Near Pine City in Pine County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Do-It-Yourself Building
— North West Company Fur Post —
Photographed By McGhiever, September 2, 2022
1. Do-It-Yourself Building Marker
Sayer's crew of eight voyageurs built the North West Company Fur Post in six weeks—keeping just ahead of the approaching winter.
The post was built from materials at hand: white pine for the buildings and stockade, and clay to chink the logs and build the fireplaces. By the time the post was completed and firewood was stacked for the coming winter, the crew had felled enough pine trees to level the immediate landscape.
Rebuilding the Past
In the 1930s, a young boy discovered a gunflint that had survived since the North West Company's winter here in 1804-05. Thirty years later, archaeologists from the Minnesota Historical Society excavated the area to find where the stockade and other post structures had been built. Their maps and Sayer's journal were used in constructing a reproduction of the fur post on the same spot as the original.
Erected by Minnesota Historical Society.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Architecture • Forts and Castles. A significant historical year for this entry is 1804.
Location. 45° 49.284′ N, 93° 0.693′ W. Marker is near Pine City, Minnesota, in Pine County. Marker can be reached from Voyageur Lane. The marker is
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 15 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. A Good Place for Beaver (within shouting distance of this marker); Fur Trade Highways (within shouting distance of this marker); Maple Trees (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Wild Rice (about 400 feet away); Snake River Trail (about 400 feet away); Pine City (approx. 2.1 miles away); The Great Hinckley Fire (approx. 13.8 miles away); The Hinckley Fire (approx. 14.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Pine City.
Photographed By McGhiever, September 2, 2022
2. Do-It-Yourself Building Marker on the trail behind the Snake River Fur Post
Photographed By McGhiever, September 2, 2022
3. The reconstructed Snake River Fur Post
The marker is a short distance beyond the rear gate seen here
Credits. This page was last revised on September 25, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 16, 2022, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota. This page has been viewed 62 times since then and 9 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 16, 2022, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
