The Story of Tonty

"The Story of Tonty" is a story of the life of Henri de Tonti, also spelled Henri de Tonty, an Italian-born French military officer, explorer, and voyageur. He assisted René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, with North American exploration and colonization from 1678 to 1686. de Tonti was one of the first explorers to navigate and sail the upper Great Lakes. He also sailed Illinois and the Mississippi, which they traveled to its mouth and claimed for Louis XIV of France.