New France, or Description of Louisiana
Louis Hennepin (Belgian, 1626–ca. 1705)
Paris: 1720
A Franciscan missionary, Louis Hennepin was among the first Europeans to explore the North American interior and to establish contact with the Santee and other Indigenous peoples. He described the Great Lakes and Upper Mississippi regions in a popular book of 1683, which announced the existence of the newly named “Louisiana.” Hennepin’s New France, or Description of Louisiana helped escalate colonial competition among European powers. While the author informs readers about the mutually beneficial contacts between the French and Indigenous peoples, he also describes Indigenous peoples as “savages” in need of civilizing. This volume was reissued in Paris in 1720, in order to encourage French settlement of the colony.
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