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Entry: Learning to Love the French Link: http://www.takimag.com/site/article/learning_to_love_the_french#12301 Post contents: Another Illinois town that was famously founded by the French was Peoria, the oldest city in Illinois. Peoria was first settled in 1680, when French explorers René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle and Henri de Tonti constructed Fort Crevecoeur. These men also discovered the connection between the St. Lawrence river system and Mississippi River system in Northern Illinois and predicted that this would make the area a major transportation hub. This conncetion was the Chicago River and it is why Chicago is such a major city today. Many French names appear in Chicago's early history as well. Jean Baptiste Pointe Du Sable, Catherine Chevalier, and Antoine Ouilmette among others. And of course the word "Illinois" is a French spelling of an Indian word. Sent at: 2008 11 23