Samuel de Champlain
Samuel de Champlain is known as the "Father of New France", which is what the French first called the territory around Canada.
Where and when was he born?
The explorer was born in 1567, and began sailing to the New World when he was 16!
What did he do?
He founded the settlement Quebec City in 1608, and published maps and journals about what he found there.
He was also the first European to explore the Great Lakes regions (which is the area around the state of Michigan). He travelled around modern-day Vermont and Maine, naming a large lake "Lake Champlain" after himself! He was named Governor of New France, and spent the rest of his life managing the prosperous fur trade of the region. The famous explorer died in 1635.
Where and when was he born?
The explorer was born in 1567, and began sailing to the New World when he was 16!
What did he do?
He founded the settlement Quebec City in 1608, and published maps and journals about what he found there.
He was also the first European to explore the Great Lakes regions (which is the area around the state of Michigan). He travelled around modern-day Vermont and Maine, naming a large lake "Lake Champlain" after himself! He was named Governor of New France, and spent the rest of his life managing the prosperous fur trade of the region. The famous explorer died in 1635.
Click on the map below to see where he sailed!