Joseph Robidoux, founder of St. Joseph, was the leader of a French-Canadian fur trading family which sent men out to trade with the Indians along the Missouri River and as far west as today's Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico. From his first trip up the Missouri River in 1799 at age 16 to his death in 1868, Robidoux witnessed many changes in this area. He was the first permanent settler in Blacksnake Hills and later encouraged other settlers to come to his newly established town of St. Joseph. Before he died he saw his town grow to a population of about 19,000 citizens.
The small creek which cuts through the bluffs and empties into the Missouri River near here is known as Roy's Branch. It was named for fur trader and trapper Jean Baptist Roy. Members of the French-Canadian Roy family had settled along the Mississippi River near St. Louis in the mid-1700s and were involved in the fur trade business along the Missouri River. Jean Baptist Roy was still trading in this area in the 1830s. It is not known at what point in time that the creek was named for Roy.
In the fall of 1826, fur trader Joseph Robidoux was granted permission by the U.S. Government to set up a small trading post at the mouth of Roy's Branch. Since the northwest corner of today's Missouri was the Platte Indian Territory, no settlers were allowed. However, Robidoux obtained a special permit to live and work in the Territory.
Robidoux lived at this site from the fall of 1826 to the spring of 1827. However, the land was low and flooded in the spring when the river water rose due to melting snow. As a result, Robidoux decided the location at Roy's Branch was unsuitable. In the spring of 1827, he moved a mile down river to the mouth of Blacksnake Creek.
The river bottoms at this point are called French Bottoms since a number of French families, some in the employ of Joseph Robidoux, settled. here.
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In the early 1800s, the fur trade was a very profitable business. Part of the instructions to Lewis and Clark from President Jefferson were to report on the types and numbers of fur bearing animals and their locations. They were also to find out if the Indians would trade in furs. The French-Canadians also contributed to the success of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. These men were used to travel on the Missouri River and helped pull, pole, row and sail the keel boat and two piroques up the river. They were also familiar with landmarks, many of which had been named by Frenchmen, and the locations and customs of the various Indian tribes.
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