Pierre Joseph Céloron de BlainvilleWiki here
Another great piece by Griffing - depicting the journey into the Ohio description etc here
About the vessels it reads
Most of Céloron’s men traveled in large birchbark canoes that were originally developed in Canada to carry trade goods and furs between the heartland of New France and the fur-rich Great Lakes region. By the middle of the eighteenth-century, such vessels were regularly used by traders and soldiers alike to traverse the vast waterways stretching from the St. Lawrence River to the Mississippi Valley. In order to repair these light, serviceable vessels, large rolls of bark were stowed among the baggage—a particular necessity when traveling far beyond the range of the birch tree.
Good post.
ReplyDeleteKeith.