Visiting the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort

I finally made it to the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort in Downtown Las Vegas. I’ve been living in the Las Vegas area for nearly 20 years now and this is the first time I’ve visited the Mormon Fort. The weather has been over 100 degrees Fahrenheit for a few weeks now, but there was one day with a break in the heat so I thought that would be a great time to finally see the landmark. I could be outside without getting too overheated!

Even though The Duchess of Idaho takes place on the Oregon Trail in 1850, I had a feeling I could still learn a lot from visiting the Mormon Fort, and I was right. According to the park’s website, the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort was the first non-native settlement in the Las Vegas Valley in Southern Nevada.

The exterior structure features the remains of an adobe fort built by Mormon missionaries along what was a spring-fed creek in 1855, but which today is little more than a running flow of mud. After all, we are facing severe drought here in the western United States.

What is the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort?

In the middle of the 19th century, the creek provided irrigation for fields and orchards. The 150 square-foot outpost served as a way station for travelers in a similar way that the seven forts along the Oregon Trail, including Fort Laramie, Fort Bridger, and Fort Boise, provided rest and a chance to replenish depleted supplies for the westward-bound pioneers.

As a state park, the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort is small, but it has a lot of interesting historical information, especially for someone like me who is writing a story set during this time period. One of my favorite spots was the recreation of a ranch house from the mid 19th century. Don’t be surprised if this room ends up in The Duchess of Idaho!

I also loved the wagon sitting in the courtyard of the fort. Although the wagon is missing a white canvas cover, I could still picture pioneers walking alongside a vehicle similar to this one as they made their way West.

I found many other goodies in the museum and I took pictures of everything from cooking utensils, to the vehicles, to a wax figure of a mid 19th century U.S. soldier, to a piano, to a spinning wheel. I know that as I work to bring the Oregon Trail to life, everything I saw at the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort will be extremely helpful. I’m inspired by images, and the photographs will allow me to describe what I saw for my readers.

It isn’t always necessary to board an airplane to find interesting places for historical research. Sometimes we can find gems right in our own backyard.