Samuel de Champlain: Explorer and Colonizer

Early Life

Map of Québec by Champlain, drawn in 1613 Copyright/Source

Samuel de Champlain was born about 1570 at Brouage, France, a small town by the sea. His father was a sea captain and as a boy, Samuel learned seamanship and navigation. He is thought to have travelled to Spain and the West Indies with an uncle. Champlain had learned to be an excellent map-maker by the time he first reached the shores of North America.