Links to History of the Fur Trade in the Minnesota Region

Fort Union Trading Post -- located in the northwest corner of North Dakota, this National Historic Site preserves the history of the American Fur Company's longest lasting fur trade post in the continental U.S.  Tours of the site are available.  A related web site contains information on the history of the trading post and background on the large collections of fur trade records and artifacts preserved from the post's operations.

Grand Portage National Monument -- managed by the National Park Service, this site in the arrowhead of Minnesota features reconstructed buildings of the fur trade post that existed here in the late 1700s and early 1800s.  The web site provides a background statement about the monument and directions for visiting it.

Lower Fort Garry, National Historic Site (Canada) -- this site has some historic background on the use of this fort by the Hudson's Bay Company for supplying trappers.

Mountain Men and the Fur Trade -- this web site has an excellent bibliography on the fur trade across the western parts of North American, plus numerous maps and images.

The North West Company Fur Post -- maintained by the Minnesota Historical Society, this site has a great deal of information on the fur trade and its impact on the early history of Minnesota territory.

The Sibley Historic Site -- maintained by the Minnesota Historical Society, this site features the 1836 home of Henry Hastings Sibley, first governor of the state.  Sibley was head of the American Fur Company post in this area in the 1830s, and the site has much information on the fur trade.

Voyageurs National Park -- one of the National Park Service's parks in Minnesota, the park's Visitors' Center has a nice overall of the fur trade.