Smith's Canadian gazetteer - ElectricCanadian.com

CANADA;
ITS FIRST SETTLEMENT AND EARLY HISTORY, CLIMATE
AND PRODUCTIONS.
The first settlement made by Europeans in Canada, was in 1535, by Jacques
Cartier, a French navigator, who sailed up the river of Canada, (which he named
the St. Lawrence, as far as the island of Montreal, where he found a settlement
of Huron Indians, called Hochelaga, to which island he gave the name of Mont
Royale, (afterwards called Montreal.) He took possession of the territory,
which he called New France—built a fort—and wintered in the country. On
this expedition he carried off a chief of the natives, and conveyed him to France,
where lie lived about four years, was converted to Christianity, and died there.
In 1540, an expedition, consisting of five ships, under the command of
Cartier, was fitted out by command of Francois de la Roque, Lord of Robervall,
who had been appointed Viceroy of (Canada by the King of France; and who
himself intended to follow with two additional ships. His departure, however,
was postponed till the year 1542. When he arrived in Canada, he built a fort,
and wintered ^bout four leagues above the island of Orleans. In 1549, the same
nobleman, accompanied by his brother, and a numerous train of adventurers,
again embarked for Canada; but they were never afterwards heard of, which so
discouraged the government and people of France, that for more than thirty
years no further measures were taken to communicate with the settlers who
remained in Canada.
In 1576, Martin Frobisher was sent out by Queen Elizabeth, with three small
ships, and discovered Elizabeth Foreland, and the straights which still bear his
name. He entered a bay in north latitude 63 ° , and carried off one of the
natives. In this voyage he discovered what he supposed to be gold, which
encouraged a society of adventurers to send him out the following year, with
three otlier ships, to explore the coast of Labrador and Greenland, with an ultimate
view of discovering a passage to India; but he returned without success.
He brought away with him nearly two hundred tons of tlie ore supposed to be
gold; which however, to their disappointment, turned out to be some other
mineral. In 1578, he sailed again for the continent of North America, with no
less than fifteen ships, in search of gold; and carried home immense quantities
of the same glittering substance, to the complete ruin of many of the adventurers.
In 1581. the French trade to Canada was renewed, after an interruption of
more than thirty years; and in 1583, three ships were employed in the trade to
the continent.