Copy these terms to your notes and begin brainstorming with a partner what you know

about them.

•Jesuit•Calumet•Mission/ Missionary•Portage•Great Lakes

French Exploration of The Illinois River and the Mississippi River

Louis Jolliet Jacques Marquette Robert de La Salle

LOUIS JOLLIET•1645-1700•Born in colony of New France (present-day Canada) and began exploring for the French Crown in 1668-’69.*•Was chosen by Colonial Governor Comte de Frontenac to lead a westward expedition In 1673. **•Was a fur trader and also anexperienced and talented map maker. *Jacques Marquette, "The Mississippi

Voyage of Jolliet and Marquette," American Journeys. **Roger Biles, Illinois: A History

of the Land and Its People (Dekalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2005), 9.

Jacques Marquette•Born in Laon, France in 1637.•Became a Jesuit Priest in 1654, and cameto New France in 1666.*•Built and founded the mission of Saint Ignace in present day Michigan in1671.* •Was also selected by Frontenac to accompany Jolliet in order to carry Catholicism into the North American interior.** (It was customary for a priest to be involved in such trips*) •Learned and was able to speak severaldifferent dialects of Algonquin Indianlanguage.

*Jacques Marquette, "The Mississippi Voyage of Jolliet and Marquette," American Journeys. **Roger Biles, Illinois: A History

of the Land and Its People (Dekalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2005), 9.

*Jacques Marquette, "The Mississippi Voyage of Jolliet and Marquette," American Journeys.

Voyage of 1673

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0nNXeD1fPA • Frontenac and French Crown desired a route to the Pacific

Ocean.* From Marquette’s journal: “(Jolliet) told them that he was sent by Monsieur our governor to discover new countries, while I was sent by God to illumine them with the light of the holy Gospel.”

• Jolliet, Marquette and 5 other men embarked in 2 canoes from St. Ignace on May 17, 1673.

• Jolliet’s journal and maps were destroyed, leaving Marquette’s journal as the only source on the voyage, which was the first documented excursion by Europeans on the Mississippi River.

Voyage of 1673

• Traveled through Wisconsin to reach the Mississippi River and entered the Mississippi River on June 17th, 1673.*

• Voyage was considered to be dangerous, and Marquette wrote that different Indian tribes consistently warned him and Jolliet to turn back.*

• Had mostly cordial and reciprocal relations with Native American tribes. Gifts of Calumet were often exchanged.

• Turned back toward Canada just past the Arkansas River and followed the advice of Indians to take the Illinois River back to Lake Michigan along the way. They discovered a portage of only 2 miles to Lake Michigan.**

*Jacques Marquette, "The Mississippi Voyage of Jolliet and Marquette," American Journeys. **Roger Biles, Illinois: A History

of the Land and Its People (Dekalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2005), 9.

Robert de La Salle•Also known as René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle. (No, you don’t need to remember all of that, but be aware that you may see him referred to as any combination of those names.) •Born in 1643 in Rouen, France.•In 1682 he led the first European expedition down the Mississipi River to the Gulf of Mexico, with the help of allied Indian groups.*•Was enlisted to once again try to find route to the Pacific. Traveled to the Mississippi via the Illinois River and built Fort Crèvecoeur at present day Peoria.**•Upon reaching the Gulf of Mexico, he claimedLands extending all the way to the Rockies for France, and this became known as Louisiana. *Alan Taylor, American Colonies (New York:

Penguin Books, 2001), 382. **Roger Biles, Illinois: A History of the Land and Its People (Dekalb: Northern Illinois University Press,

2005), 11.

Robert de La Salle

• On his return trip to Canada, La Salle established for St. Louis along the Illinois River at Starved Rock.*

• During an attempt to reach the Gulf directly from France in 1684 his final ship became ruined, leaving La Salle and his crew shipwrecked in Texas. He was killed by his crew in 1687.**

*Roger Biles, Illinois: A History of the Land and Its People (Dekalb: Northern Illinois

University Press, 2005), 12. **Enchanted Learning, "René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle: North American Explorer," Zoom

Explorers.