Fort Larned National Historic Site
Discover a complete and authentic army post from the 1860s -1870s! This well-preserved fort on the Santa Fe Trail shares a tumultuous history of the Indian Wars era. The sandstone constructed buildings sheltered troops who were known as the Guardians of the Santa Fe Trail.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
Hours
| Park Grounds and Historic Buildings | Daily · 8:30AM - 4:30PM |
Hours by date. Standard hours apply on every date not listed.
| Dates | Hours |
|---|---|
| Standard hoursNow | 8:30AM - 4:30PM |
| Nov 26, 2026Thanksgiving Holiday Closure | Closed |
| Dec 25, 2026Christmas Holiday Closure | Closed |
| Jan 1, 2027New Year's Day Holiday Closure | Hours not published |
When to go
May draws the most visits here and January the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Visitor centers
- Fort Larned Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
Located in one of the two historic barracks buildings, the park's Visitor Center features a bookstore with a wide variety of books on Army life, the Plains Indians and the Santa Fe Trail.
Explore
Things to do
- Fort Larned Living History
Fort Larned staff and volunteers help bring the fort to life during the summer with our living history programs.
Opens on the Park Service site - Visit the Fort Larned Blacksmith10-30 Minutes
See a blacksmith practice his art in the Fort Larned blacksmith shop.
Opens on the Park Service site - Picnic at Fort Larned
Pack a picnic lunch and make a day of your visit to Fort Larned!
Opens on the Park Service site - Hike the Fort Larned History & Nature Trail45-60 Minutes
There was more to Fort Larned than the sandstone buildings left standing today. Beyond the Parade Ground was a complex of stables and corrals, along with the mail station that brought the Army here.
Opens on the Park Service site - Tour Fort Larned with a Ranger45-90 Minutes
The best way to see the fort. Check on availability when you arrive.
Opens on the Park Service site - Tour Fort Larned's Original Sandstone Buildings1-2 Hours
See the original, restored sandstone buildings of a 19th century Indian Wars era fort.
Opens on the Park Service site
Show all 8Hide
- Fort Larned Visitor Center30-60 Minutes
The Fort Larned Visitor Center is open daily from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. It is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.
Opens on the Park Service site - See Santa Fe Trail Ruts5-10 Minutes
See the evidence of the passage of hundreds of wagons over the Santa Fe Trail. Tracks like these are the only reminders of a once important trade route through the Southwest.
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
Events
- Christmas Past at Fort Larned12/1210:00 AM · free
News
- Fort Larned National Historic Site Announces Labor Day Weekend Event ↗2026-08-25
Fort Larned NHS will host annual living history weekend September 5-7, 2026 with a theme of "hands on history."
On the National Register nearby
- Patterson HouseBuilding · Larned · 5.9 mi
- Babbitt–Doerr HouseBuilding · Larned · 6.2 mi
- Ooten HouseBuilding · Larned · 6.2 mi
- Jg Edwards BuildingBuilding · Larned · 6.5 mi
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Kansas guidebooks
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Full checklist: 56 birds, 23 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsEastern Screech-Owl · Great Horned Owl · Hen Harrier · Red-tailed Hawk · Turkey Vulture
Waterfowl & wadersGreat Blue Heron · Wood Duck
Shorebirds & seabirdsKilldeer
Gamebirds & dovesCommon Pheasant · Common Pigeon · Mourning Dove · Northern Bobwhite · Wild Turkey
WoodpeckersDowny Woodpecker · Northern Flicker · Red-bellied Woodpecker · Red-headed Woodpecker
Hummingbirds & swiftsChimney Swift
Also on the checklistAmerican Crow · American Goldfinch · American Robin · Baltimore Oriole · Barn Swallow · Bell's Vireo · Black-billed Cuckoo · Black-capped chickadee · Blue Jay · Brown Thrasher · Brown-headed Cowbird · Common Grackle · Common Nighthawk · Common Starling · Common Yellowthroat · Dickcissel · Eastern Bluebird · Eastern Kingbird · Eastern Meadowlark · Eastern Wood Pewee · Eurasian Magpie · Grasshopper Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Great Crested Flycatcher · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Indigo Bunting · Lark Bunting · Mallard · Northern Cardinal · Orchard Oriole · Red-winged Blackbird · Spotted towhee · Warbling Vireo · Western Kingbird · Western Meadowlark · Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Small mammalsAmerican Beaver · Arizona black-tailed prairie dog · Deer Mouse · Eastern Cottontail · Eastern Fox Squirrel · Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew · Hispid Cotton Rat · Hispid Pocket Mouse · House Mouse · Northern Grasshopper Mouse · Plains Pocket Gopher · Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel · Western Harvest Mouse · White-footed Deermouse
PredatorsBobcat · Coyote · common raccoon
Hoofed mammalsMule Deer · White-tailed Deer
BatsBig Brown Bat · Black Bat
Also on the checklistVirginia Opossum · long-nosed armadillo
Activities
Weather & climate
Central Kansas has a four-season climate. Winter tends to be cold and dry, with average daytime highs below 40F (4C). Foehn winds blowing across the Great Plains from the Southwest periodically raise temperatures above 80F (27C). Unsettled warmer air, higher winds, and severe weather arrive in the spring and often last through early July. Late summer days hover above 90F (32C) and readings over 100F (38C) are not uncommon. Fall is variable but generally milder with showers changing to snow and ice later.
Questions people ask
Does Fort Larned charge an entrance fee?
No. Fort Larned is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
What are the hours at Fort Larned?
Standard hours are 8:30AM - 4:30PM, every day. Dated exceptions are listed under Hours.
Source: National Park Service
How busy is Fort Larned?
20,576 recreation visits in 2025, number 326 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is there cell service at Fort Larned?
At the park's reference point, FCC coverage maps show AT&T 4G LTE. No reported coverage for Verizon and T-Mobile. Coverage inside the park varies by location.
Source: FCC Broadband Map
What is the weather like at Fort Larned?
Central Kansas has a four-season climate. Winter tends to be cold and dry, with average daytime highs below 40F (4C).
Source: Weather & climate
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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