This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!
Slavery Arrives in Southern Illinois Colonies
Writings recount the early slave trade brought to French settlements in 18th century Illinois. Philippe Renault shipped hundreds of enslaved people from the West Indies to New Orleans and up the Mississippi to Fort Chartres and nearby villages. Enslaved individuals faced brutal treatment, while colonists built forts, mines, and plantations across Kaskaskia Cahokia Prairie du Rocher and Ste Genevieve as slavery expanded in the region.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Courtland T. Milloy Jr
Illinois
West Indies
New Orleans
Mobile
New World
Phillippe Renault
Mississippi
Randolph County
Hell
Renault
Kaskaskia
Fort Chartres
St. Phillippe
Prairie DuRocher
Cahokia
Ste. Genevieve