French Soldier, Explorer, and Trader
Sieur Duluth is best known for exploring
the northern area of Minnesota and making peace with the natives
of the territory that he later claimed for France. We know this
area today as Duluth. As you would imagine, the city of Duluth
was named after him. However, his name was also occasionally spelled
as either Du Lhut or Du Luth. Wouldn't that have been an
odd spelling for the city?
Pre-Exploration
Days
Early Years
of Exploring
The Natives
Trying Times
Rescue Mission
Later Years
of Exploring
Many Years
Later
Sieur Duluth's
Notable Events
Sieur Duluth was born in St. Germaine-en-Laye, France in 1639. He was born under the name of Daniel Greysolon. Duluth became an officer for a French regiment in Lyon in 1657. In 1665, he was promoted to the royal household regiment. He fought against the Dutch under the Great Conde in 1674. During his days as an officer, he made two voyages to New France.
Sieur Duluth moved to Canada
in 1672 with his younger brother. A few years later in 1678, he
went to Lake Superior to calm the native people and to end the war
between the Ojibwa (also known as Chippewa) and the Sioux. Duluth
had an adventurous spirit and was hoping to find a water
pathway leading to the Pacific Ocean. Duluth ended up landing
on Lake Superior near the western shore. From the western shore,
Sieur Duluth pressed on to the interior of Minnesota.
The Sioux natives lived in the northern forests of present-day Minnesota. The Chippewa natives eventually took over the northern forests, forcing the Sioux natives to move southwest. "The Sioux became wanderers, and the two tribes remained enemies for many years." (L1)
Duluth created a lasting friendship with the local natives in the area through his positive treatment of them. He would not be able to obtain any land in the area of Lake Superior unless he made peace with the tribes. He started making peace with the Chippewa and Sioux tribes by treating them positively. Positive treatment of the natives in North America was somewhat rare among the explorers of this time period. Duluth's creation of these friendships with the Sioux allowed France to claim the region that is very near the city we know now as Duluth.
Much of the Chippewa's customs are explained in a poem entitled The Song of Hiawatha written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
When Duluth was returning to his homeland in Montreal, he found out that he was being accused of illegal trading. In France, there was a 1676 edict that prohibited all Frenchmen from being traders. "He returned to France to clear his name but was back in 1682 and the next year went off again to the West to renew his peacemaking efforts and to try to dissuade the Indians from trading their pelts to the English." (D1)
Louis Hennepin, a Belgian
missionary, went to the area of Illinois to explore the upper
Mississippi. Hennepin was best known for his exploration of the
Mississippi River Valley. Unfortunately, around the year 1680,
Hennepin got sidetracked by an unexpected adventure. "Sioux
Indians captured Hennepin and his two companions. The Indians
tooks them into Minnesota." (L1)
The three captives were held for months. Even though Hennepin
was being held captive, he saw much of the region. He was the first
white man to see the area of what is now known as the city of
Minneapolis. Some time after Hennepin and his two companions were captured,
word came to Duluth about what happened to his fellow explorers.
Duluth came to the rescue and was able to negotiate the
release of the captives.
Sieur Duluth may not have lived in Minnesota for an extended period of time, but during his stay he explored much of the northern regions. He was responsible for the formation of the northern boundaries of Minnesota. Sieur Duluth's formed alliances with the Chippewa and Sioux natives.
Duluth retired from exploring in 1695 due to poor health and resided in Montreal, Canada for his last fifteen years. He died February 25th or 26th, 1710.
Duluth, a true French patriot, claimed the northern areas of Minnesota for King Louis XIV of France. Duluth claiming land for France was not necessarily a positive thing for Minnesota, yet it plays a huge part in how much larger our state could have been.
Years after Sieur Duluth passed away many things happened in the land that he once explored. "In the 1700's, British traders replaced the French traders in the area." (L1) This replacement set the scene for the rest of the land of Duluth's history. There was a struggle for control between the French and the British. In 1762, Spain was given all of the land belonging to the French west of the Mississppi River (including Minnesota). "In 1763, the French and Indian War ended. France lost this war with Britain over rival claims in North America. France gave Britain almost all its land east of the Mississippi, including eastern Minnesota." (L1)
The progress that took place in the Duluth area was somewhat slow for the next 150 years, and after that population growth was like a roller coaster. More people started to moving into the area in the 1850's. In 1870, Duluth was made a city. Only a few years later did the population fall again and the city of Duluth lost its standing as a city. Once again, the population went on an upsweep in the 1880's as sawmills and lumbering were increasing. In 1887, Duluth regained the status as a city once again. The 1880's set the standard for the city of Duluth, and it has been growing in population with residents and visitors ever since.
Sieur Duluth's Notable Events:
| 1639 |
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| 1672 |
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| 1678 |
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| 1680 |
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| 1695 |
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| 1710 |
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Copyright 2000, Becca Griffith