Caba Wakpa

Caba Wakpa lies on the upper Missouri, where the river runs through broad grassland and cutbanks of clay and gravel. Piikani (Blackfoot) bands ranged along this stretch, following bison herds across the plains and trading hides and dried meat with river traders. The Missouri itself was the main route for trade boats carrying cloth, guns and metal tools into the country. In 1828 the American Fur Company built Fort Union at the mouth of the Yellowstone, and traders soon established posts farther up the river to draw in the Blackfoot trade.