Henry hastings sibley biography

HENRY HASTINGS SIBLEY was born February 20, in Detroit Michigan. His parents were Solomon Sibley, who would become a Michigan Supreme Court Justice, and Sarah (Sprout) Sibley.

He was a direct descendant of John Sibley, who was one of colonists who sailed from England in and settled at Salem, Massachusetts.

Henry attended private schools and spent two years studying the law. He was barely 18 years old when the lure of the west drew him to Sault Ste Marie, where he worked as a trader.

Henry Sibley became a successful businessman, investing in lumbering, river transportation, railroads, and land.

A year later he took a job as a purchasing agent with the American Fur Company. By he was a partner in that company and accepted responsibility for trade with the Dakota Indians. On November 7, , Sibley arrived at the tiny trading post at St.

Peter's (now Mendota Heights MN) in what was then still Michigan Territory.

Sibley learned the Dakota language and was given the name Wah-pe-ton Houska (the tall trader). He was the key figure in negotiations with the Sioux and Ojibway in In , Iowa T