By While working on a different Kansas post from earlier this year, I realized that I didn’t actually post about visiting Fort Larned National Historic Site in late 2025. I am going to fix that now. Both of these sites are free to visit and are worth the time.
Pawnee Rock State Historic Site
Before we actually visited Fort Larned, we stopped by Pawnee Rock. Pawnee Rock was the half-way point between Independence, MO and Santa Fe, NM. The actual height of this hill is a guess because it was mined a little bit for the sandstone. Pawnee Rock was also a good marker for those traveling the Santa Fe Trail to let them know they were on it.
There is not a ton to do here besides learn about the history. It is a small site and free to visit. Just because it is small does not mean that it is not an important part of history.
Fort Larned National Historic Site
Fort Larned was a military installation, opposed to something like Bent’s Old Fort that was a trading post. And I will give you three guesses on what trail it was meant to guard. 1… 2… 3… If you guessed the Santa Fe Trail, you are correct. This fort was built specifically to deal with the “Indian Problem.” I have a lot of thought on this part of American history. Actually, it’s the same thing we are doing now, running over the people in the way in the name of “progress.”
This is an important part of history, we need to remember what happened. We need to remember why this fort was built. We need to remember the people that lived off this land. We need to consider the people currently living off this land and what is happening to their resources. We need to decide if we are going to allow history to repeat itself.
History doesn’t just tell us about people that lived in the past. It doesn’t just tell us about places. History tells us what humans are capable of, what we have always been capable of no matter the century. It also teaches us what we can do together. I’m not sorry the direction this post went, sticking our heads in the sand will do nothing. Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Thank you KW Photography for allowing me to use your wonderful photos!
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