Gingras Trading Post State Historic Site

Get In Contact

Gingras Trading Post State Historic Site ,
12899 105th St. NE,
Walhalla, ND 58282
Copy Address | Address copied to clipboard

The Gingras Trading Post State Historic Site preserves the 1840s home and trading post of Métis legislator and businessman Antoine Blanc Gingras, northeast of Walhalla, Pembina County. Métis, meaning "mixed blood" or "mixed race," is a term used by people of combined Indian and European ancestry to describe themselves. Gingras was a prominent fur trader, who in 1861 claimed a net worth of $60,000 and later increased his holdings to include a chain of trading posts extending across northern Dakota Territory and southern Manitoba. Gingras's hand-hewn oak log store and home are among the few tangible remains of the fur trade in the Red River Valley.

Both buildings on Gingras State Historic Site have been restored to their original appearance. While the logs are exposed on the two-story trading post, clapboard siding covers the log structure of the house. The siding was added soon after the house was built. The house has been painted in its original historic colors, as determined by study of traces of the original paint. The exterior is deep red with white trim, and the interior reproduces the original color scheme of blue walls, yellow floors, pink ceilings, an green and brown trim. Interpretive panels are located on the grounds.

The site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Follow them on:

All Features

  • Activities
    • Self-guided Tours
  • General Information
    • Family-Friendly,
    • Free Admission

48.937005, -97.891064

Gingras Trading Post State Historic Site

Open in MapsOpen in Maps