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to organize a new company which would take its place on the upper
Mississippi. While Rolette was given an ownership stake in the new company, he was not given any control over its operation. Only a few months later, Rolette died in debt to the new company, and most of his estate was seized by the
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Meanwhile, Rolette's business continued to prosper. In 1820 Rolette made an alliance with Astor's powerful
American Fur Company and became the company's sole agent in Prairie du Chien. This, coupled with numerous investments in real estate, propelled Rolette to become the wealthiest man in the
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Animosity between
Rolette and the Americans at Prairie du Chien continued for some time after the war. Canadian fur traders on the other side of the border were no longer granted licenses by the US government and were cut off from many of their clients.
195:, Rolette lost significant wealth and became indebted to Dousman and the American Fur Company. Then in 1842 the American Fur Company declared bankruptcy, and in order to continue in the trade Rolette entered into a joint venture with Dousman,
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to file for divorce, but she backed off and settled for a legal separation instead. As part of the separation contract, Joseph
Rolette agreed to construct his wife a two-story stone house on the riverfront in Prairie du Chien. Known as the
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arrived in
Prairie du Chien to work for the American Fur Company. The two operated as equal partners for some time, but Dousman slowly came to rise past Rolette in the business.
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sometime between 1801 and 1805, in what is now the state of
Wisconsin in the United States. In 1811, the Mackinac Company was reorganized as the
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In 1807, Rolette married 14-year-old
Marguerite Dubois, the "mixed-blood" daughter of Antoine Dubois; her mother was the sister of
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Rolette married Jane Fisher in 1818. She was a local woman twenty-three years his junior. She was related to noted fur trader,
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New Light on the Early
History of the Greater Northwest: The Manuscript Journals of Alexander Henry and of David Thompson
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also married
Rolette's widow Jane Fisher Rolette two years later. Rolette's estate was sold at a sheriff's sale (i.e.,
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with whom he traded, he was known as "Five More" because he would always try to bargain for five more furs.
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Kinsmen of
Another Kind: Dakota–White Relations in the Upper Mississippi Valley, 1650–1862
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After leaving the seminary, he became involved in the fur trade. He worked briefly in
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before establishing a trading post for the Mackinac Company in the remote village of
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in 1781 to ethnic French parents. As a young man he trained for the priesthood at a
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382:"Novel explains the unexpected story of the prominent Jane Fisher Rolette Dousman"
148:, who was elected to the Minnesota Territorial Legislature in 1851, and Virginia.
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Gehl, Robert (December 16, 1964). "Rolette Was One of the 'Big 3' Fur Traders".
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At the time of his death, Rolette was building what would become known as the
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village, and he was often called "King Rolette" by his friends. Among the
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Despite this, in 1821 Rolette was appointed as an associate justice of
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and member of the Mackinac Company who operated a trading post in
97:, Rolette, like many other French-Canadian fur traders in the
19:(September 24, 1781 – December 3, 1842), often known as
132:. In 1830 he briefly served as chief justice of the county.
315:. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press. p. 68.
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established a monopoly in this region and much of the West.
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In 1836, Jane Fisher Rolette became the first woman in
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However, in 1826, Rolette's authority began to wane as
144:. The couple had had two children during the 1820s,
117:, and later commanded a British militia unit in the
337:"PROPERTY RECORD — Emilie Rolette Hooe House"
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109:. He participated in the British capture of
50:there, but he did not complete his studies.
300:. New York: Francis P. Harper. p. 50.
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502:People from Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
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236:Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin - History
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101:, was an active supporter of the
447:"Rolette, [Jean] Joseph"
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386:Mississippi River Sculpture Park
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311:Anderson, Gary Clayton (1984).
512:People from Michigan Territory
449:. Wisconsin Historical Society
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341:Wisconsin Historical Society
296:Coues, Elliott, ed. (1897).
186:Wisconsin Historical Society
266:. April 15, 1890. p. 8
29:Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
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412:. July 15, 1845. p. 4
182:National Historic Landmark
180:, this structure is now a
136:Second marriage and family
130:Crawford County, Wisconsin
119:Siege of Prairie du Chien
77:First marriage and family
115:Siege of Fort Mackinac
35:Youth and early career
368:The La Crosse Tribune
197:Henry Hastings Sibley
89:War of 1812 and after
507:People of New France
487:Canadian fur traders
264:The Saint Paul Globe
204:remaining partners.
184:and is owned by the
71:American Fur Company
39:Rolette was born in
468:Jean Joseph Rolette
260:"A Frontier Figure"
173:Wisconsin Territory
166:Hercules L. Dousman
17:Jean Joseph Rolette
241:2007-09-05 at the
63:South West Company
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481:Categories
453:2006-11-14
391:2021-07-14
347:2021-07-14
223:References
69:. Astor's
25:fur trader
239:Archived
48:seminary
206:Dousman
191:In the
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45:Jesuit
41:Quebec
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317:ISBN
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