Before a territory can be settled, it has to be explored. Through an exquisite quest, amongst adventure and hardships, Sir Rene Robert Cavelier de La Salle set out to explore the Great Lakes and Mississippi River. In the winter of 1681-1682, the French explorer Rene Robert Cavalier, Sieur de la Salle, led an expedition from Canada down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. La Salle reached the river's outlet to the gulf, where …showed first 75 words of 3256 total…

…showed last 75 words of 3256 total…prestige and persistence, proves La Salle one of France’s greatest explorers, one who fought until the bitter end. Bibliography Bibliography: The Journeys of Rene Robert Cavalier Sieur de la Salle. edited by I. J. Cox. New York. 1922. La Salle and the Discovery of the Great West. by Francis Parkman. New York. 1879. The World Book Encyclopedia. Scott Fetzer. Chicago, Illinois. 1998 The New Catholic Encyclopedia. John P. Whalen, M.A., S.T.D. St. Louis, Missouri. 1967