December 31, 1491

Saint-Malo, France

September 1, 1557

Saint-Malo, France

French explorer

Portrait: Jacques Cartier. Reproduced by permission of Archive Photos, Inc.

" . . . the said unknown sickness began to spread itself amongst us after the strangest sort that ever was either heard of or seen. . . . "

Jacques Cartier.

Jacques Cartier was a French explorer who made three voyages to Canada during the mid-sixteenth century. His expeditions were inspired by the belief that a natural waterway leading to Asia could be found through the continents of North America and South America. At the time, numerous explorers searched for this route, which became known as the Northwest Passage. During his first voyage, in 1534, Cartier explored the Gulf of St. Lawrence. After the second voyage, a trip up the St. Lawrence River in 1535, he returned to France and claimed that the river could be the passage to Asia. In 1541 the king of France ordered Cartier...