ABSTRACT
The war had a direct impact on the safety and livelihood of the Osage and their new American neighbors. Fort Osage, Kansas City, Missouri, was built in 1808 as the western most, American military post and trading factory. It was established as part of the Osage Treaty to trade with and protects the Osage tribe, but it also benefited other local tribes, like the Otoe and Missouria. During the War of 1812, Fort Osage was abandoned and temporarily replaced by Sibleys Fort downriver and served without a military detachment as a trading factory. After the war, Fort Osage was regarrisoned until its permanent closure but its trading post was previously shutdown with the termination of the Federal Factory System. By the twentieth century, the precise location of Fort Osage and Sibleys Fort had been forgotten. Archaeological research has played an important role in locating, preserving, and interpreting both sites for the public, living history programs, and museum exhibits.
