Fort Kiowa Fort Kiowa , originally named Fort Lookout , was a 19th - century American Fur Trading post located on the Missouri River near the present day communities of Chamberlain and Oacoma , South Dakota . Built in 1822 to serve the expanding Fur Trade in the American West , this 140 foot square fort served as an important rest and trade stop for famed explorers such as Jim Bridger and Hugh Glass . In the early 1840s , as the American fur trade moved further west , Fort Kiowa was abandoned and remained that way before being flooded by the ever - growing Missouri River in later years . Early history . When Thomas Jefferson , the third president of the United States , completed the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 he opened a great deal of free land for American fur traders . Forts quickly sprung up along rivers and overland trails to act as parts of the nationally run factory system . The factory system was a nationally funded and operated system , in which Native Americans would meet at certain forts and exchange furs for finished goods . The American government had hoped that nationalizing the fur trade would prevent the debauchery caused by the trading of alcohol with the Natives . The Factory System eventually failed for many reasons . First , the men working the factories were ex - military men and not experienced fur traders . These men often mishandled the furs resulting in major profit shifts . Second , the government failed to stop all private traders who bribed Natives with alcohol . Eager to get access to liquor , the Natives would break treaties with the government to get it . Lastly , the factories were not permitted to give presents to Natives or assimilate into Native culture as many private fur traders could . Miscegany , or intermarriage between two cultures , was a major uniting force between private fur traders and natives that strengthened their relationship . With the demise of the factory system , private companies emerged and made large sums of money . Included in these were Manuel Lisa of the Missouri Fur Company and John Jacob Astor of the American Fur Company . These men were two of the richest men in America during this time . These private companies established forts that acted as rest stops for trappers . Among the most well regarded forts was Fort Kiowa , also known as Fort Lookout . Fort Kiowa was constructed in 1822 by Joseph Brazeau Jr . of the Berthold , Chouteau , and Pratte French Company . Brazeau fortified the 140 - square - foot fort with a blockhouse and watchtower to guard against Crow and Sioux attacks . Fort Kiowa soon became well known as the jumping off point for the 1823 trading expedition known as “ Ashley ’ s Hundred , ” which included traders Hugh Glass and Jim Bridger . Several months after the journey began , Glass was brutally attacked by a grizzly bear . Glass was able to kill the bear , but suffered many serious life - threatening wounds in the process . Glass ’ partner Jim Bridger was instructed by a commander to remain with Glass until he died , and then bury him before reuniting with the rest of the party . However , Bridger was chased off by a group of Arikaree natives . Glass was left alone to die . Bridger returned to the hunting party and reported to his commander that Glass had perished . However , Glass was able to miraculously set his own wounds and crawl more than 200 miles back to Fort Kiowa . This story of perseverance and determination has a special place in western folklore . Late history . In 1827 , Bernard Pratte purchased Fort Kiowa from Brazeau and made significant improvements . Pratte added several four room log houses , a storehouse , and a smith shop . Furthermore , Pratte encircled the fort with a wooden picket fence roughly twenty or thirty feet high to prevent Native attacks . Thus fortified , Fort Kiowa was expanded into a major trading post for Natives in the region . Later in the same year , John Jacob Astor purchased Fort Kiowa from Pratte for his rapidly expanding American Fur Company . Astor , who was the first multi - millionaire in America , bought Fort Kiowa to establish his presence in the upper Missouri and to further his monopoly on the American fur trade . Astor found the upper Missouri river area to be extremely prosperous . However , in the late 1830s , Astor ’ s American Fur Company was forced to abandon Fort Kiowa as the once lucrative fur trading business was no longer profitable due to several factors . First , there was a scarcity of beaver caused by rapid overhunting by intruding trappers . Second , there was a lack of public demand in America and Europe for pelts , as a new style , silk hats , was gaining prominence . Lastly , the intrusion of American trappers on what natives perceived as their land angered Native tribes who began to revolt against the trappers . As supply and demand both declined , fur trading in America faced extinction . In 1840 , Joseph LaBarge a former steamboat captain , bought Fort Kiowa as a wintering post and Indian Agency . LaBarge housed many Indian agents whose job was to monitor and control trade between Native tribes and Euro - Americans . These agents lost popularity among the latter , who tended to view them as exploiters of the Native peoples , corrupt leaders who acted in their own interests . Popular opinion was relatively accurate as many Indian Agents were replaced during the 1840s after corruption was discovered . Under LaBarge ’ s ownership , Fort Kiowa was an unsuccessful venture , and as a result he abandoned it within the year . LaBarge is the last known inhabitant of Fort Kiowa . Today . Fort Kiowa is currently underwater due to the widening of the Missouri River banks . However , the area where Fort Kiowa once stood is recognized as a National Historic Fort of South Dakota . Fort Kiowa is advertised as a tourist attraction in which adventure - seeking tourists can follow the same path Hugh Glass did in 1823 . Today two small towns , Oacoma and Chamberlain , South Dakota , share the land where Fort Kiowa once resided . According to the 2010 census , there was 451 people living in Oacoma and 2 , 387 people living in Chamberlain . These small towns take great pride in the events that transpired at Fort Kiowa .