They were a very important group in history. They found many secrets in the world. They contributed to the Age of Exploration.
They were two French explorers that found the waters of the Mississippi River. First up is Jacques Marquette. He is a French explorer. He was born in Laon, France in 1637. At 17, he became a priest. He wanted to go to Canada to expand his religion. But at first, the king, which was King Louis XIV, did not approve. But the next time, he was approved to go to Canada. After, he went to New France, which is now Canada in 1667. He could have met Jolliet, but Jolliet traveled to France to trade. Marquette only reason to travel is because he wants everybody to learn about Jesus Christ. So, Marquette stayed in Canada to expand his religion till Jolliet came back to Canada from his trip from France. So he explored the United States.
Next up is Louis Jolliet. He is a Canadian-French born explorer. He was born in Quebec, New France in 1645. Jolliet was a fur trader. The only reason he wanted to travel is because he wanted to expand his fur trade. When Marquette came to Canada, Jolliet traveled to France in 1668. He did not know Marquette at that time. He traded with the French there in France. But returned to Canada in the same year. Marquette was still in Canada. Jolliet decided to trade in northern United States. This is where Marquette and Jolliet’s story begins.
They became friends and explored the United States. The following year in Canada, Jolliet became a captain of exploring and finding the Mississippi River. Jolliet became the captain because he traveled to many places than Marquette and the others that were in the area. Jolliet made Marquette a partner in traveling and brought 5 others in the expedition. They only took one voyage to the United States. They traveled from Michigan to Wisconsin to Illinois to Mississippi. They found many things while on their voyage. Their voyage was tough. There, in the United States, the Indians were threat. Some were peaceful and nice, but some were also hostile and mean.
Marquette found Indians willing to learn about Jesus Christ. Jolliet was trading with the Indians. But disaster broke and there was trouble. While trading with the Indians, they started to attack the French explorers. Some of Jolliet and Marquette’s colony were dead. This made it worse for Jolliet and Marquette. But they accomplished their mission by finding the Mississippi River. This was a huge discovery at that time. They did not only discover the Mississippi River. They discovered Lake Michigan, the Fox River, and the Wisconsin River. Jolliet goes back to Canada. Marquette, however, stayed at Lake Michigan. He continued his teachings about Jesus Christ. At 1675, Marquette dies at the age of 35.
While Jolliet was traveling back to Canada on a canoe in Lake Michigan, his boat turned. The notes he took were all gone. So, he had to write some notes again from memory. He finally came to Quebec, Canada. He never came back for Marquette. He left him in the United States alone at Lake Michigan. While he was at Canada, he explored the other parts of Canada. Finally, Jolliet died in 1700 at 55. In France, the Marquette and Jolliet exploration was widely heralded. Their expedition gave the idea of re-exploring the Mississippi River and other French explorers in the later 1700s. Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet were very important people in history.
Jacques Marquette Louis Jolliet
