Wamego in Pottawatomie County, Kansas — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Fort Leavenworth - Fort Riley Military Road
Photographed By Jeremy Snow, March 25, 2024
1. Fort Leavenworth - Fort Riley Military Road Marker
East of this marker is where the Military Road and the Oregon/California trail crossed the Vermillion River. The crossing was named for Louis Vieux, who was of Native American and French descent. He established a toll bridge there in the 1850s and charged a dollar per outfit. He also supplied immigrants with grain and hay.
About three tenths of a mile west of this marker is where the trails split with the Military Road going southwest toward Louisville and to Fort Riley while the Oregon/ California trail went northwest toward Westmoreland. To the southeast on the east bank of the Vermillion Creek was the site of Hard Chief's Kansa Village in the 1830s. In 1842 Lt. John C. Fremont found the deserted village of Hard Chief which the Pawnees had attacked and set some of the homes on fire.
This marker was erected in 2017 courtesy of:
Pottawatomie County
Rock Creek Valley Historical Society
Don Combs Memorial
Citizens Pottawatomie Society
Text by: Doug Tippin from historical research by Morris Werner and Louise Barry
Erected 2017.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Roads & Vehicles • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1842.
Location. 39° 15.384′
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. The Vieux Crossing & The Military Road (here, next to this marker); Vieux Cemetery (approx. ¼ mile away); The Vieux Crossing (approx. 3.8 miles away); Sand and Quartz Boulder (approx. 4.6 miles away); 1893 Chicago World's Fair Statues (approx. 4.6 miles away); Old Dutch Mill (approx. 4.6 miles away); Colonel Raymond E. Morris, USAF Retired (approx. 4.7 miles away); World War Memorial (approx. 4.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Wamego.
Photographed By Jeremy Snow, March 25, 2024
2. Fort Leavenworth - Fort Riley Military Road Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on May 9, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 7, 2024, by Jeremy Snow of Cedar City, Utah. This page has been viewed 35 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 7, 2024, by Jeremy Snow of Cedar City, Utah. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
