335:
came in sight of the mountains and continued marching through magnificent prairies with many wild animals. On 9 January, the warriors left the women and children and baggage behind in camp. The
Chevalier's brother stayed to guard the baggage. On the "twelfth day" they reached the mountains which were well wooded and apparently very high. Scouts returned and reported that they had found a Snake village which had been hastily abandoned. This caused consternation since many assumed that the Snakes had detected them and had left to attack their camp while the warriors were away. The chief tried to stop them but most headed back for the camp to protect their women and children. The entire war party broke up and retreated and the Chevalier had no choice but to follow. The Chevalier says that he reached the Bow village on 9 February, "the second day of our return journey". There was no further sign of the Snake People.
400:
33:
276:
415:. Given the double sighting of mountains it is possible that they saw both the Laramies and the Bighorns. The first Mandan village was north of the river. The elder Vérendrye gave its latitude as 48°12' which is about 10 miles (16 km) north of any point on the Missouri River. If the reading was not too inaccurate it implies a northern location, possibly a site near modern
439:
Miotte; 30 March 1743". Londette and Miotte are probably the two other
Frenchmen who are otherwise undocumented. The garbled part was first read as "t b St" for Toussaint, assumed to be the first name of Londette. Hubert Smith read "Lo Jost" for Louis-Joseph. The Dictionary of Canadian Biography has "tblt" for Tremblet or Trembey, part of François' name.
355:
People). Ten days later the
Frenchman returned with an invitation to join these people. On 15 March they reached the Chokecherry People who were returning to their fort on the Missouri River. At the fort they met a man who had been brought up among the Spanish who said that they were twenty days away
326:
They reached the Bow people on 21 November. The Bow chief said he knew of the "French on the sea coast" and said they had many slaves who were happy and did not run away. They had officers and priests and used horses to work the land. He spoke a few words of their language which VĂ©rendrye recognized
315:). Two years before the Snake People had destroyed seventeen villages, killed the men and old women and taken the young women to be sold on the seacoast. The Horse People said that they had never been to the sea since the route was blocked by the Snake People. They suggested going to the Bow People (
288:. They reached the Mandan village on 19 May. There they waited for two months for the Horse People. When they did not show up, they found two Mandan guides and, on 23 July, departed and marched for twenty days west southwest through a land with multi-colored soils, seeing many animals but no people.
395:
gives some evidence for Louis-Joseph as the
Chevalier and François for the brother. Hubert Smith reverses the two brothers but offers no evidence. Burpee has Pierre as the Chevalier. Other writers are careful to say Vérendrye's sons without being specific. In his journal of the first expedition the
248:. He was told that it would take all summer to reach the lower part of the river and that there one could find men like Frenchmen who wore armor and rode horses. He left two men to learn the language (December 1738). Next year (September 1739), they reported back that every summer the Horse People (
334:
The Bow people were marching toward the "great mountains near the sea" in order to fight the Snake People. They marched sometimes south-southwest and sometimes northwest gathering more fighters as they went. Soon there were over 2,000 warriors in addition to their families. On 1 January 1743, they
279:
Relief map of
Wyoming. The VĂ©rendryes reached either the Big Horn Mountains, the Laramie Mountains or the Black Hills. The Big Horns are in the north Center. To the west is the Big Horn Basin and then the Yellowstone country. The Laramies are a projection of the Colorado Rockies on the south. The
562:
they would have been west of the Black Hills. La VĂ©rendrye commented that the "nations of these regions have a great many horses, asses, and mules -- apparently in contrast to the
Mandans and other peoples they had met further north. Note the large number of different tribes met in the period 9
438:
in Pierre. It is six by eight inches (15 by 20 cm) and similar to ones placed in the Ohio Valley. The front has a die-stamped Latin inscription referring to Louis XV, Pierre La VĂ©rendrye and the year 1741. On the back is hastily scratched "Placed by
Chevalyet de Lave; Louis la Londette, A
371:
who were going to Fort La Reine. On the 31st they were ambushed by a Sioux war party which quickly withdrew because of the many
Assiniboines and the French guns. They reached "the village near the mountain" on 2 June, rested their horses until the 20th and reached Fort La Reine on 2 July 1743.
518:, North Dakota. He thought that it was at the right distance, but Smurr claimed it was too close for a 20-day journey and suggested one of several small peaks in southeastern Montana, 250 to 300 miles (400 to 480 km) from the Mandan villages, or the highly distinctive
391:'s agent in the French archives.) The first journal describes the elder VĂ©rendrye's journey to the Mandans and the second "the Expedition of the Chevalier de la VĂ©rendrye and one of his brothers to reach the Sea of the West." The brothers are otherwise unnamed. The
339:
143:
346:
The assembled tribes broke up into smaller groups "to obtain meat more easily." The brothers remained with the Bow People until 1 March, traveling east-southeast. One
Frenchman and a guide were sent ahead to contact the Little Cherry People
291:
On 11 August, they reached "the mountain of the Horse People". Since the guides would go no further they built a camp and lit signal fires. A month later, on 14 September, they saw smoke on the horizon and contacted the
Handsome People
109:
in 1913. Both the journal and plate are difficult to interpret. The journal states the trip may have been made by the "Chevalier VĂ©rendrye and one of his brothers", who are otherwise unidentified. Most likely the Chevalier was
252:) visited the Mandans to trade. The Horse People said that they knew of bearded white men to the west who lived in stone houses and prayed to the "great master of life" while holding what looked like husks of corn . In 1741
419:, as first suggested by Libby in 1916. VĂ©rendrye said the second village was on the river which appeared to flow south and somewhat west, which could be one of several places. Hubert Smith favored a site near present-day
105:, during an expedition in 1742–1743. What little is known about their journey comes from a journal found in the French archives in 1851 and an inscribed lead plate commemorating the journey which was found buried near
589:. The Bow chief had a large lodge which implies a non-nomadic people. Given that the Frenchmen drifted south southwest for six weeks between 9 October and 21 November, it is possible that they had reached the
356:
by horseback, but the journey was dangerous because of the Snake People. They also heard of a Frenchman who was living three days journey away. On 30 March they buried a lead plate recording their journey.
375:
Since they had not found a route to the Pacific nor a profitable source of furs, their journey was not followed up. The French continued to have some contact with the Mandans. Lewis and Clark met
597:
in Central Nebraska east of Wyoming and south of the Black Hills and expeditions for hunting and war westward into Wyoming were not unlikely. The Snakes were "almost certainly" either the
460:
In his journal VĂ©rendrye did not try to guess whether these people were French, Spanish or something else. He was told that the lower river was very broad and flowed to the southwest.
205:
423:, because of extensive documentation of Mandan villages in that area and the lack of documentation further north. Smith's view contributed to the closing of the former
319:) who were said to be the only tribe brave enough to fight the Snakes. After staying with the Horse People for a number of days, they marched southwest meeting the
399:
605:. Both tribes, by virtue of acquiring horses earlier than many other Indians, had emerged recently from the Rocky Mountains to become powers on the Great Plains.
474:
980:
111:
960:
435:
495:
311:
On 19 October, they reached the Horse People. These were in distress because all their villages had been destroyed by the Snake People (
253:
76:
54:
890:
392:
693:
Some writers have identified these Indians as Cheyenne, known to live near the Missouri River at this time, rather than Sioux.
256:
and another son again visited the Mandans, but we have no details. In 1743 he sent two sons to discover the "Sea of the West".
731:
The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.), 09 July 1925. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
519:
198:
115:
985:
17:
929:
895:
424:
272:
recorded. This section summarizes the VĂ©rendrye journal. Interpretations by later commentators are in the footnotes.
515:
934:
870:
684:
in 1913, thereby fixing the location of the Chokecherry village, the only certain point on their entire journey.
387:
The VĂ©rendrye journals were found in the French archives in 1851 by Pierre Margry. (He was, among other things,
885:
47:
41:
498:. Horses were not yet common on the northern plains so their baggage and trade goods may have been hauled on
473:. The "two men's" report comes from an extract of a lost VĂ©rendrye journal sent to Paris by Governor-General
730:
710:, p. 24 translation has eldest son - a useful reminder that standard sources are not always reliable.
614:
The 12-day difference might mean that they sighted the Laramies and reached the Big Horns, or the reverse.
420:
416:
58:
812:
376:
681:
431:
182:
163:
106:
559:
367:
of the Prairies." They reached the Mandans on 18 May. On the 27th they joined a party of about 100
359:
They left Pierre on 2 April. On the ninth they met twenty-five families of the Glued Arrow People (
328:
178:
671:
This is possible since a number of Frenchmen are known to have travelled part way up the Missouri.
778:
590:
221:
171:
119:
469:
The first part of this paragraph comes from the elder VĂ©rendrye's journal which can be found in
280:
North Platte is barely visible north of the Laramies. The Black Hills are just east of the map.
264:
It is difficult to link VĂ©rendrye's journal to modern geographic and tribal names. Since their
956:
408:
213:
208:, the elder VĂ©rendrye, and his four sons began pushing French trade and exploration west from
167:
151:
131:
118:, but this remains uncertain. The mountains they saw during the expedition may have been the
939:
917:
904:
388:
102:
874:
949:
241:
175:
396:
elder VĂ©rendrye four times speaks of 'my son the chevalier' without saying which one.
974:
640:
If the Bow People were Pawnee, they were heading for the Pawnee villages in Nebraska.
586:
285:
245:
244:. He was looking for a rumored "River of the West" that was thought to flow into the
229:
217:
209:
190:
296:) and stayed with them for 21 days. On 9 October they headed south southwest with a
284:
On 29 April 1742, the Chevalier VĂ©rendrye, his brother and two other Frenchmen left
407:
All the tribal names are guesses. Most writers think that the brothers reached the
237:
98:
593:
north of the Laramie mountains. The Pawnee had large farming villages along the
412:
368:
352:
155:
127:
623:
It is difficult to explain this discrepancy in time; possibly he meant "tenth (
338:
275:
594:
342:
A conjectural map of the possible route of the VĂ©rendrye expedition, 1742-1743
186:
265:
159:
142:
819:. Vol. 7. Pierre, South Dakota State Historical Society. p. 242.
403:
The La VĂ©rendrye brothers. Historical marker at Fort Pierre, South Dakota.
327:
as Spanish. The Bow people were also familiar with the destruction of the
876:
Pathfinders of the Great Plains: A Chronicle of La VĂ©rendrye and His Sons
602:
598:
582:
269:
225:
194:
782:
650:
499:
123:
197:. In 1739 the first European crossing of the Great Plains was made by
951:
The Explorations of the La VĂ©rendryes in the Northern Plains, 1738-43
563:
October to 21 November which implies that they had left the Badlands.
233:
94:
93:
were trappers, hunters, and explorers, who were possibly the first
398:
364:
274:
141:
26:
769:
Smurr, John W. (January 1952). "A New La VĂ©rendrye Theory".
146:
A map of the area of operations of the La VĂ©rendrye family
166:
basin. From about 1690, they expanded southwest into the
216:. In 1738, the elder VĂ©rendrye and two of his sons left
794:
792:
18:
Verendrye Brothers' journey to the Rocky Mountains
411:, though Doane Robinson thought they only reached the
201:
who travelled from the Mississippi River to Santa Fe.
967:, has a translation of the journal with commentary.
477:. The only English translation of this seems to be
948:
706:, p. 42 translation has youngest son and the
260:VĂ©rendrye brothers' journey to the Rocky Mountains
206:Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, sieur de La VĂ©rendrye
300:guide. On 11 October they meet the Little Foxes (
189:) to contact the French, but was defeated by the
905:"The VĂ©rendryes and Their Successors, 1727-1760"
653:. It is not clear how VĂ©rendrye learned of them.
894:. Vol. III (1741–1770) (online ed.).
572:Villasur and his men had been killed by Pawnee.
911:. Series 3 (25). Manitoba Historical Society.
601:or, less probably, their close relatives the
475:Charles de la Boische, Marquis de Beauharnois
259:
8:
813:"The VĂ©rendrye Explorations and Discoveries"
919:The VĂ©rendrye Overland Quest Of the Pacific
77:Learn how and when to remove this message
886:"Gaultier de La VĂ©rendrye, Louis-Joseph"
707:
494:This sounds like the Badlands along the
337:
40:This article includes a list of general
930:"Louis-Joseph Gaultier de La VĂ©rendrye"
764:
762:
723:
702:One son remained at Fort la Riene. The
585:who were certainly warlike. Others say
453:
174:along the Atlantic coast. In 1720, the
841:
478:
853:
829:
798:
753:
741:
703:
511:
482:
470:
436:South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center
112:Louis-Joseph Gaultier de La VĂ©rendrye
7:
496:Little Missouri River (North Dakota)
817:South Dakota Historical Collections
928:Heidenreich, C.E. (15 June 2015).
540:possibly a branch of the Cheyennes
46:it lacks sufficient corresponding
25:
981:French explorers of North America
924:has a translation of his journal.
888:. In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.).
955:. University of Nebraska Press.
903:Champagne, Antoine (1968–1969).
891:Dictionary of Canadian Biography
581:Some identify the Bow [eople as
393:Dictionary of Canadian Biography
31:
879:. Glasgow, Brook & Company.
126:, but could also have been the
485:, notes 3 and 4 to Chapter 4.
199:Pierre Antoine and Paul Mallet
170:basin hoping to bottle up the
1:
947:Smith, George Hubert (1980).
627:) day" rather than "second (
434:, in 1913 and is now in the
430:The lead plate was found at
896:University of Toronto Press
884:Champagne, Antoine (1974).
811:DeLand, Charles E. (1914).
771:Pacific Northwest Quarterly
481:which is out of print. See
425:Verendrye National Monument
1002:
871:Burpee, Lawrence Johnstone
856:, pp. 54, 57, 58, 65.
531:Perhaps Crow or Blackfeet.
935:The Canadian Encyclopedia
922:. Great Northern Railway.
158:in 1608 and soon built a
916:Flandrau, Grace (1925).
361:Gens de la Flêche Collée
349:Gens de la Petite Cerise
321:Gens de la Belle-Riviere
304:) and on 15 October the
268:was broken there are no
116:François de La Vérendrye
514:proposed that this was
61:more precise citations.
558:If this was the upper
421:Bismarck, North Dakota
417:New Town, North Dakota
404:
343:
281:
228:) at the south end of
162:empire throughout the
147:
97:to cross the northern
402:
377:Toussaint Charbonneau
341:
331:twenty years before.
278:
145:
682:Pierre, South Dakota
432:Pierre, South Dakota
164:Saint Lawrence River
114:and the brother was
107:Pierre, South Dakota
986:Explorers of Canada
938:(online ed.).
560:Belle Fourche River
329:Villasur expedition
179:Villasur expedition
680:This was found at
591:North Platte River
405:
344:
282:
254:the younger Pierre
222:Portage la Prairie
148:
120:Big Horn Mountains
91:VĂ©rendrye brothers
962:978-0-8032-4712-3
409:Bighorn Mountains
214:Canadian prairies
168:Mississippi River
132:Laramie Mountains
87:
86:
79:
16:(Redirected from
993:
966:
954:
943:
940:Historica Canada
923:
912:
909:MHS Transactions
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323:on 18 November.
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57:this article by
48:inline citations
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389:Francis Parkman
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379:there in 1804.
313:Gens du Serpent
262:
250:Gens du Chevaux
185:(in modern day
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103:Rocky Mountains
83:
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66:
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53:Please help to
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520:Devil's Tower
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479:Burpee (1915)
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317:Gens de l'Arc
314:
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286:Fort La Reine
277:
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267:
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246:Pacific Ocean
243:
240:on the upper
239:
235:
231:
230:Lake Manitoba
227:
223:
219:
218:Fort La Reine
215:
212:out onto the
211:
210:Lake Superior
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875:
849:
837:
830:Smith (1980)
825:
816:
806:
799:Smith (1980)
777:(1): 51–64.
774:
770:
754:Smith (1980)
749:
742:Smith (1980)
737:
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704:Smith (1980)
698:
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676:
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619:
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512:Smith (1980)
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483:Smith (1980)
471:Smith (1980)
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348:
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297:
294:Beaux Hommes
293:
290:
283:
263:
249:
238:North Dakota
232:reached the
203:
149:
101:and see the
99:Great Plains
90:
88:
73:
64:
45:
522:in Wyoming.
516:White Butte
413:Black Hills
369:Assiniboine
353:Chokecherry
351:, possibly
236:country in
204:From 1730,
156:Quebec City
128:Black Hills
59:introducing
975:Categories
854:Smith 1980
662:Comanches?
595:Loup River
443:References
298:Beau Homme
187:New Mexico
138:Background
42:references
718:Citations
270:latitudes
266:astrolabe
160:fur trade
95:Europeans
67:July 2020
873:(1915).
783:40486969
629:deuxième
603:Comanche
599:Shoshoni
583:Cheyenne
502:by dogs.
383:Problems
226:Manitoba
220:(modern
195:Nebraska
183:Santa Fe
154:founded
864:Sources
651:Arikara
631:) day."
625:dixième
500:travois
176:Spanish
172:English
130:or the
124:Wyoming
55:improve
959:
781:
587:Pawnee
549:Kiowa?
363:) or "
234:Mandan
191:Pawnee
152:French
44:, but
779:JSTOR
448:Notes
365:Sioux
306:Pioya
181:left
957:ISBN
150:The
89:The
308:.
193:in
122:of
977::
932:.
907:.
815:.
791:^
775:43
773:.
761:^
427:.
224:,
134:.
965:.
942:.
898:.
844:.
785:.
347:(
292:(
80:)
74:(
69:)
65:(
51:.
20:)
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
