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Historical Essay

The Search for Wisconsin's First Priest

A Priest Follows Another Priest's 300-Year-Old Path to Death
Learn how Rev. A. A. A. Schmirler traced the path Fr. Rene Menard took in 1661 down northern Wisconsin's rivers to the likely spot of his death.
Historical Essay

Allouez, Claude Jean (1622-1689)

Jesuit Missionary
Read about the Jesuit priest who established several missions in Wisconsin during the 17th century.
Historical Essay

The Man With the Iron Hand

A Frenchman's Disastrous Expedition
Learn about explorer Robert de La Salle's iron-handed chief lieutenant, Henri de Tonty, and what resulted in the worst winter of his life.
Historical Essay

The History of Wisconsin Winter Weather

Learn about the first extreme winters in Wisconsin suffered by explorers and settlers in the 17th through 19th centuries, with links to other articles
Historical Essay

Wisconsin's First Thanksgiving

Discover the story of French traders saved from starvation by Ottawa Indians at the headwaters of the Chippewa River in 1659.
Historical Essay

The Iroquois Wars

New Tribes Brought to Wisconsin by French Commerce
Learn how contact with Europeans, the fur trade and warfare among their tribes drove many Indians to the Wisconsin territory in the 17th century.
Historical Essay

Colonialism and Indian Life in Wisconsin

How Native Life was Transformed
Discover how white contact disrupted and transformed Indian life in Wisconsin in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Historical Essay

Nicolas Perrot: French Fur Trade in Wisconsin

Read an account of the French explorer who claimed much of Wisconsin for France and who traded with several Indian tribes near Green Bay, Wisconsin.

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