National Register of Historic Places

Faribault, Alexander, House

Faribault, Rice County, Minnesota
Listed
September 21, 1970
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
70000309

About this property

The Alexander Faribault House is a historic house museum in Faribault, Minnesota, United States. Built in 1853, it was the first wood-frame house constructed in Rice County, Minnesota. It was built by fur trader Alexander Faribault in the Greek Revival style. Besides serving as a house, it also served as a civic center, polling place, and a church. The local address of the house is 12 First Avenue, Faribault, MN. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. Alexander Faribault, son of Jean Baptiste Faribault, was a contemporary of Henry Hastings Sibley and served as his secretary for a time. In 1835, Alexander Faribault set up a trading venture at the confluence of the Straight River and the Cannon River. He had a relationship of mutual respect with the Dakota Indians with whom he traded, even to the degree of sheltering friendly Indians during the Dakota War of 1862. In 1853, he built a large frame house. His house reflected his prosperity, with nine bedrooms, a music room, a parlor, a sitting room, an office, a kitchen, a summer kitchen, and a sewing room. Part of his wealth came from "traders' claims" stemming from the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux, but he was also the proprietor of a sawmill and a flour mill. In turn, he was generous to the community, donating $3,000 to Bishop Henry Benjamin Whipple for the church and for Shattuck School. He also donated land for the Seabury Divinity School. He served as a delegate to the Minnesota Territorial Legislature and remained friends with Henry Mower Rice and Henry Hastings Sibley, even though Rice and Sibley were personal and political enemies. National Register of Historic Places listings in Rice County, Minnesota Media related to Alexander Faribault House at Wikimedia Commons Rice County Historical Society: Alexander Faribault House Historic American Buildings Survey: Alexander Faribault House

Location

12 1st Ave., NE
Faribault, Rice County, Minnesota
44.29085, -93.26694

Categories

COMMERCEARCHITECTURESOCIAL HISTORY
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Faribault Viaduct
Industrial
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Noyes, Jonathon L. and Elizabeth H. Wadsworth, House
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0.1 mi

Nearby Battles

Northfield Bank Raid (James-Younger Gang)
1876Frontier
12.7 mi
Northfield Bank Robbery — Jesse James Raid
1876Frontier
12.7 mi
Northfield Minnesota Bank Raid
1876Frontier
12.9 mi

Questions about this property

When was Faribault, Alexander, House listed on the National Register?

Faribault, Alexander, House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 21, 1970.

What type of historic resource is Faribault, Alexander, House?

Faribault, Alexander, House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Faribault, Alexander, House?

The period of significance for Faribault, Alexander, House is recorded as the industrial era.

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