Sibley Historic Site

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Sibley Historic Site in Mendota, Minnesota, preserves the home of Henry Hastings Sibley, Minnesota’s first governor and a fur trader. It is one of 26 historic sites run by the Minnesota Historical Society and sits in the Mendota Historic District.

The site has four limestone buildings and a large lawn. Three buildings are open for tours: the Sibley House, the fur company cold store from 1843, and the Faribault House (the 1839 home of fur trader and hotelier Jean-Baptiste Faribault). The fourth building, the Dupuis House (1854), now houses the site offices.

Sibley House history:
- Built in 1835–1836 by more than 100 workers, using limestone blocks from a nearby quarry.
- Sibley lived there as a bachelor for eight years, then married Sarah Jane Steele. After the marriage, the house was expanded with a kitchen, dining room, two more rooms on the second floor, and an office on the east side.
- The office became the temporary territorial headquarters in May 1840 during the early formation of Minnesota Territory.
- Sibley moved to St. Paul in 1862 and sold the house to St. Peter’s Catholic Parish. The Sisters used it as a school and convent from 1867 to 1878, adding a belfry and remodeling the interior.
- In later decades, the house housed different tenants, including artist Burt Harwood as a summer studio (1897–1899). It fell into ruin as a lodging place and storehouse.
- On April 19, 1910, the house was saved from ruin by the St. Paul chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), with help from Mrs. Lucy Shepard McCourt and Archbishop John Ireland. DAR restoration work began, and the house opened to the public on June 14, 1910.
- In May 1997, the DAR transferred ownership to the State of Minnesota, with management by the Minnesota Historical Society. As of 2015, the site is operated in partnership with the Dakota County Historical Society.

Faribault House:
- Located next to the Sibley estate, Faribault House was built in 1839. It is a yellow sandstone house with a red sandstone front.
- Faribault left the house after his wife’s death in 1847, and his grandson George Faribault ran a hotel there. It later fell into disrepair but was restored starting in 1934 as a Public Works Administration project.
- In 1935, the house was turned over to the DAR, who completed the restoration. The house and grounds opened to the public on May 5, 1937.

Dupuis House:
- Built in 1854 for fur trader Hypolite Dupuis, who also served as General Sibley’s private secretary. The house is brick from Milwaukee.
- In 1869, the house was sold to Tim Fee and stayed in the Fee family until 1924. It was remodeled in 1928 to serve as a tea house, with a verandah and later a large glass-enclosed porch.
- The Sibley Tea House became one of Minnesota’s most popular tea spots, attracting thousands of guests until it closed in the 1970s.
- The Dupuis House now houses the Sibley Historic Site offices and the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Tribal Community.