Dwelling Range (approx. 11.9 miles away in North Dakota); Outpost on the Missouri (approx. 11.9 miles away in North Dakota); Bourgeois House (approx. 11.9 miles away in North Dakota).

Photographed by Karl Bodmer, circa 1833

3. Fort Union

Credits. This page was last revised on December 27, 2024. It was originally submitted on November 27, 2019, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 1,129 times since then and 97 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 27, 2019, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.