Journal Of Larocque From The Assiniboine To The Yellowstone 1805

L. J.-EDITOR BURPEE

Publication: Government Printing Bureau, 1910, Ottawa

First Edition. Printed Wrappers. Stapled. 82pp. Publications of the Canadian Archives--No. 3. Published by authority of the Minister of Agriculture under the direction of the Archivist. Edited and Notes by L. J. Burpee. Very scarce and important account by Francois-Antoine Larocque, of the North West Company. Larocque was chosen to lead a fur-trade expedition from the Assiniboine and Red Rivers region of southern Canada to the Mandan villages on the Missouri River near present day Bismarck, North Dakota. Accompanied by Charles McKenzie and others, Laroque was successful in his visit to the Mandans, and even more important, he was welcomed by the Crow Indians to follow them to their homeland in the valley of the Yellowstone River. Doing so, he enjoyed a good trading session with the Crows on an island in the Yellowstone, after which he retraced his route to the Mandan villages, and ultimately back to the Assiniboine and Red Rivers. It was the first visit to the Crow country by a white man since the expedition of La Verendrye in 1742-1743. Larocque's journal is informative and reads well. His journal is recorded here on pages 11-82, and is entitled: Journal Of A Voyage To The Rocky Mountains From My Leaving The Assinibois River On The 2nd June, 1805. Editor, L. J. Burpee lends extensive informative footnotes. An important early fur-trade journal. "A map is mentioned on page 7, but it seems to have been unpublished."-Graff 2403. "First printing of the day-to-day journal of the first white man, after Verendrye, to visit the Big Horn country and the Crow Indians; first authoritative account of that tribe."-Howes L107. Some minor chipping to edges of fragile original wrappers. Most of paper spine has chipped off. Internally, a clean tight copy, with some light damp staining to the blank lower fore-edge of a few pages, not affecting text.

Inventory Number: 52177