Contributor

Citysearch

In Short – Henry Sibley, fur trader and Minnesota's first governor, lived in a rambling trading-post-turned-house in the riverside hamlet of Mendota. Restored (along with related buildings), it is full of fur-trade stuff and the trappings of frontier gentility - pelts, muskets, loads of blue china. The guides' stories of Sibley and company are vivid snapshots of hard white guys in a Native world. Make sure to arrive no later than 3:30pm for a complete tour.