Marquette and Jolliet’s expedition may have been to find a route to the Pacific Ocean, but not everyone knows what accomplishments they made. On their expedition, they met two groups of Indians, one of them almost killing them if it weren’t for the calumet, peace pipe, that was given to them by the other group of Indians. They also made very impressive accomplishments. One of these accomplishments includes Marquette’s death. Marquette and Jolliet had a pretty interesting early life, including their jobs before their mission on the Mississippi. Jacques Marquette was born in Laon, France in 1637. Louis Jolliet, however, has an unknown exact birthday, but he was baptized on September 21, 1645. Marquette became a Jesuit missionary and Jolliet became a fur trader before their expedition. Governor Frontenac of New France, now Canada, sent Marquette and Jolliet to see if the Mississippi was a route to the Pacific Ocean in 1673. …show more content…
They went across the Fox River, through the Wisconsin River, down the Mississippi River, and on the Michigan River back home. They also explored Illinois and Arkansas during their expedition. While on their expedition, Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet ran into two new species. They discovered the bison and a large catfish species, which Marquette described as, “...a monster with the head of a tiger, the nose of a wildcat, and whisker.” (American Journeys) Marquette died on the journey back home, yet he made some great accomplishments. Marquette and Jolliet were most likely the first men to enter Illinois. On the journey back home, Marquette died on the shore of Michigan River, due to being too ill, in 1675. The Michigan River was named after Marquette for that