Who Were The First French Explorers To Explore The Mississippi River?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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1673:

Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet

begin exploring Mississippi River.

Who was the first French explorer to reach the mouth of the Mississippi River *?


René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle

was a French explorer best known for leading an expedition down the Mississippi River, claiming the region for France.

Who was the first French explorer to reach the mouth of Mississippi River?


René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle

, (born November 22, 1643, Rouen, France—died March 19, 1687, near Brazos River [now in Texas, U.S.]), French explorer in North America who led an expedition down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers and claimed all the region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries for …

What French explorer reached the mouth of the Mississippi River in 1682?

Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet preceded

La Salle

by a decade, though they only went as far as the Arkansas River before returning to Canada. In 1682 La Salle’s first expedition traveled down the Mississippi River and reached its mouth.

Who was the first European to sail the Mississippi River?

On May 8, 1541, south of present-day Memphis, Tennessee, Spanish conquistador

Hernando de Soto

reaches the Mississippi River, one of the first European explorers to ever do so.

What did La Salle explore?

René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle, (born November 22, 1643, Rouen, France—died March 19, 1687, near Brazos River [now in Texas, U.S.]), French explorer in North America who led an expedition

down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers

and claimed all the region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries for …

Which river did La Salle probably mistake for the Mississippi?

La Salle himself never claimed to have discovered

the Ohio River

. In a letter to the intendent Talon in 1677, he claimed “discovery” of a river, the Baudrane, flowing southwesterly with its mouth on Lake Erie and emptying into the Saint Louis (i.e. the Mississippi), a hydrography which was non-existent.

Why did Louis Jolliet explore the Mississippi?

In 1673, Joliet embarked on a privately-sponsored expedition with Jacques Marquette, a missionary and linguist, to be among the first Europeans to explore what was called by Native Americans the “Mesipi” river and ascertain where it led to, with

hopes of finding a passage to Asia

.

What was Marquette’s goal?

In 1673, Father Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit missionary, and Louis Joliet, a fur trader, undertook an expedition to

explore the unsettled territory in North America from the Great Lakes region to the Gulf of Mexico for the colonial power of France

.

Why did France send explorers to what is today Canada?

The French first came to the New World as explorers,

seeking a route to the Pacific Ocean and wealth

. Major French exploration of North America began under the rule of Francis I of France. … In 1534, Francis sent Jacques Cartier on the first of three voyages to explore the coast of Newfoundland and the St.

Why did the French want Louisiana?

The treaty effectively ceded the territory of Louisiana and the island of Orleans—essentially what is now New Orleans—to the Spaniards. The French saw

the move as an inducement designed to persuade the Spanish to end the Seven-Years War

.

Why did France want to control the land at the mouth of the Mississippi River?

Why did the leaders of New France want to control the Mississippi River? To reach new lands – from the west to the Pacific Ocean –

where they could build trading posts

. … New France is all the land in North America – from up into Canada down to new Orleans – that the French claimed.

Which explorer died before his crew finished a journey around the world?

In 1519,

Ferdinand Magellan

set sail from Spain with five ships to find a western route to the Moluccas. Battling storms, mutinies, and the unknown, Magellan died before reaching his destination. One ship ultimately returned to Spain after circumnavigating the world.

Why did the French build Fort Rosalie?

Fort Rosalie was established in 1716 at present Natchez by the French, 3 years after

a trading post was opened, for protection against the Indians

. … When the British took over at the end of the French and Indian War and found the post in ruins, they rebuilt it and renamed it Fort Panmure.

How did settlers cross the Mississippi?

In. the early movement of settlers to Iowa, the Mississippi River played a double role. … Rivers proved to be an unfailing source of trouble. The

small streams were crossed by fording the larger ones by swimming the teams, wagons and all

.

Did La Salle meet Indians?

IN

MARCH, 1682

, during his epic voyage of discovery down the Mississippi River, La Salle visited the Natchez Indians near the modern city bearing their name.

Timothy Chehowski
Author
Timothy Chehowski
Timothy Chehowski is a travel writer and photographer with over 10 years of experience exploring the world. He has visited over 50 countries and has a passion for discovering off-the-beaten-path destinations and hidden gems. Juan's writing and photography have been featured in various travel publications.