HISTORYOF THEDISCOVERY OF THE NORTHWESTBY
JOHN NICOLET
IN 1634
WITH A
SKETCH OF HIS LIFE
BY
C. W. BUTTERFIELD

Author of "Crawford's Campaign against Sandusky," "History of Wisconsin"
In Historical Atlas of the State, "The Washington-Crawford Letters,"
"History of the University of Wisconsin," etc.

CINCINNATI
ROBERT CLARKE & CO.
1881

Copyrighted, 1881,
By C. W. BUTTERFIELD.

PREFACE.

In the following pages, I have attempted to record, in a faithfulmanner, the indomitable perseverance and heroic bravery displayed byJohn Nicolet in an exploration which resulted in his being the first ofcivilized men to set foot upon any portion of the Northwest; that is,upon any part of the territory now constituting the States of Ohio,Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. It is shown how he broughtto the knowledge of the world the existence of a "fresh-water sea"—LakeMichigan—beyond and to the westward of Lake Huron; how he visited anumber of Indian nations before unheard of; how he penetrated manyleagues beyond the utmost verge of previous discoveries, with an almostreckless fortitude, to bind distant tribes to French interests; and howhe sought to find an ocean, which, it was believed, was not a greatdistance westward of the St. Lawrence, and which would prove a nearroute to China and Japan.

The principal sources from which I have drawn, in my investigationsconcerning the life and explorations of Nicolet, are the JesuitRelations. So nearly contemporaneous are these publications with hisdiscoveries—especially those which contain a record of them—and sotrustworthy are they in their recital of facts connected therewith, thattheir value, in this connection, can hardly be over-estimated. Each oneof the[iv] series having a particular bearing upon the subject of thisnarrative has been studied with a care commensurate with its importance.Other accounts of the same period, as well as of a somewhat later date,together with the researches of modern writers, concerning the daringFrenchman, whose name stands first on the list of the explorers of theNorthwest, have, likewise, been carefully examined, the object being, ifnot to exhaust all known sources of information illustrative of thesediscoveries, at least to profit by them. Aid has been received, inaddition, from several living authors, especially from Benjamin Sulte,Esq., of Ottawa, Canada, to whom, and to all others who have extended ahelping hand, I return my sincere thanks.

C. W. B.
Madison, Wisconsin, 1881.[v]

CONTENTS.