Pere Marquette
1637–1675 |
Jacques Marquette was a French Jesuit missionary who founded the Michigan settlements of Sault St. Marie and St. Ignace. He, along with his companion Louis Joliet, was the first European to visit and map the northernmost portion of the Mississippi River.
Marquette was born in Laon, France, and he became a member of the Society of Jesus at the age of seventeen. He was first sent by his superiors to Quebec, where he served as a missionary to the native peoples. The young Jesuit was later transferred to an area near the Great Lakes, and he founded missions at Sault St. Marie and La Pointe. Here Marquette learned about the grandeur of the Mississippi River, and he requested leave to explore it. Permission was granted, and he and French-Canadian explorer Louis Joliet set out from Lake Michigan. After canoeing up the Fox River, they carried their boats for nearly two miles before arriving at the source of the Mississippi. Joliet returned to Quebec to report their discovery, while Marquette’s party continued forth to the Illinois Territory, remaining with the region’s indigenous people for the winter. After saying a public Mass at the grand Village of the Illinois, he set out for Michigan but passed away en route, his failed health due to a bout of dysentery. He was buried in St. Ignace.
Key events during the life of Jacques Marquette:
| Born | |
| Joined the Society of Jesus | |
| Went to Canada as a missionary to the indigenous peoples | |
| Founded missions at Sault St. Marie and La Pointe | |
| Traveled from Lake Michigan to the start of the Mississippi River | |
| Returned to the Illinois territory | |
| Celebrated Mass at the Grand Village of the Illinois | |
| Passed away on the return trip to St. Ignace |
Other Resources
| The Enterprise of Marquette in | The Adventures of Chevalier de la Salle by John S. C. Abbott |
| Marquette in Iowa in | Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans by Edward Eggleston |
| Down the Mississippi in | Story of the Thirteen Colonies by H. A. Guerber |
| Friends of the Indians in | The Men Who Found America by Frederick Winthrop Hutchinson |
| How the Mississippi Was Discovered in | This Country of Ours by H. E. Marshall |
Image Links | ||
|---|---|---|
 Marquette and Joliet in Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans |
Marquette and Joliet come to an Indian Village in Story of the Thirteen Colonies |
 The Indians loved the brave Father Marquette, and called him their friend. in The Men Who Found America |
 Father Marquette on the Mississippi River in History of the United States |
 Marquette and Joliet floating down the Mississippi in Builders of Our Country: Book I |
 Marquette Attacked by the Arkansas Indians in Builders of Our Country: Book I |
 The Burial of Marquette in Builders of Our Country: Book I |
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| Missionary who worked with the American Indians, and translated the bible into native Indian languages. | |
| Dauntless adventurer who followed the Mississippi to its mouth, and claimed all for France. |