Mountain Men

During the mountain men era of the 1820s and 1830s, thousands of trappers roamed the American West. European fashion demanded beaver hats for men and this new trend caused a boom in the trapping activity in the Colorado territory.

By 1840, the fur trade ended because of changing fashion taste and economics. However, mountain men were soon employed as “guides” for explorers eager to chart the unknown West. Their frontier knowledge and skills would assist in opening up the region for settlement.

Fur Trade

Fur trappers ranged throughout western Colorado by the 1830s. In 1828, Antoine Robidoux established a trading post, Fort Robidoux, on the Gunnison River near present-day Delta. This was Colorado’s first “general store” west of the Continental Divide. Today, you can visit Fort Uncompahgre in Delta to experience what life was like at a historic trading post.

The ivory inlay shows a sun on the handle of the gun. This sun represented the French Sun King, Louis XIV.

Trappers used all kinds of traps and snares depending on the animal they were hunting. These are long-spring traps and they were used for small animals like muskrat and mink. MWC Collection

A mink stole once worn by a very fashionable woman.

Trappers hunted beaver and other game animals.

The butt of the gun has been modified with the addition of a lion head, representing the British Crown.

A very rare bag once used by a trapper to transport his belongings and a powder horn used to store gunpowder. MWC Collection.

Skinning knife. The blade of this particular knife has been worn down by use. It was once much longer and wider. MWC Collection.

A very unique 17th century pistol and an important piece of history. This pistol is French, English and uniquely American. It would have been a trappers prized possession. MWC Collection.