Fort Orleans Fort Orleans ( sometimes referred to Fort D ' Orleans ) was a French fort in colonial North America , the first fort built by any European forces on the Missouri River . It was built near the mouth of the Grand River near present - day Brunswick . Intended to be the linchpin in the vast New France empire stretching from Montreal to New Mexico , the fort was occupied from 1723 – 1726 . It was the first multi - year European settlement in what is today the U . S . state of Missouri . The fort was established in 1723 on the Missouri River by Étienne de Veniard , Sieur de Bourgmont . It was to be the Missouri River headquarters of the newly claimed " La Louisiane " territory . Like the newly founded New Orleans , Louisiana , it was named for the Duke of Orléans . De Bourgmont had commanded the French fort at Fort Detroit . In 1706 he and other soldiers deserted when criticized by Antoine Laumet de La Mothe , sieur de Cadillac for his handling of a skirmish with attacking tribe members . A French priest and soldier were killed by the Indians , and the French killed 30 Ottawa tribesmen . While on the lam from French authorities , de Bourgmont lived with the Native Americans and explored the lower Missouri . He often traded in furs , although not authorized to do so . Catholic missionaries urged that he be arrested for indecency because of traveling with his Missouri wife and mixed - race child . His base was the Missouri tribal village near where Fort Orleans was to be established . In 1713 de Bourgmont wrote " Exact Description of Louisiana , of Its Harbors , Lands and Rivers , and Names of the Indian Tribes That Occupy It , and the Commerce and Advantages to Be Derived Therefrom for the Establishment of a Colony . " In 1714 , he published an account following travels to the mouth of the Platte River , entitled " The Route to Be Taken to Ascend the Missouri River . " His descriptions and names of rivers , based on names of local tribes , were used by cartographer Guillaume Delisle for the first map of the region . Delisle used " Missouri " for the river rather than " Pekitanoui " , as the explorers Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette had named it after they first viewed it in 1673 . In 1718 Jean - Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville , founder of the Louisiana territory , said that instead of arresting Bourgmont , they should work with him . He recommended that Bourgmont receive the Cross of Saint Louis for service to France . In 1720 Bourgmont and his son , along with a chief , traveled to France , where they were greeted as national heroes . His reputation was enhanced as news arrived that the Pawnee ( who had been friendly with Bourgmont ) had slaughtered the Villasur expedition near modern - day Columbus , Nebraska . This stopped the Spanish from establishing settlements in the Missouri River Valley . Stock for the Mississippi Company rose in price based on forecasts of great riches in Louisiana . Bourgmont was promised a title of nobility if he could build a fort and strike an alliance with the Native Americans to keep the Spanish out of the Missouri valley . Bourgmont stayed in Normandy for a time and married a woman in his hometown in 1721 . In 1722 he returned to New Orleans but was too sick to proceed on an expedition . In the meantime , funds in the Mississippi Company collapsed . He argued with his sponsors over whether a fort was necessary ; he thought it more important to recruit Native Americans in alliances to unite to fight the Spanish , as he believed his mission had not changed . As ordered , he established the fort on November 9 , 1723 , to be garrisoned with 40 French soldiers . In 1724 , Bourgmont traveled up the Missouri River to the Kaw village near Doniphan , Kansas with the objective of establishing friendly relations among the Indian tribes of the region and seeking a trade route to the Spanish colony in New Mexico . With a delegation of Indians from several tribes , he then ventured westward onto the Great Plains to visit their common enemy , the Padouca tribe , near Lyons , Kansas . He smoked a peace pipe to establish peace between the Padouca and the Missouri , Osage , Iowa , Pawnee , Oto , Kaw , and Omaha . The Indians whom Bourgmont called Padouca are believed by some to have been the people later known as Comanche but were more likely Apache . This was the first recorded French visit to them . In celebration , in 1725 Bourgmont escorted the chiefs of the tribes to Paris to show them the " glory of France " , including Paris : the palaces at Château de Marly , Fontainebleau and Versailles ; and to hunt on the royal preserve with Louis XV . Bourgmont returned to his home in Normandy and did not accompany the chiefs back to Missouri . He abandoned his Missouri wife and children . The French abandoned Fort Orleans in 1726 . One story says that when the garrison had been reduced to a contingent of eight soldiers , Native Americans attacked and burned it , killing all the troops . Another story says it was merely abandoned . Possible locations . Archeologists have not found evidence of the fort despite some promising starts , particularly south of the Missouri River . Lewis and Clark visited the area in June 1804 to seek the fort , but reported they found no trace of it . Three possible locations for the fort are :