The Bent’s Fort Chapter of the Santa Fe Trail Association is pleased to announce that Dr. Gary L. Roberts will give a presentation on the Sand Creek Massacre Saturday, July 9.  The presentation will be held at the Grand Theatre, 405 S. Main Street in Rocky Ford, at 1:00 p.m.  There will be a brief chapter meeting prior to the presentation.

Dr. Roberts’ presentation titled, “Bent’s Fort and the Road to Sand Creek”, will follow the path of people and events leading from the renowned multicultural relationships that defined the Bent’s Fort era to the unimaginable tragedy of the Sand Creek Massacre, only two decades later.  His focus will include how the Bent's Fort connection impacted the tribes and indirectly introduced fresh fissures in tribal organization, as well as discussing the attitudes of Arkansas valley settlers toward the Cheyennes and Arapahos. 

Dr. Roberts, Emeritus Professor of History, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, in Tifton, Georgia, began researching the Sand Creek Massacre in the 1960s. In writing his most recent book on the Sand Creek Massacre, Massacre at Sand Creek: How Methodists Were Involved in an American Tragedy, he consulted with the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church on the role Methodists played in the Massacre.  He has also consulted with the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana, and the Northern Arapaho Tribe of Wyoming. In addition to authoring several publications, he has made numerous presentations to organizations in Colorado including the Order of the Indian Wars, History Colorado, and the Tesoro Foundation.  

This is a free event open to Chapter members along with members of the community.  It is hoped that many of our Southeastern Colorado neighbors will join us for this informative talk.   

This program is being co-sponsored by the Bent's Fort Chapter and the Sand Creek Massacre Foundation. The Foundation is a non-profit organization that supports the educational initiatives of the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site. More information can be found at https://www.sandcreekmassacrefoundation.org