Du Luth was born near Lyon, France and at the age of 34/35 he made his first visit to New France. New France was the name for French colonies in North America chartered by Jacques Cartier – this included portions of Canada and areas in the U.S. Having made peace talks with the Saulteur and Sioux tribes, he eventually would set up a number of fur trading posts throughout North America.
On this day July 2nd, in 1679, Daniel Greysolon de Du Luth and his group sight Minnesota. De Luth had been drawn by stories of a Vermillion Sea. Vermillion is a color that is red/orange, and it is hypothesized that the stories were about the Great Salk Lake in Utah. Due to slander and accusations of treason, Du Luth was forced to return to France to combat the accusations.
Minnesota is a Midwestern State of the U.S. Its nickname of the State of 10,000 Lakes is not an exaggeration, for there are over 11,000 lakes throughout Minnesota, including the head of the Mississippi River. Du Luth and his group saw the headwaters of the Mississippi River today in the late 17th century. Due to Minnesota’s wealth of forests, the first industry there was logging.