George Grinnell, whose information on Bent's Fort came primarily from George Bent and the memories of other Southern Cheyennes, once wrote that several peacocks were at the fort, and that their "...plummage and harsh voices astonished and more or less alarmed the Indians, who called them thunder birds, nun-um'a-e-vi-kis."
Grinnell also noted that "The post was abundantly supplied with poultry, for pigeons, chickens and turkeys had been brought out there and bred and did well."
Alexander Barclay, writing from Bent's Fort before 1840, suggested that the arrival of "...about thirty chickens" would help to improve the fort's rather mundane daily cuisine. In addition, Wislizenus noted that the fort's ample courtyard had "...many barnyard fowl."
The history of the chicken industry within the United States suggests that prior to 1850 there was little interest in improving the methods of poultry production. However, mention of artificial hatching and incubation first appeared in the U.S. in 1843 and 1847.
Chicken breeds at Bent's Fort may have included a mix of Mediterranean leghorns and other "Spanish" fowl with distinctly American varieties of Dominiques, Rhode Island Reds, and Barred Rocks. It is also interesting to note that Barclay mentioned "four turkeys" at Bent's Fort. Taken within the context of Barclay's writings, it is very clear that he was referring to domestic rather than wild birds.
The turkeys of which Barclay writes were descendants of Mexican fowl, possibly crossed with English game birds. These domesticated turkeys had lost much of the agility and brilliancy of colors that are a trademark of their wild progenitors.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service