If you’re in the Seattle area, make sure you check out the Fort Nisqually Granary, a historic building in Point Defiance Park. This building was once a fur trading post and farming community. It was used as a meeting place for Native Americans. Today, you can see the historic building from the park’s parking lot.
Fort Nisqually was a fur trading post
Founded in 1670, the Hudson’s Bay Company established trading posts throughout the Northwest and Canada. One of these locations was Fort Nisqually in the DuPont area. This station was named after the nearby Nisqually River. It was a multi-ethnic community, with a workforce that included Englishmen, French Canadians, Native Americans, and other tribes.
Today, Fort Nisqually is a living history museum. It features exhibits about daily life and the workings of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Children and adults can explore interactive exhibits and engage in hands-on activities. They can also look at objects that were used by people living during the mid-1800s.
In the 1830s, the Hudson’s Bay Company began construction on Fort Nisqually. They used cedar to build buildings and farmed surrounding lands. They also traded blankets and guns with Native Americans. The company remained in the area until 1869, when it was sold to the United States government. After this, a former employee of the HBC homesteaded the land in the town.
Fort Nisqually was an important gathering place for Hudson’s Bay Company employees, Native Americans, and American settlers. It was an important link in the HBC’s network that stretched across the Pacific Northwest. As a result, it had a strong economic and social relationship with the local Native tribe, the Sequalitchew Nisqually band.
The Hudson’s Bay Company did not operate the fort as a military outpost, but rather relied on trading. The fur trade gave the company profits, which eventually led to the post’s closure in 1869. After this, the HBC shifted its focus from trading to agribusiness.
The Hudson’s Bay Company built Fort Nisqually in 1833. The fort served as a major trading port and the first European settlement on Puget Sound. The Hudson’s Bay Company also built Fort Vancouver and Fort Langley. Eventually, Fort Nisqually was sold to the U.S. government.
The site is located 1.5 miles east of Puget Sound. The fort is accessible through a trail along Sequalitchew Creek. A small sign identifies its location and describes what it was used for. The site itself is surrounded by a low black chain-link fence and locust trees.
It was a farming community
By the 1850s, Fort Nisqually was already home to a thriving farming community. The HBC had set up a subsidiary, the Puget’s Sound Agricultural Company, to oversee the production of grains, meat, and livestock. By 1852, the company claimed over 160,000 acres of land in southern Puget Sound. Most of the land was farmed for cattle and sheep.
The Hudson’s Bay Company had founded Fort Nisqually in 1833 as a fur trading outpost. After two years of trading, Fort Nisqually began turning its attention to commercial agriculture. Livestock and crops were grown in order to be shipped to Europe and Asia. In 1855, the community was surrounded by American territory. This resulted in increased pressure from American settlers.
Today, the site is owned by the City of DuPont. The 1833 Fort and its surrounding buildings are now a living history museum. The site still has two original buildings, including a trade store and a working blacksmith shop. There is also a demonstration kitchen and a kitchen garden. Some changes were made to Fort Nisqually in the past few years, designed to preserve the original character. One of these changes is the restoration of the Factor’s House. Another addition is a section of the palisades wall.
After the war, the Hudson’s Bay Company sold off its interests in the area and withdrew from the area. The last Hudson’s Bay Company manager, Edward Huggins, decided to make the area his homestead. He stayed in the area until his death in 1907.
The fort’s granary grew potatoes, turnips, and oats. It also produced cheese and butter. The area’s soil was made of gravel and stones. Farmers needed a lot of rain to grow crops here. The fort also had a large dairy with 70 cows. The dairy produced a substantial amount of butter and cheese. It also produced large quantities of wheat, peas, and oats.
The Fort was located near a large population. It was midway between Fort Vancouver and Fort Langley, and was convenient for Hudson’s Bay employees traveling on Puget Sound. It was easily accessible by canoe and was close to a vast source of timber.
It was a meeting place for Native Americans
In the 1830s, the Hudson’s Bay Company established Fort Nisqually above the delta of the Nisqually River. The site is now a historical museum and features two original buildings. Visitors can explore the trade store, working blacksmith shop, and laborer’s dwelling house. There are also interactive activities.
Fort Nisqually was abandoned in 1869 after diminishing profits from the fur trade led to ugly tax disputes. After that, the site was rebuilt in Point Defiance Park in Tacoma, Washington. The restoration project was part of the New Deal program to help our nation recover from the Great Depression. The WPA and the Tacoma Businessmen’s Association helped fund the restoration of the fort. Unfortunately, not all of the fort’s original buildings were moved to Point Defiance.
Fort Nisqually was an important meeting place for Native Americans during the early 1800s. In addition to the granary, the blockhouse was used for a variety of purposes, including gatherings and trading. For many Native Americans, the Fort was a place to make trades and to discuss the status of the region.
Fort Nisqually never served a military purpose, but its palisade is similar to the stockades of a frontier army. The fort closed in 1869 due to American tax collectors and traders. Today, it is a museum dedicated to native American history and culture.
It was moved to Point Defiance Park
Fort Nisqually was an important fur trading and farming post that belonged to the Hudson’s Bay Company’s Columbia Department. It was located in DuPont, Washington. Today, visitors can tour the historic Fort Nisqually Granary.
The Fort Nisqually Granary is the oldest building in Washington State, built in 1843. The historic museum has been located at the park since 1905. Nearby, visitors can visit Snoqualmie Falls, Washington’s largest waterfall. The mighty falls cascading down are surrounded by a two-acre park and observation platform. It is an important cultural site for the Snoqualmie people, who use it as a traditional burial site.
The original site is a protected archaeological site. Today, two of the original buildings were moved to Point Defiance Park in Tacoma. The historic park was created as part of a New Deal program to provide jobs to a nation that was still reeling from the Great Depression. Funding for the project came from the WPA and the Tacoma Businessmen’s Association. The original Fort Nisqually Granary Seattle is now part of Point Defiance Park.
The park is home to miles of forested trails. It is also home to a one-acre rose garden, which is free to visit. It was originally a military reservation, and it never saw active military operations. In 1888, it was officially designated a park for the general public. Nowadays, visitors can enjoy sweeping views and old-growth forest paths. The area is also home to harbor seals.
Fort Nisqually was the first European settlement in the area and was built on the delta of the Nisqually River. It was transferred to American control in 1859. The Fort Nisqually granary and the Factor’s house were moved to Point Defiance Park in Tacoma. Today, the park is home to the Fort Nisqually Living History Museum.
In the 1890s, the historic Fort Nisqually Granary was moved to Point Defiance Park to provide more space for the park. It used to be accessible by streetcar. Today, the park is a popular tourist destination.
