Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
National Historic Site · ND, MT
Between 1828 and 1867, Fort Union was the most important fur trade post on the Upper Missouri River. Here, the Assiniboine and six other Northern Plains Tribes exchanged buffalo robes and smaller furs for goods from around the world, including cloth, guns, blankets, and beads. A bastion of peaceful coexistence, the post annually traded over 25,000 buffalo robes and $100,000 in merchandise.
- NPS site
- nps.gov/fous
- Location
- Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site (48.001, -104.038)
Track your visit to Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
NP Tracker keeps a record of every National Park Service unit you visit — all 430-plus of them. Log visits with dates and photos, collect passport stamps, plan trips, and watch your map fill in. It's free.
Passport stamp locations
- Bourgeois House Visitor Center
- The Bourgeois House
Hours
Park Hourstoday: 9:00AM - 5:00PM
- Sat Oct 39:00AM - 5:00PM
- Sun Oct 4Closed
- Mon Oct 5Closed
- Tue Oct 69:00AM - 5:00PM
- Wed Oct 79:00AM - 5:00PM
- Thu Oct 89:00AM - 5:00PM
- Fri Oct 99:00AM - 5:00PM
Upcoming closures: Nov 26 (Closed Thanksgiving Day)
Hours are in the Central time zone.
Hours are retrieved from the National Park Service and can change without notice — check the official site before you go.
Visitor centers
1
- Bourgeois House Visitor Centertoday: 9:00AM - 4:30PMDirections
Self-guided tours
2
Outpost on the Missouri Self-Guided Tour30–90 minutes · 10 stops
Outpost on the Missouri Self-Guided Tour takes visitors through the reconstructed historic site. This roughly 1/3 mile tour utilizes a cement walkway, packed gravel, and prairie grass for travel paths and includes one elevation rise (hill) of approximately 20 feet.
Walking Tour Winter Season60–120 minutes · 7 stops
Experience the unparalleled beauty of the Upper Missouri's winter season as you embark on a self-guided tour of our reconstructed buildings, Visitor Center, and Park Store. Discover the most significant building on-site, which housed the fort's "brain," and explore the reconstructed building that the renowned artist George Catlin used as his painting studio during his visit in 1832. Don't forget to bundle up to stay warm!
Entrance fees
No entrance fee.