Louis Jolliet 1645-1700 French Explorer and Cartographer Explored the Mississippi with Jacques Marquette LOUIS JOLLIET WAS BORN in 1645 in Quebec in what is now Canada. When he was born, it was called New France. His last name is pronounced zho-lee-et. It is also spelled Joliet. His parents were Jean Jolliet and Marie d Abancourt. He had two brothers named Adrien and Zacharie. Jolliet was the first important European explorer born in the New World. LOUIS JOLLIET WENT TO SCHOOL at a Catholic school in Quebec. As a young man, he loved music and learned to play 320
several instruments. Jolliet studied to be a Jesuit priest, but he never became one. He left Quebec in 1667 and traveled to France. There, he studied cartography (mapmaking). RETURNING TO CANADA: In 1668, Jolliet returned to Canada and became a fur trader. He traded goods throughout French Canada and what is now Michigan for several years. MEETING JACQUES MARQUETTE: Jacques Marquette was a Catholic missionary from France. He had lived and taught among the Indians of Quebec and Michigan for several years when, around 1671, he met Jolliet. By this time, Jolliet and Marquette had heard from the Indians about a great river that ran south. It was the Mississippi. The French wanted to explore it. They thought it might lead them to the Pacific Ocean. If it did, it would be an important trade route for them. In 1673, Jolliet and Marquette got permission to explore the Mississippi. Jolliet would explore for the benefit of the people of New France. Marquette would teach religion to the native peoples they met. EXPLORING THE MISSISSIPPI: Jolliet and Marquette left St. Ignace in May 1674. They had a crew of five, with two canoes. They traveled west along the northern coast of Lake Michigan, stopping at Green Bay, Wisconsin. They traveled west from there on the Fox. Then they followed the Wisconsin to the Mississippi. Along the way, they met the Illinois tribe. They were very friendly to the French explorers. They even gave them a peace pipe for their journey. Marquette and Jolliet entered the Mississippi on June 17, 1674. They were the first French explorers ever to reach it. They followed 321
Hudson Bay LABRADOR CANADA St. Lawrence Lake Superior St. Ignace Montreal Quebec Missouri Arkansas Wisconsin St. Louis Green Bay Mississippi Fox Illinois Lake Michigan Chicago Ohio MICHIGAN Detroit Lake Huron Lake Erie UNITED STATES Lake Ontario ATLANTIC OCEAN 1674 1679 1694 Miles 0 420 Jolliet s voyage with Marquette in 1674; Voyages of 1679 and 1694. the river south, noting where other powerful rivers, like the Missouri and the Ohio, entered. They hoped that they had found the route to the west. They thought they would reach the Pacific by continuing to the west. But it soon became clear that the river traveled south. They realized they would reach the Gulf of Mexico if they continued in that direction. They went only as far south as the Arkansas. They knew they had reached the area under Spanish control. As Marquette wrote later, they feared falling into the hands of the Spaniards. 322
If that happened, no one would ever know of their important discoveries. Marquette and Jolliet headed north in July 1674. They traveled up the Mississippi, fighting a strong current. Then they took the Illinois further north. They took the Chicago to Lake Michigan, and on to Green Bay. Marquette died soon after their return, in 1675. 323
Jolliet settled in Quebec and became a trader once again. He was also given land, including Anticosti Island in the St. Lawrence. In 1679, the French became concerned about the English traders trying to take over their territory. They hired Jolliet to spy on the British traders in the Hudson Bay area. He traveled to the area and reported back to the French authorities. EXPLORING LABRADOR: In 1694, Jolliet led an expedition to Labrador. The crew of 18 traveled north through the Strait of Belle Isle and Eskimo Bay. They traded with the local Indians, and Jolliet made notes and measurements for maps. They returned to Quebec when the weather became too cold. Jolliet continued to trade and to make maps of the regions he d explored. In 1697, he was named a professor of mapmaking at the College of Quebec. He died in 1700, possibly while traveling to his land in the St. Lawrence. LOUIS JOLLIET S HOME AND FAMILY: Jolliet married a woman named Claire-Francoise Bissot after his return from the Mississippi. He became a leading figure in the Quebec colony. One source says he played the organ at the cathedral there. HIS DISCOVERY: Jolliet s expedition to the Mississippi paved the way for French exploration in the Mississippi Valley. WORLD WIDE WEB SITES: http://www.civilization.ca/vmnf/explor/jolli_e2.html http://www.win.tue.nl/~engels/discovery/jolmar.html 324