Fort Union Trading Post in northwest North Dakota was the most important fur trading post on the upper Missouri River from 1828 to 1866. At this post, Indians traded buffalo robes and other furs for trade goods such as beads, clay pipes, guns, blankets, knives, cookware, cloth, and especially alcohol. Fort Union was built in 1828 near the confluence of the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers in what is today northwest North Dakota. Established first as Fort Floyd, the site became the flagship fur trade operation for the American Fur Company of St. Louis. By the mid-1830's, the fort was a major trade site, attracting a wide number of Indians such as the Assiniboine, Blackfeet, various Dakota bands, as well as the Mandan, and Hidatsa. Historic visitors to the fort included John James Audubon, George Catlin, Father Pierre DeSmet, Sitting Bull, Karl Bodmer, and Jim Bridger. Fort Union was closed as a trade operation in 1866.
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