The Joseph R. Brown State Wayside Rest is a

National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...

Wayside Rest area. It is located on Renville County Highway 15, south of

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ( la, Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devo ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, United States. The Wayside Rest displays the granite ruins of Joseph R. Brown's home from 1862. Brown, his

mixed-blood The term mixed-blood in the United States and Canada has historically been described as people of multiracial backgrounds, in particular mixed European and Native American ancestry. Today, the term is often seen as pejorative. Northern Woodla ...

wife and twelve children lived in this home, which was a center of hospitality along the

Minnesota River Valley The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It ris ...

. The three-story home was then considered a mansion compared to typical

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and dev ...

homes. It was destroyed during the

Dakota War of 1862 The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several ban ...

on August 19, 1862. His family was spared because of his wife's Native American heritage.Joseph R. Brown House
Brown was a

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, inventor, publisher, and Indian Agent.

References

External links

Joseph R. Brown State Wayside Rest, Minnesota
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown House Ruins, Joseph Dakota War of 1862 Brown House Ruins Minnesota River State parks of Minnesota Protected areas of Renville County, Minnesota Ruins on the National Register of Historic Places Houses in Renville County, Minnesota National Register of Historic Places in Renville County, Minnesota