| Summary: | 1 map: hand col., 24 x 22 cm. Catholic missionary and northwest explorer, Fr. Pierre John DeSmet, established a mission with the Flathead Indians of the Bitterroot Valley near present day Missoula, Montana on September 24, 1841. Having gained the respect and friendship of many neighboring tribes, in 1845 DeSmet confidently set out on a mission of peace to act as mediator between the Flatheads and their traditional foe, the Blackfoot Nation (located further east in Montana). Ever the explorer, his route took him much farther north than necessary, via the Kootenai and Vermillion Rivers, across the Continental Divide, then north to the Saskatchewan River and the Canadian Rockies. Unable to locate the Blackfeet before the onset of winter, DeSmet and his party postponed their search and wintered as guests at Fort Edmonton. Located on the North Saskatchewan River at latitude 53-30` north, near present day Edmonton in Alberta Province, Canada, Fort Edmonton (also known at that time as Fort Augustus) was the headquarters of the district lying between the Athabasca and Saskatchewan Rivers. The secondary forts within the area included Jasper House, Fort Little Slave Lake, Fort Assiniboin, and Rocky Mountain House--among others. All of these forts mentioned are visible on DeSmet's map, perhaps a project drawn during the two winter months he sojourned there. He also visited Fathers Thibault and Bourassa at St. Anne's Mission, located some forty miles west of Fort Edmonton. Note the lake nearby, named after Fr. Thibault. While DeSmet's stay was a pleasant visit, he was nonetheless anxious to return to the Flatheads, and perhaps continue his search for the Blackfeet. He decided not to wait for the snow melt, and left March 12, 1846. Pushing northwest on the only trail open, DeSmet traveled approximately one hundred miles to Fort Assiniboin on the Athabasca River. Still solid ice, DeSmet traversed the river route via a sledge drawn by four malamute dogs. From Fort Assiniboin, he persisted 250 miles upstream to Jasper House, reaching the fort on March 28th. By the end of April he descended south, crossing the mountains and walking nearly 70 miles on snowshoes. Hitching a ride down the Columbia River in a canoe owned by the Hudson's Bay Company, DeSmet reached Ft. Colville, (a short trip west of St. Mary's, his Flathead Mission), on May 30, 1846.
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