If you want to stay for dinner after one of these presentations, you will need to make reservations ahead of time on The Fort's website. Walk-ins for dinner may not be guaranteed a reservation.
Fur Trade Era Card Games and Hand Talk
Bill Gwaltney has studied and shared the history of the American West’s Fur Trade for over 50 years. His passion began in Boy Scouts and led to creating the enduring Mountain Man Outpost at Goshen Scout Reservation. A longtime National Park Service interpreter, he held roles from Ranger to Assistant Regional Director at sites like Bent’s Old Fort and Fort Laramie. Throughout his career, he connected with leading Fur Trade historians to deepen and share his knowledge.
"Fortune & Fun: Card Games of the Fur Trade"
Learn card games once played during the Western Fur Trade era. These games offered not only entertainment but also opportunities for cultural exchange and trade. Bring pennies from home to use as markers.
Date & Time: Friday, September 5, 2025 ~ 3:30-4:30 PM
"Silent Barter: Indian Hand Talk in Trade"
Plains Indians and traders from Missouri and Mexico created a sign language for communication and trade.
Date & Time: Friday, September 26, 2025 ~ 3:30-4:30 PM
Cost: $10/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
Historical Presentations by John Steinle
John Steinle, a native of Hamilton, Ohio, earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Dayton in 1972. After several years as a commercial artist, he decided to pursue a career in history.
Steinle is the co-author with Richard Scamyhorn of Stockades in the Wilderness: The Frontier Forts and Settlements of Southwestern Ohio, 1788-1795, plus Evergreen, Conifer, and Colorado in the Civil War for Arcadia Publishing, and Colorado and the Silver Crash for the History Press. Since 1975, Steinle has been a member of many different living history and reenactment groups such as the 1st Colorado Volunteers Civil War unit and the American Military Living History Association.
"Pandemics of the Santa Fe Trail"
Date & Time: Friday, October 24, 2025 ~ 4:00-5:00 PM
Cost: $10/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
"George Bent, Man of Many Worlds"
Date & Time: Friday, November 14, 2025 ~ 4:00-5:00 PM
Cost: $10/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
Back by Popular Demand!! New Stories from the Homeland
"The Purity of a Child's Heart"
Stories for the child in all of us.
Date & Time: Friday, January 16, 2026 ~ 4:00 to 5:00 PM
Cost: $15/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
"Stories of Miraculous Women "
Stories of love and redemption.
Date & Time: Friday, February 6, 2026 ~ 4:00 to 5:00 PM
Cost: $15/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
"La Gloria, Heaven Above "
Stories of faith and religion.
Date & Time: Friday, February 27, 2026 ~ 4:00 to 5:00 PM
Cost: $15/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
"Fooled You Again! "
More stories of fools, tricksters, and wise simpletons.
Date & Time: Friday, March 13, 2026 ~ 4:00 to 5:00 PM
Cost: $15/person ~ Buy tickets HERE!
Angel Vigil
Angel Vigil is a Colorado Heritage Artist storyteller who has performed throughout the nation at festivals, universities, schools and art centers. His specialty is the oral traditions of the Hispanic Southwest.