Fort Larned

Fort Larned National Historic Site Junior Ranger Program Explore, Learn, Protect Carved in Stone The American people have set aside special places to preserve for future generations. The National Park Service cares for these places. At Fort Larned, we’ve been preserving and protecting the fort’s original sandstone buildings since the park was formed in 1966. As a Junior Ranger you can be part of that preservation effort and help keep them safe for future generations. As you tour the fort you’ll notice many names and dates carved into the walls of the fort’s buildings. These carvings date mainly from the private ownership period between 1884 to 1966. If allowed to continue over time, though, carving on the sandstone walls is just as destructive as the erosion of wind, rain and snow. The best way to help us preserve this national treasure is to not touch the sandstone buildings as much as possible when visiting and NEVER carve anything on the walls for any reason. Preservation in the Park Service is not just the job of the park rangers, it’s for everyone to whom these treasures belong. On the last page of this booklet is space for you to write down some of the more interesting carvings you see on the fort’s walls during your time here. The Park Service Arrowhead - The Arrowhead represents historical and archaeological treasures. - The Tree represents all vegetation. - The Mountains represent land formations, scenery, and recreational opportunities. - The Lake represents clean water and recreational opportunities. - The Bison represents wildlife. Fort Facts The Santa Fe Trail, established in 1821, cut through the heart of Plains Indian territory. Fort Larned was established to help protect the U.S. mail and commercial traders attacked on the trail by the Indians, who resented this invasion of their homeland. Look through the museum exhibits to find the answers to the following questions. 1)What year was Fort Larned established? ______________ 2) How many battles or skirmishes would the average soldier fight in during a five year enlistment?_____________ 3) Find the Mail Station interactive and pick a city. How long would it take for the mail to get there from Fort Larned? ____________________________________________________________ 4) What year did the Buffalo Soldiers arrive at Fort Larned? _____________________________ 5) Which Spanish explorer led the first European expedition across the Great Plains? _____________________________ 6) When was the Santa Fe Trail established? ___________________________________________ 7) Name two Plains Indian tribes that lived in this area. _________________________________ 8) Name two reasons why Plains Indian tribes raided. _________________________________ 1 A Fort LARNED ADVENTURE Use the words in the word bank to fill in the blanks in the story below. dominoes Infantryman sentry Kiowa bunkies Cavalryman Larned Sutler’s Store barracks Creek hospital horses Army Private Johnson is a foot soldier in the U.S. ________________ in 1868. He is an ________________________ and is stationed at Fort _______________. Sometimes he works with soldiers who ride and fight on horseback known as ____________________. He works in the __________________ helping the Army Surgeon care for the sick patients. Some evenings he spends time with the rest of his _____________ in the ________________ playing a game of ________________. Other evenings he is on duty at the _____________ box. One time, Pvt. Johnson was ordered to hunt down some ______________ that had strayed from the fort. This outing made him a bit nervous. Earlier in the day a band of _______________ had visited the _____________ _____________ to buy ammunition. He found his charges, led them safely across Pawnee ____________, and returned them to the fort without incident. 2 What Is It? Find each of the objects below in the fort buildings and take your best guess on what it is. 3 Did you know? The blacksmith, known as the “smithy”, was not actually in the army. He was a civilian who worked for the Quartermaster Department. He had to take care of any metal work the Quartermaster gave him. What does the word civilian mean? ________________________________________________ Soldiers were issued only a certain amount of uniform items per year during their enlistment. The soldiers could pick up their uniform items in the Quartermaster Warehouse Issue Room. List three separate items issued to soldiers. 1. 2. 3. Uniforms were made of ___ ___ ___ ___ . Shoes like these, called brogans, were worn by Fort Larned soldiers. Brogans (also called bootees) wore out quickly because the infantry soldier walked up to 20 miles every day! How many pairs of brogans were issued to one soldier in 5 years? ___________ 4 Be a history detective! Find the items on this list. Tell us where you found them, don’t take them from the park. Taking anything from a National Park or hurting any of the plants or animals is against the law! Drum _________________________ Medicine Bottle ____________________ Brick Oven _____________________ Ambulance ___________________ Hammer and Anvil _____________________ Shackles _________________________ Map of the United States ____________________ Ham ________________________ Cannon ______________________ Folded American Flag ______________________ Stuffed Golden Eagle ______________________ Pitcher and Wash Bowl ____________________ Piano _____________________ 5 Traveling the Trail The Santa Fe Trail spanned 800 miles. Examine the map carefully. List the five states the Santa Fe Trail traveled through. 1)______________________ 2)______________________ 3_____________________ 4)______________________ 5) ______________________ Wagon trains on the Santa Fe Trail averaged 15 - 20 miles per day. It took them about eight weeks to travel from Independence, MO to Santa Fe, NM. In the space below write where you came from to get to Fort Larned. If you traveled by wagon train, how long would it take you to get from your home to Fort Larned? 6 Personal History Plains Indians used bison hides to record their tribal history in what was known as a winter count. Every winter they would draw one important event from the year on the hide. Draw an important event in your life in the space below. 7 Everything You need For the Plains Indians, the American bison was like a department store. Everything they needed for their daily lives came from either the bison, other large animals like deer, or the plants they gathered on the prairie. Match the bison parts on the left with the everyday items the Plains Indians made out of them on the right. Rope Bones Hide Cup Hair Thread Shovel Horn Sinew 8 Tipi Carved in Stone Use the space below to write down some of the interesting names and dates you found on the buildings. One last question....Why do you think it’s important to preserve Fort Larned? 9