Fort Parker was the first Crow Indian Agency established by the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. Constructed in the spring of 1869, its beginnings paralleled a change of attitude and policy initiated by President Ulysses S. Grant when he took office the same year. As the first agency for the Crow Tribe, Fort Parker marked the beginning of a forced transition from their traditional buffalo hunting lifestyle to a sedentary ranching/farming subsistence.
In 1875, the agency moved to a site on the Stillwater River near present day Absarokee, Montana. The Tribe would come to suffer much hardship during this period. The buffalo had all but disappeared, forcing total dependance on the government for their survival.
For the Crow Tribe this is a place of great difficulty and change but it was also a place where ancestors were born, married and died. This is a place where significant events occurred that shaped who the Crow are today and as such, this is a place that should be known, protected and preserved.
We have been working closely with the Archaeological Conservancy to purchase the site of Fort Parker, the first Crow Indian Agency, for preservation and education. See our work on Fort Parker under “Projects” above. If you would like to contribute to this important preservation project, you can donate online at https://donate.archaeologicalconservancy.org/ Choose Fort Parker on the drop down menu next to “Designation” and all of your contribution will go towards this project. Thank you for your support!
September 3, 2013 at 10:36 pm
Please email us as soon as a book is available (as mentioned in the Billings Gazette July 11, 2013).
charolettez@bresnan.net
or phone 307-754-1611
or mail info to 996 Lane 11 1/2 Powell, WY 82435
October 19, 2013 at 5:15 pm
We sure will, William! Thanks for your interest!
October 26, 2013 at 1:35 am
THANKS
January 30, 2014 at 3:18 am
I lead a Native American Focus group at the Clark County Genealogical Society in Vancouver, Clark County, Washington. One of my group is a registered Crow, with ties to Mitch Bouyer and Margaret Wallace. It will be wonderful to follow your history posts. Thanks so much for your site.
January 30, 2014 at 3:21 pm
Great, Carolyn! We would love to get in touch with your group member. We are currently doing oral histories with Crow descendants of Fort Parker folks. Please put him or her in touch with us if they would be interested in filling out that history. Also, make sure you like our Fort Parker Facebook page. We update that regularly with Fort Parker and Crow tribal news. Here’s the link: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fort-Parker-The-First-Crow-Agency/112603772092834?ref=hl