Fort St. Charles (Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, Minnesota)
Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota · Minnesota · French colonial expansion
History & Significance
On Magnuson's Island he built a palisaded fort which he named in honor of Charles de Beauharnois, governor of New France. It was the longest occupied French post in Minnesota and is the only French Fort in the state where the remains of a contemporary Indian habitation area have been located nearby.
From it expeditions were launched and supplies dispatched to newer posts around Lake Winnipeg, with Indians bringing furs to trade for white men's goods, and these pelts sent by canoe to Montreal. The fort was abandoned in 1749.
In 1890 Father Aulneau's letters sent to family in Vendée, France were discovered and translated and published in 1893, contributing to archaeological work on the Jesuit Relations. By 1908 the old fort location had been established, and the group that found the fort discovered the skulls of nineteen voyagers from the 1736 expedition.
Begun in 1949, the Knights of Columbus completed reconstruction of the fort in 1950. The restored Fort St. Charles is included on the National Register of Historic Places, and is considered one of the most important historical sites in Minnesota.
Key Facts
Map
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🧳 Visiting
What you’ll see when you visit:
- French colonial trading post on Magnuson's Island in Lake of the Woods
- Reconstructed 1950s fort showing La Vérendrye's westward fur-trade expansion
- Historic shrine and pilgrimage site operated by Knights of Columbus
- Island setting accessible by boat with views of the lake landscape
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Saint_Charles
- https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=8375
- https://fortstcharles.com/about/
- https://mn.gov/admin/archaeologist/the-public/mn-archaeology/contact-period/
- https://mntrappers.org/history-2/
- https://fortstcharles.com/history/