Special Episode – Champlain’s Dream

In this special episode of the Windy City Historians we revisit our discussion of 17th Century French explorer Jean Nicolet with the late historian John Swenson, J.D.. This was his last interview in which, John presents a new take, context, and history of Samuel de Champlain and Jean Nicolet’s adventures to establish New France, after the colony was taken by English privateers in 1629.

Join us to learn more about this amazing history of exploration to better understand the roots of the Western European conquest of the new world and Great Lakes region. Did Jean Nicolet really venture into Green Bay? Could he have surveyed the mid-continental divide and been feted by Illinois tribes? Listen in as we honor and give tribute to Chicago historian John Swenson, a great friend to the podcast, and some fascinating history.

Links to Research and Historic Sources:

• The book, Champlain’s Dream by David Hackett Fischer
• Chart of the history of Canada 1534 to 1894 Ursuline Convent on the HathiTrust website
• Nicollet estate inventory (original in French) at the Newberry Library
• Champlain’s 1633 book Les Voyages de la Nouvelle France (Paris, 1632) online via Internet Archive – open to pp. 50-51 to the incursion of the Kirkes in 1629
• Biography of Brother Gabriel Sagard (barer of the red robe) in Dictionary of Canadian Biography
• Biography of Theodore (Charles) Du Plessis-Bochart in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography
• Theodore Du Plessis-Bochart in Wikipedia of France
• Paper about “Théodore Bochart; fondateur de Trois-Rivières et officier dans la marine du Roi” (biography a dozen pages) by Yannick Gendron (in French)
• Movie about Cardinal Richelieu (1935) on YouTube
• Jesuit Relations online by volume on HathiTrust website
• List relating Jesuit Relation years and volumes