Big Timbers and Bent's New Fort: history near Lamar

The stretch of the Arkansas River near Lamar carries a name from long ago: Big Timbers. It was an oasis of cottonwoods on the open plains, a sheltered place where people gathered, traded, and camped for generations. In the early 1850s the trader William Bent built a stone post here, often called Bent’s New Fort, which later served as a government Indian agency and was leased for a time by the U.S. Army.

This is rich, layered ground. Big Timbers was woven into the lives of the Cheyenne and Arapaho peoples, and the wider story of this era includes the Sand Creek Massacre, a violent attack on a Cheyenne and Arapaho camp. These are histories that living communities still carry, so it is good to come ready to learn rather than just sightsee.

Lamar makes a fine base, and the local Big Timbers Museum keeps the name and the region’s story alive. To get the most from a visit, read History Colorado and the National Park Service first for the verified dates, places, and people, lean on the work of the descendant communities whose story it is, and approach any site on the ground with respect.