Skip to main content

Secondary sourceBook1885

Samuel de Champlain, a brief sketch

Henry Higgins Hurlbut · 1885

An 1885 nineteen-page sketch by Henry Higgins Hurlbut that presents Champlain as a navigator and discoverer. It is a later account of the figure, not a record from his lifetime.

Shows how a later writer in 1885 presented Champlain as a navigator and discoverer.

Ask Samuel de Champlain about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Samuel de Champlain, a brief sketchPDF · 28 pages
Henry Higgins Hurlbut, Samuel de Champlain: a brief sketch, 1885. Internet Archive scan.

About this source

What it is

This is a nineteen-page book titled Samuel de Champlain: a brief sketch of the eminent navigator and discoverer. It was written by Henry Higgins Hurlbut (1813-1890) and published in 1885. The scanned copy is held by the Internet Archive, and its subjects include Champlain and the Chicago Historical Society. The record describes the sketch as limited in depth.

Why it matters

Hurlbut wrote almost two centuries after Champlain's death in 1635, so his sketch shows how a 19th-century writer chose to remember him. It presents the explorer mainly as a navigator and discoverer. Comparing it with Champlain's own writings and maps helps students see what a later author emphasized and what he passed over.

Look closer

  • Which parts of Champlain's life does Hurlbut focus on, and which does he leave out?
  • What does the writer's choice of the words navigator and discoverer suggest about how he admired Champlain?
  • Which sources did Hurlbut probably use, and how could you check them?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Samuel de Champlain on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Samuel de Champlain sources

Meet the AI Samuel de Champlain →
Front cover of a dark red leather-bound book with a small gold-tooled emblem of a lion or griffin-like creature above the initials 'E' and 'T' in gold lettering, centered on the cover.Book

Primary source

Les Voyages du sieur de Champlain

Samuel de Champlain · 1613

Sepia-toned engraved map titled 'Carte geographique de la Nouvelle Franse' showing the Atlantic coast, rivers, lakes, and decorative borders with compass roses, sailing ships, sea creatures, Native American figures, and a coat of arms.Document

Primary source

Carte geographique de la Nouvelle Franse

Samuel de Champlain · 1612

Front cover of a dark brown leather-bound book with gold-tooled decorative corner ornaments and a thin gold border frame on each panel, with a patterned gold-tooled spine band across the middle. The cover is closed and shows no visible title.Book

Primary source

Des Sauvages, ou voyage de Samuel Champlain

Samuel de Champlain · 1603

Hand-drawn manuscript map on vellum showing a coastline with green-washed shorelines, pictorial hill relief, place names in handwriting, a compass rose, a decorative cartouche and a scale bar. Ink lines and wash on aged parchment.Document

Primary source

Descripsion des costs, pts., rades, Illes de la Nouuele France

Samuel de Champlain · 1607

First page of a handwritten French manuscript, Samuel de Champlain's testament, dated 1635. Cursive brown ink on aged yellowed paper with water stains, a stamp reading Archives Nationales, and a handwritten signature at the left margin. The text begins 'Au nom du Pere et du fils et du Saint Esprit'.Document

Primary source

Testament de Samuel Champlain

Samuel de Champlain · 17 November 1635

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Samuel de Champlain now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions