French Explore the Mississippi Valley
At a glance:
- Series: Great Events from History: North American Series
- Categories: Land Acquisition and Expansion, Territory Redistribution, Discovery, Exploration, Geography
- Subcategories: Colonialism, Colonies, Settlements, Explorers
- Curriculum: American Colonial History (1607-1775), French History, 17th Century European History
- Geographical Location: Wisconsin, Illinois, Louisiana
- Date: 1673-1740’s
Article abstract: French exploration and occupation of the trans-Mississippi West, laying the foundation for conflict with the British a century later.
Summary of Event
Expanding upon Samuel de Champlain’s explorations in the early 1600’s, Jean Nicolet opened the Ottawa River route to Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and Green Bay in 1634. Nicolet then traveled up the Fox River, probably crossed the portage at what is now Portage, Wisconsin, to enter the Mississippi Valley, and may have proceeded south into what is now northern Illinois. During this trip,...
[The entire page is 1412 words long]