The French Explorers Series
(1524-1763)
Program Three:
The Exploration of the Mississippi River:
Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
INTRODUCTION TO THE SERIES
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
This four part series examines the exploration and colonization of North America
by France. These programs were filmed at important historical sites mainly in
France, Canada, and the United States.
The first program looks briefly at early European exploration and the quest for a sea
route to Asia. Then the program examines the explorations of Giovanni da
Verrazano and Jacques Cartier. France’s first attempt at colonization in Florida is
also presented in this program.
The second program examines the important role of Samuel de Champlain in
founding the first successful French colonies in North America: those of Acadia and
New France.
The third program examines the French exploration of the Mississippi River and
focuses on at the explorations of LaSalle, Jolliet and Marquette.
The fourth program examines the four “French and Indian Wars” and the eventual
loss of the French colonies in North America to Great Britain. This program also
offers a look at colonization of Louisiana and the events leading up to the Louisiana
Purchase.
INTRODUCTION TO THE PROGRAM
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
Viewing Time: 15 minutes with a one-minute
Five-question Video Quiz
Grades 5-9
This program examines the roles of Louis Jolliet, Father Jacques Marquette, and
Rene Robert Cavelier (La Salle) in exploring the Mississippi River. The program
also profiles King Louis XIV and offers a brief look at the French fur trade on the
Great Lakes.
LINKS TO CURRICULUM STANDARDS
McRel Standards
World History Standards
Grades 5-8
Era 6 - Global Expansion and Encounter, 1450-1770
Standard 26: Understands how the transoceanic interlinking of all major regions of the
world between 1450 and 1600 led to global transformations
Standard 27: Understands how European society experienced political, economic, and
cultural transformations in an age of global intercommunication between 1450 and 1750
Standard 29: Understands the economic, political, and cultural interrelations among
peoples of Africa, Europe, and the Americas between 1500 and 1750
Standard 31: Understands major global trends from 1450 to 1770
United States History Standards
Grades 5-8
Era 1 - Three Worlds Meet (Beginnings to 1620)
Standard 1: Understands the characteristics of societies in the Americas, Western Europe,
and Western Africa that increasingly interacted after 1450
Standard 2: Understands cultural and ecological interactions among previously
unconnected people resulting from early European exploration and colonization
INSTRUCTIONAL NOTES
Before presenting these lessons to your students, we suggest that you preview the
program, review the guide, and the accompanying Blackline Master activities in order to
familiarize yourself with their content.
As you review the materials presented in this guide, you may find it necessary to make
some changes, additions or deletions to meet the specific needs of your class. We
encourage you to do so; for only by tailoring this program to your class will they obtain
the maximum instructional benefits afforded by the materials.
PRE-TEST
Pre-Test is an assessment tool intended to gauge student comprehension of the objectives
prior to viewing the program. Explain that they are not expected to get all the answers
correct. You can remind your students that these are key concepts that they should focus
on while watching the program.
STUDENT/AUDIENCE PREPARATION
Set up a Learning Center with pictures, maps, diagrams and charts etc. relevant to
the topics presented in this program.
Visit http://geography.about.com/library/blank/blxindex.htm/blxlebanon.htm
for free printable, blank outline maps of North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Pass out copies of Blackline Master # 5, Timeline of historical events and copies of
Blackline Master # 6, Vocabulary of relevant words and terms.
STUDENT OBJECTIVES
After viewing the program and completing the follow-up activities, students
should be better able to:
•
Describe the contributions to North American exploration made by
Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle.
•
Discuss King Louis XIV and the notion of absolute monarchy
•
Describe the importance of the French claim to the Mississippi River
Valley
•
Discuss the work of the Catholic missionaries in the French colonies.
•
Locate on a map of North America: the Mississippi, Wisconsin, Ohio,
Missouri, Illinois, St Lawrence, and Illinois Rivers, Lake Superior, Lake
Erie. Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Sault Ste. Marie, Niagara
Falls, Straits of Mackinac, Anticosti Island, the Gulf of Mexico, The
French Colony of Louisiana, and Matagorda Bay, Texas,
INTRODUCING THE PROGRAM
Duplicate and administer Blackline Master # 1, Pre-Test. Remind your students that
they are not expected to know all the answers. Suggest that they use these questions as a
guide for taking notes on the key concepts while viewing the program. The program
could be introduced by discussing the strategic importance of the Mississippi River, the
Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River.
VIEW THE PROGRAM
Running Time: 15 minutes plus a one-minute, five-question Video Quiz.
DISCUSSION TOPICS
After viewing the program you may find it helpful to discuss these topics as a class. (You
may also choose to use these topics to begin a discussion prior to viewing the program.)
• The Iroquois wars against other native tribes in the 1600s.
• The importance of Roman Catholicism in the French colonies.
• How land was distributed in the French colonies
• What life was like in French colonial North America in contrast to life at the
royal palace of Versailles.
• How the French fur trade operated in colonial times.
• Compare and contrast the French, English and Spanish colonies in North
America.
DESCRIPTION OF BLACKLINE MASTERS
Blackline Master # 1, Pre-Test, is an assessment tool intended to gauge student
comprehension of the objectives prior to viewing the program.
Blackline Master # 2, Post-Test, is an assessment tool to be administered after viewing
the program and completing additional activities. The results of this assessment can be
compared to the results of the Pre-Test to determine the change in student
comprehension.
Blackline Master # 3, Video Quiz, is intended to reinforce the key concepts of the
program following the presentation of the program. Student awareness that a Video Quiz
will be given also helps promote attention to the video presentation.
Blackline Master #4, Crossword Puzzle, is a puzzle game based on information
presented in the Vocabulary
Blackline Master #5, Timeline and Activity, is a chronological list of important events
and an activity based on that list
Blackline Master #6, Vocabulary and Activity, is a list of important words and terms
with a fill- in- the blank exercise.
EXTENDED LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Research papers, oral reports, debates, news reports, or PowerPoint® presentations could
be done on the following subjects:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The life of La Salle, his explorations, and his personal difficulties.
The life of Father Marquette
The life of Louis Jolliet
The life of King Louis XIV
Life at the royal palace of Versailles
The French fur trade
Canoes: How they were made and used by explorers and fur traders
A comparison of the English, Spanish, and French colonies in North America at
the time when Marquette, Jolliet, and La Salle were exploring the Mississippi
River.
The Iroquois and the Illinois Indians
ANSWER KEY
Blackline Master # 1, Pre-Test
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
True
False, Marquette spread the Catholic faith to the Native Americans
True
True
True
Blackline Master # 2, Post-Test
A. True or False
1. False, Louis XIV was a strong believer in the monarchy not democracy
2. True
3. True
4. False, Marquette spread the Catholic faith not Protestantism
5. True
6. True
7. True
8. True
9. False, LaSalle reached it from the north but never from the Gulf
10. False, There were many more English colonies than French colonies.
B. Fill in the blanks
1. absolute monarch
2. Mackinac
3. Illinois
4. Montreal
5. Chose from guns, knives, blankets, iron pots, beads, gunpowder, and liquor.
Blackline Master #3, Video Quiz
1. True
2. True
3. True
4. False, LaSalle was the European explorer first to reach the mouth of the Mississippi
River
5. False, LaSalle tried to found a French colony in Texas
Blackline Master # 4, Crossword Puzzle
Blackline Master # 5, Timeline Activity
1.1666
2.1669
3.1664
4.1682
5.1685
Blackline Master #6, Vocabulary Activity
1. Strategic
2. Jesuits
3. Rendezvous
4. Hostile
5. Straits of Mackinac
RESOURCES
Web sites for teachers:
About Geography
http://geography.about.com/library/blank/blxindex.htm/blxlebanon.htm
Free blank outline maps of North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Education Place
http://www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/index.html
Free outline maps of North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Museum of New France, Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation
The Explorers
http://www.civilization.ca/vmnf/explor/explcd_e.html
A very user friendly web site that includes great links with detailed stories of the French
explorer’s and maps of their journeys.
World Book
Christopher Columbus and the Great Age of Exploration/French Explorers
http://www2.worldbook.com/wc/popup?path=features/explorers&page=html/newworld_f
rench.html&direct=yes
Great web site that includes useful links and maps of the routes of European explorers as
well as information on their impact on the lives of Native Americans.
Books for the classroom:
Dorling Kindersley Children’s Atlas, Dorling Kindersley Publishing, London: DK
Publishing, Revised edition September, 2003, ISBN 0789458454
Beautiful children’s atlas packed with maps, photographs, illustrations, and charts. It also
contains “fun-filled facts” and a useful glossary.
LaSalle and the Exploration of the Mississippi, Harmon, Daniel E., Philadelphia, Chelsea
House Publishers, 2001, ISBN, 0791059529
Easy to read chapter book takes the reader from LaSalle’s first expedition to his last.
Included are pictures, maps, glossary, and a timeline.
Great Explorations, LaSalle, Down the Mississippi, Faber, Harold, New York,
Benchmark Books, Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 2002, ISBN 0761412395
This book is full of pictures and maps that help tell the story of LaSalle’s life as an
explorer. The story begins with a description of what life was like in France and shares
with you LaSalle’s five journeys, his hardships, and great claim for France.
The Explorers and Settlers: A Source Book on Colonial America (American Albums from
the Collections of the Library of Congress,) Smith, Carter, The Library of Congress,
Millbrook Press Inc., Brookfield, Connecticut, 1991, ISBN 156294035X
Describes and illustrates the first discoveries and settlements in North America. Included
are beautiful images and descriptive timelines of major events during the early
explorations and settlements of North America.
Marquette and Joliet: Voyagers of the Mississippi, Syme, Ronald, New York, N.Y.,
William Morrow and Company, 1974, ISBN 0688201059
A descriptive biography for young readers.
Battles In A New Land: A Source Book on Colonial America (American Albums from the
Collections of the Library of Congress,) Smith, Carter, The Library of Congress,
Millbrook Press Inc., Brookfield, Connecticut, 1991, ISBN 1562940341
With the use of historical maps, images and descriptive timelines, this book provides a
clear picture of the conflicts that occurred from the days of the first American settlers to
the Revolutionary War.
Champlain: A Life of Courage, Jacobs (First Book Explorer), William Jay, Scholastic
Library Publishing, 1994, ISBN 0531201120
This book includes the: Wars of Religion, Champlain’s first voyages to Canada,
interactions with the Native Americans, his adventures and heroic battles, the founding of
Quebec through his later years of exploration and expanding the Catholic Church in
North America.
The French and Indian War, World History Series, Minks, Louise and Benton, Lucent
Books, San Diego CA. ISBN 1560062363
This is a useful introduction to the series of conflicts that occurred between England and
France back in the 1600s and 1700s. It provides an overview of early European
exploration of the New World, the impact of exploration on Native Americans, alliances
between Native Americans and Europeans, important battles up through to the Peace of
Paris, which officially ended the French and Indian War. This book includes useful
timelines, photographs, and stories that are intended to keep the reader interested.
Jolliet and Marquette: Explorers of the Mississippi River, Harmon, Daniel E., Chelsea
House Publishers, Philadelphia, 2002, ISBN 0791064263
This is the story of Jolliet and Marquette and their expedition to explore the Mississippi
River.
The Fall of Quebec and the French and Indian War, Ochoa, George, Silver Burdett Press,
Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1990, ISBN 0382099508
This book opens with maps of North America before and after the French and Indian War
and from there goes on to tell the story of the fall of Quebec to Great Britain. This book
describes the rivalry between France and England and the impact it had on the
development of Canada and the Thirteen Colonies.
BLM 1
Name________________________
PRE-TEST
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
Directions: Answer each of the following either True or False:
1. Back in the 1600s King Louis the14th personally held all the political power in
France.
2. Father Jacques Marquette was a Protestant missionary.
3. Back in the French colonies a rendezvous was a meeting between fur traders and
fur merchants.
4. Jolliet and Marquette thought that the Mississippi River might flow into the
Pacific Ocean.
5. LaSalle was the first French explorer to reach the mouth of the Mississippi River.
BLM 2
Name________________________
POST-TEST
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
Directions: Answer the following either true or false
1. King Louis the 14th was a strong believer in democracy.
2. LaSalle traveled back and forth between New France and France several times
to discuss his explorations and ideas with the king.
3. The governor of New France asked Louis Jolliet to explore the Mississippi
River hoping that it might be the Northwest Passage to Asia.
4. Jacques Marquette dedicated his life to spreading the ideas of Protestantism in
North America.
5. Back in the late 1600s the English colonies had a much larger population than
the French colonies.
6. For part of their lives LaSalle and Jolliet were both active in the French fur
trade.
7. The Straits of Mackinac is the narrow channel that links Lake Huron and Lake
Michigan.
8. Jolliet and Marquette never reached the mouth of the Mississippi River.
9. LaSalle was the first explorer to reach the mouth of the Mississippi from the
Gulf of Mexico.
10. By the time LaSalle died the number of French colonies in North America
greatly exceeded the number of English colonies.
Fill in the blanks:
1. Historians refer to King Louis the 14th as an ____________________ because he
personally held all of the political power in France.
2. The Straits of __________________ became an important center of the French
fur trade because of its excellent location.
3. The lands the lay to the south of the southern end of Lake Michigan were once
known as the _____________ country.
4. Fur merchants from the colonial city of ____________ crossed the Great Lakes
in canoes to rendezvous with fur-traders.
5. Three of the most common trade goods that were exchanged for furs in the late
1600s were _________, ___________, and __________.
BLM 3
Name________________________
Video Quiz
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
Answer each of the following questions either True or False:
1. True or False? Versailles was the palace of King Louis the Fourteenth.
2. True or False? At a rendezvous furs were traded for guns and other goods.
3. True or False? Jacques Marquette once lived on the Straits of Mackinac.
4. True or False? The first French explorer to reach the mouth of the Mississippi River
was Louis Jolliet
5. True or False? LaSalle attempted to found a French colony in Florida.
BLM 4
Name________________________
CROSSWORD PUZZLE
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
Questions for Eclipse Software
1. This French explorer was also a Catholic missionary.
2. This French explorer was the first to reach the mouth of the
Mississippi River.
3. This small boat was a favorite mode of transportation
among the French fur traders.
4. This vast area in the center of North America claimed by
France was named after a famous King.
5. These are small streams that flow into larger streams.
6. The first (but unsuccessful) French colony near the Gulf of
Mexico was in what is today this state.
7. These are the largest bodies of freshwater in the world.
8. This French explorer also worked as a mapmaker for the
government of New France.
9. This was a route across North America to the Pacific Ocean
long sought after by explorers.
10. This was the most important river in New France.
BLM 5
Name________________________
TIMELINE
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
1637 – Jacques Marquette is born in Laon, France, on June 1.
1643 – LaSalle is born in Rouen, France.
1645 – Louis Jolliet is born in Quebec City, New France.
1656 – Marquette joins the Jesuit order and spends the next 10 years studying and
teaching in France.
1661 - King Louis the Fourteenth of France orders construction to begin on the Palace of
Versailles.
1663 - King Louis the XIV decides to bring France’s North American colony of New
France more firmly under his control. He sends two thousand five hundred people from
France to settle there under his rule.
1664 - After a series of battles, Dutch territory in North America is transferred to
England. The Dutch colony of New Netherland becomes the English colony of New
York.
1666 – LaSalle sails to New France. Marquette is sent to New France to perform
missionary work with the Indians
1667-1678 – France is at war with Spain.
1668 – Father Marquette establishes a mission among the Ottawa Indians at Sault Sainte
Marie (rapids on the St. Mary’s River) near the eastern end of Lake Superior.
1669 - Marquette goes to the St. Esprit mission on Lake Superior and works among the
Huron and Ottawa Indians. LaSalle begins a three-year period of exploring into the
wilderness of Ohio.
1669 to 1671 - Jolliet explores and maps much of the Great Lakes region for the
government of New France. During this time he is also a fur trader and operates an
outpost at Sault Ste. Marie.
1671 - Marquette moves with Huron and Ottawa Indians to the St. Ignace mission on the
Straits of Mackinac.
1673 - Governor General Comte de Frontenac of New France sends Jolliet to find the
Mississippi and trace its course. Marquette, a Catholic missionary who knows Native
American languages is chosen to accompany Jolliet.
1673 – Jolliet and Marquette with five others depart Michilimackinac (the Straits of
Mackinac) to explore the Mississippi River as far as the Arkansas River.
1674 - Marquette sets out from near present-day Green Bay, Wisconsin, to establish a
mission among the Kaskaskia Indians near Ottawa, Illinois.
1674 - La Salle visits France. King Louis XIV gives him land that includes Fort
Frontenac, on the site of the present city of Kingston, Ontario. La Salle establishes a fur
trading post at the fort and soon becomes one of the most powerful men in Canada.
1675 - Father Marquette dies of an intestinal disorder on his way to St. Ignace from
Illinois.
1677 – LaSalle again sails to France, where he obtains permission from King Louis to
explore the Mississippi River.
1679 - La Salle launches an expedition to give France control of the Great Lakes region.
1680 - LaSalle founds the first European settlement in what is now Illinois on the Illinois
River, near present-day Peoria. He names it Fort Crevecoeur (Fort Heartbreak)
1681 - Fort Crevecoeur is destroyed. La Salle leads a party of about 20 Frenchmen and
about 30 Indians in canoe down the Illinois River to the Mississippi.
1682 – LaSalle explores the Mississippi River south to the Gulf of Mexico. Near the
mouth of the Mississippi, La Salle erects a cross and a column bearing the French coat of
arms. He claims all the land drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries for France and
names it Louisiana.
Later in 1682 - La Salle builds Fort Saint Louis on a bluff along the Illinois River. This
bluff is now in Starved Rock State Park.
1683 – LaSalle returns to Paris to promote the colonization of the Mississippi River
Valley.
1684 – La Salle sails from France for the Gulf of Mexico with four ships and over 300
colonists to start a new French colony near the mouth of the Mississippi River.
1685 - LaSalle is unable to locate the mouth the Mississippi River and sets up a colony,
also called Fort Saint Louis, near Matagorda Bay in Texas instead. Indians threaten the
new settlement, and many colonists die from disease.
1687 – Having lost all his ships to storms, pirates, and accidents, La Salle and several
men begin an overland march to find the Mississippi, which they plan to follow to
Canada. But they cannot find the river and LaSalle is murdered by some of his own men.
Timeline Activity
By looking at the Timeline, fill in the correct year(s):
1. Father Marquette and LaSalle independently left France for New France in
___________.
2. Father Marquette went to a mission on Lake Superior called St. Espirit in
___________.
3. The Dutch handed over their North American colony to England in _______.
4. LaSalle arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi River in ___________.
5. LaSalle landed at Matagorda Bay, Texas in ___________.
BLM 6
Name________________________
VOCABULARY LIST AND ACTIVITY
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
The Exploration of the Mississippi River: Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
(1672-1687)
Absolute monarch – A monarch who wields complete political power. King Louis the
14th was an absolute monarch.
Anticosti Island – A large island that is located at the mouth of the Saint Lawrence
River. King Louis the XIV gave this island to Jolliet as a reward for his role in the
discovery of the Mississippi River.
Bewildering - Confusing
Birch-bark – The bark of the birch tree that was used for making canoes.
Catholic – A member of the Roman Catholic Church.
Catholicism – The faith and practice of a Catholic church.
Cavelier, Rene Robert – The French explorer LaSalle. (His official title was the Sieur,
or Lord, de La Salle)
Christening – Naming
Colonization – The establishment of political, economic and military control over an
area in a distant land called a colony.
Colony – An area that is controlled by a distant country.
Down-stream – Heading in the direction towards the mouth of the river.
Encounter – To meet
Expedition – A journey made by a group of people in order to explore or search.
Great Lakes – The five largest (connected) bodies of freshwater in the world bordering
the United States and Canada including, Lake Michigan, Huron, Erie, Ontario, and
Superior.
Green Bay – A large bay of Lake Michigan located in northern Wisconsin. Site of a
French mission in the late 1600s.
Hostile – Actively unfriendly, war-like
Illinois Country – Area where the state of Illinois is now located, home to the Illinois
Indians.
Inhabitants – The people that live in, or inhabit, a certain place.
Iroquois – A group of tribes that once occupied the lands of upper New York state.
They included the Mohawk, Onondaga, Oneida, Cayuga, and Seneca tribes. They
obtained firearms from the Dutch in the early 1600s and soon subdued most of the
neighboring tribes.
Jesuit – A person belonging to an order of Catholic priests known as the Society of Jesus
that was dedicated to education and missionary work. Father Marquette was a Jesuit.
Jolliet, Louis – (1645-1700) The French-Canadian who explored the upper Mississippi
River with Father Jacques Marquette in 1673.
King Louis the Fourteenth – The King of France (1638-1715) often referred to as
“Louis the Great” or the “Sun King”.
Louisiana – Large area of land known as the Mississippi River basin, claimed for France
by LaSalle in 1682, and named in honor King Louis the Fourteenth.
Marquette, Father Jacques – (1637-1675) The Roman Catholic priest and missionary
who explored the upper Mississippi River with Louis Jolliet in 1673.
Matagorda Bay – The bay in Texas where LaSalle landed after failing to find the mouth
of the Mississippi River. He attempted to found a colony nearby.
Maze- A complex and baffling network of paths or channels
Michilimackinac – The Indian name for the area around the Straits of Mackinac
Mission – A religious outpost. The French colonial missions were run by Catholic priests
(missionaries) and were intended to be places where Native Americans could learn and
practice the Roman Catholic faith.
Mississippi River – The longest and one of the most important rivers in the United
States.
Monarch – An hereditary ruler such as a king or queen. These are people who rule
because they belong to a certain “ruling family” as opposed to being elected.
Monopoly – Having exclusive control, usually over a certain business. In the French
colonies the king handed out monopolies over the fur trade in certain regions to those
people with whom he was especially pleased.
New France – The second French colony established in North America founded by
Champlain in 1608.
Nobility – A class or rank given to a person by birth right or through government.
Northwest Passage – A route between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans long sought after
by explorers that was believed to go either through or around the top of North America.
Nova Scotia - A province in eastern Canada that was once part of Acadia.
Outpost – An outlying settlement for a group of troops that are separated from their main
base.
Pelt - The unprocessed, dried skin of a fur-bearing animal.
Pirates – A person that attacks others at sea and robs them of their goods.
Pitch – A resin that comes from the sap of various conifer trees, such as the pine trees.
Priceless – To be of so great a value that it cannot be priced.
Rapids – Part of a river where shallow water flows very fast over rocks and boulders.
Rendezvous – (ron-day voo) A meeting or gathering. In the French colonies a
rendezvous was a meeting place where fur traders and merchants got together at a
predetermined date. During the rendezvous furs were traded for such things as knives,
guns, blankets and iron pots.
Rival – Enemy or foe
Roman Catholic – A very old branch of Christianity headed by the Pope who lives in the
Italian city of Rome.
Rouen – A port on the River Seine located not far from Paris, France, which is where
LaSalle was born.
Royal Colony – This was a type of colony run by the monarch (as opposed to being run
by businessmen or religious leaders).
Sault Sainte Marie – (Soo Saint Marie) Rapids (French: Sault) on the St Mary’s River
that connects Lake Superior to Lake Huron. Site of a Catholic mission in French colonial
times. Today the location of the Soo Locks.
Saint Lawrence River – A huge River in eastern Canada that links the Great Lakes and
the Atlantic Ocean.
Solidify – To make more solid, to add substance to (legitimize) a claim.
Straits of Mackinac - The narrow channel that links Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.
Strategic – A location of great military and/or economic importance. Both the Straits of
Mackinac and the mouth of the Mississippi river were of great strategic importance.
Tributaries – Small streams that flow into to a larger stream or river.
Uncharted – An unmapped area.
Upstream – To move up toward the source of a stream or a river, against the current.
Versailles – (Ver-sigh) The huge palace built by King Louis the Fourteenth outside of
Paris.
Vocabulary Activity:
Directions: By consulting the vocabulary list find the correct word (or words) to fill
in the blank.
1. LaSalle recognized the __________________ importance to France of being able to
control access to the Mississippi River.
2. Father Marquette and many other French Catholic missionaries dedicated to education
were known as __________________.
3. A __________________ was a meeting of fur traders and merchants in the French
colonies where furs were exchanged for trade goods.
4. The Native Americans in the area of Texas that LaSalle tried to colonize were quite
____________________ to the French settlers.
5. The narrow channel linking Lake Michigan and Lake Huron is known as the
__________________.
Script of Recorded Narration
The French Explorers Series (1524-1763)
Program Three
The Exploration of the Mississippi River
Marquette, Jolliet, and LaSalle
1672-1687
The exploration of the Mississippi River by France, that began in 1672, led the French
explorers to claim a huge area in the center of North America for their King, Louis the
Fourteenth. King Louis was what historians call an “absolute monarch”, meaning that
he personally held all of the political power in France. He ruled as he saw fit and he did
as he pleased. King Louis was also extremely fond of both money and luxury. And it was
in the early 1660s that he began construction of his new royal palace of Versailles seen
here. Versailles was destined to become the largest and most lavish palace in Europe. It
was to serve both as his home and as the headquarters of the French government. And it
was while Versailles was still being built, that King Louis the XIV decided to make New
France, or Canada, which was the largest French colony in North America, a royal
colony, in order to bring it much more firmly under his control. In particular, the king
wanted New France to grow more rapidly. Because at that time its population was still
very small compared to that of the rival English colonies just to the south. So in 1666
King Louis the Fourteenth commanded that an additional two thousand five hundred
French citizens be sent to settle there.
Father Jacques Marquette and The Fur Trade at Michilimackinac
One of the most important people to arrive in New France in the 1660s was a Roman
Catholic priest and missionary named Father Jacques Marquette. A few months after
coming to the colony Father Marquette and another missionary canoed to a remote area in
order to bring the Catholic faith to the Native Americans. They established a mission at
the rapids known as Sault Ste. Marie, near the eastern end of Lake Superior. After a few
years Father Marquette went on to start another mission nearby on the Straits of
Mackinac; the narrow channel that links Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Because of its
strategic location where three Great Lakes meet, the Straits of Mackinac, known as
Michilimackinac in the native tongue, soon became an important center of the French fur
trade. In fact it wasn’t long before the French put up a fort just across the straits from
Father Marquette’s mission. And over time Fort Michilimackinac grew in size until it
looked like this.
In the early summer of each year the French fur traders, who collected pelts from Indians
in far off areas, would come to Michilimackinac to rendezvous, that is to meet, with
merchants from Montreal. Back then most of the French fur traders, missionaries, and
explorers traveled in lightweight canoes like those used by the Native Americans. These
small boats were made from pieces of birch-bark tied to a wooden framework and sealed
with pitch. The merchants who canoed from Montreal to the annual summer rendezvous
had to paddle across the Great Lakes, the largest bodies of freshwater in the world. And
they usually were able to cover about 50 miles, that is 83 km., each day in their canoes.
Once they reached the rendezvous the merchants exchanged trade goods (such as guns,
iron pots, knives and blankets) for valuable furs. After that the furs were loaded into
canoes and taken back to Montreal where they were shipped to France.
The Expedition of Marquette and Jolliet (1673)
When Father Marquette first came to the Great Lakes back in the 1660s the French had
already been exploring the region for more than 30 years. At that time a well-known
Canadian fur trader and mapmaker named Louis Jolliet was busy mapping the waters of
the Great Lakes for the government of New France. Jolliet had often heard Native
Americans refer to a large river that lay to the south of the Great Lakes called the
Mississippi, which they said flowed into a huge saltwater sea. Jolliet thought the
Mississippi might turn out to be the long sought after route through North America to the
Pacific Ocean known as the Northwest Passage. And so the governor of New France
decided to send him off on an expedition to find the Mississippi River and trace its
course. Before the expedition got underway Jolliet stopped at the mission on the Straits of
Mackinac so that Father Marquette could join him. For Marquette had learned to speak
some of the Native languages very well.
In May of 1673 Jolliet, Marquette and a few other explorers paddled down Lake
Michigan to another Catholic mission on the edge of Green Bay, From there they canoed
across what is now the state of Wisconsin. And by the middle of June they were gliding
down the Wisconsin River seen here. And the Wisconsin River soon carried them into the
Mississippi. As Marquette and Jolliet headed downstream they passed huge herds of
buffalo grazing along the riverbanks. And as the explorers floated along, it became
increasingly clear that the Mississippi was flowing south, toward the Gulf of Mexico, not
west toward the Pacific Ocean as they had hoped it would. When Marquette and Jolliet
reached the Arkansas River they decided to turn back. For they had run into hostile
Indian tribes, and feared that if they went any further they might encounter enemy
Spanish troops as well.
On their return journey north Jolliet and Marquette left the Mississippi and crossed the
“Illinois Country”, following smaller rivers northward to Lake Michigan. From there
Jolliet paddled back across the Great Lakes to New France. But just before he got to
Montreal his canoe sank in some rough water and he lost all his priceless maps.
Nevertheless, King Louis the XIV was so pleased with Jolliet’s explorations that he
rewarded him with Anticosti Island, an enormous body of land at the mouth of the St.
Lawrence River. And after that Louis Jolliett continued to serve the king for much of the
next 25 years by mapping the coastal waters of Eastern Canada. Jacques Marquette,
however, received no such reward for his part in the Mississippi expedition. And he died
in the Illinois Country attempting to start a new Catholic mission.
The Expeditions of the Sieur de La Salle (1669-1687)
The year that Jacques Marquette arrived in New France was the same year that a wealthy
Frenchman named Rene Robert Cavelier arrived there too. That was in 1666. Cavelier’s
official title was the Sieur (or Lord) de La Salle. But he was known simply as LaSalle.
Shortly after coming to North America La Salle had explored the Ohio River region for
France. After that King Louis XIV rewarded him with some land on the northern shore of
Lake Ontario where he established a successful fur- trading outpost. At that time La
Salle, like Jolliet, had come to believe that the Mississippi River flowed into the Gulf of
Mexico. And he was determined to lead an expedition to find the river’s mouth. In order
to see if he was right, Along the way La Salle planned to claim for France all the land
through which every tributary of the Mississippi River flowed and to solidify French
claims to the Great Lakes Region as well. But first LaSalle had to return to France and
pay a visit to the royal palace of Versailles in order to explain his idea to the King and
win his approval. The king liked LaSalle’s plan and said that if the expedition succeeded
he would grant him a monopoly (that is total control) over the trade in valuable buffalo
hides in the Mississippi region. However, King Louis informed him that he would have to
pay for the expedition himself. LaSalle decided to risk it. And, before he began, he
constructed a good- sized sailing ship on the shores of Lake Erie. In early August of 1679
LaSalle’s expedition set sail for the Straits of Mackinac in the new ship. When they
reached Green Bay in what is now Wisconsin the ship was loaded with furs to help pay
for the expedition. But it sank on its way back to New France. After that the explorers
had to travel by canoe.
In February of 1682, after overcoming many problems, LaSalle’s expedition entered the
Mississippi River. As the explorers floated south LaSalle explained to the Native
Americans along the way that they would soon become subjects of the king of France.
And he promised them French protection from the Iroquois tribes that they so greatly
feared. After two months on the river the expedition finally reached the open waters of
the Gulf of Mexico. Then, as this sign explains, LaSalle claimed the Mississippi Valley
for France, christening it Louisiana in honor of King Louis XIV. And the vast territorial
claim that LaSalle made for France stood right between the Spanish and English colonies,
and took up most of the center of what is now the United States.
The Last Expedition of LaSalle 1684 -1687
Just six months after claiming the lands of Louisiana LaSalle returned to France to tell
the king about his discoveries and to suggest that he immediately establish a strategic
French colony at the mouth of the Mississippi River. The King approved the idea and was
extremely pleased that LaSalle had claimed so much land for France. So he sent him back
to the Gulf of Mexico with about 400 settlers to found a new colony. However, the
expedition, which set sail in 1684, was plagued by problems from the start. On their way
to the Gulf, Spanish pirates captured one of LaSalle’s ships. And then, without an
accurate map to guide him, LaSalle was unable to find the mouth of the Mississippi from
the waters of the Gulf. Finally he gave up and came ashore at Matagorda Bay on the
coast of what is today the state Texas, losing a second ship as it tried to enter the bay in a
storm.
Things soon grew worse because, tribes of Native Americans already inhabited this part
of the Texas coast and they did not want the Europeans to settle there. Besides that the
marshy land in this area proved to be unsuitable for farming. And there was a great loss
of life from disease as well. LaSalle continued to search for the mouth of the Mississippi
among a bewildering maze of coastal waterways, until his one remaining ship was
destroyed in an accident. After that the explorer grew more and more desperate and
decided he had to get back to New France for help. And so he headed off north across
the vast empty plains of Texas. But LaSalle was murdered by two of his own men before
he got very far. And with his death in the year 1687 the first attempt at establishing a
French colony on the Gulf of Mexico came to a most unhappy ending.
VIDEO QUIZ
1. True or False? Versailles was the palace of King Louis the Fourteenth.
2. True or False? At a rendezvous furs were traded for guns and other goods
3. True or False? Jacques Marquette once lived on the Straits of Mackinac.
4. True or False? The first French explorer to reach the mouth of the Mississippi
River was Louis Jolliet.
5. True or False? LaSalle attempted to found a French colony in Florida.