Mormon Pioneers at Fort Laramie

The plaque's ferry belongs to another crossing. Brigham Young's journal for June 4, 1847 records paying James Bordeaux $15 for the use of the fort's ferryboat, after a small party had first rowed over in the company's own leather boat, the Revenue Cutter. The ferry Young left men to run was built about two weeks later at the last crossing of the North Platte, near present-day Casper, where nine stayed behind to work it for pay. Bordeaux told Young his was the most civil and best behaved company ever to pass the fort.

What the plaque says

Mormon Pioneers at Fort Laramie Between the years 1847 and 1868,most of the approximate 80,000 Mormon Pioneers passed through Fort Laramie. This was the first stop for the vanguard company after leaving Winter Quarters, (near Omaha) Nebraska. In June, 1847, after following a faint trapper trail on the north side of the Platte River, the Pioneers reached Fort Laramie. Brigham Young, with a number of his party, crossed the river and walked up to the fort. At this time the fort was called Fort John. It was owned by the American Fur Company and managed by James Bordeaux who greeted Brigham Young and the others. From Bordeaux they learned that they needed to cross the river at this point because the marshy terrain on the north side of the river would soon make travel impossible, so the Pioneers made arrangements to cross the river on a large flatboat. Realizing that many others would need to cross the river at this point, the Pioneers built the first ferry in this area. Brigham Young left men to run the ferry which was used for over twenty years, aiding not only Mormons but all others who followed. The present Fort Laramie is now a National Historic Site and dates mainly from the Civil War era. This marker, in the town of Fort Laramie, marks the approximate place that the Pioneers actually crossed the river. Site No. 49 Mills Chapter, National Society Sons of Utah Pioneers Dedicated August 16, 1992

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Fort Laramie National Historic Site — 2.2 mi
  Old Bedlam, the officers' quarters of 1849, survived the auction that scattered the rest of the post; an 1875 Army bridge still crosses the river.
• Register Cliff State Historic Site — 10 mi
  The first camp out of Fort Laramie, where the oldest date on the rock reads 1829 and three emigrants never left.
• Oregon Trail Ruts State Historic Site — 12 mi
  The clearest wagon ruts on the trail, worn by iron tires and cut deeper by travelers who hacked at the ledge to get their wagons over.

More markers nearby

• Fort Laramie National Historic Site — 0.5 mi
• Old Army Bridge Over the Platte River — 0.8 mi
• Fort Platte — 1.1 mi
• The Greatest Ride in History — 2.3 mi