For General Information
about FHC
Lisa Kahn, Director
French Heritage Corridor Initiative
[email protected]
The 7 FHC Ambassadors
(IA) Ceil Miller-Bouchet
[email protected]
(IL) James Paul
[email protected]
(IN) J.Colby Bartlett
[email protected]
(MI) Michael Nassaney
[email protected]
(MN) Rob Mann
[email protected]
(MO) Tandy Thompson
[email protected]
(WI) Mary Elise Antoine
[email protected]
Leadership Team
Dr. Charles Balesi
Author and Historian
Amy Fienga
FHS Paris affiliate and Co-Chair of the Student Exchange Program
Sylvette Niccolini
Chairman FHC and FHS Chicago Advisory Panel
Marc Rosier
Author and Historian
Logan York
Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma
Honorary Committee
The Honorable Yannick Tagand
Consul Général de France in the Midwest
Princesse Marie Sol de La Tour d’Auvergne
Baronesse Isabelle de Laroullière
Madame Jeanne Lamy-Belzil
Public & Governmental Affairs Officer, Délégation du Québec à Chicago
Diane Hunter
Myaamia Heritage Preservation Specialist
Julie Kemper Foyer
William T. Kemper Foundation
Perri Irmer
President & CEO, DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center: A Smithsonian Affiliate
Jeanne Gang
Architect and Founding Principal and Partner of Studio Gang
Andrew Nussbaum
Wisconsin Department of Tourism
Our Mission
The French Heritage Corridor initiative comprises seven states in the Midwest (Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin). This network, joined by waterways connecting with the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes, transcends borders to recreate in the Midwest what was once la Nouvelle France.
While French history and heritage of eastern Canada and of Louisiana is typically well known and understood by the general public, the region comprising the French Heritage Corridor which lies between them is not as universally appreciated.
The French Heritage Corridor (FHC) is an initiative of FHS Chicago-Midwest chapter dedicated to developing synergy and raising the collective awareness about the rich French history and heritage that has, since the 17th century, melded with the vibrant multicultural landscape in what is today the Midwestern United States.
French Heritage Society is an American non-profit organization created in 1982 that includes 10 chapters in the US and one in France.
Through various activities and our educational program, we are dedicated to preservation, restoration and promotion of the beautiful French heritage throughout the United States and France.
The central mission of French Heritage Society is to ensure that the treasures of our shared French architectural and cultural heritage survive to inspire future generations to build, dream, and create by:
- Preserving the rich French architectural and cultural heritage throughout France and in the US by raising funds for restoration, preservation and cultural grants.
- Transmitting and safeguarding the skills, knowledge and love of the heritage through transatlantic educational programs for students, architects, artisans, art connoisseurs and collectors.
- Fostering Franco-American friendship and cross-cultural exchange through select tours in France and the U.S., lectures, conferences, galas and other events on both sides of the Atlantic.
Discover French Heritage Sites in the Midwest
- All Locations
- Overview (8)
- Historic Sites (57)
- Museums (23)
- Parks / Preserves (30)
- Corridor / Trail (2)
- Historical Societies (23)
- Native American / French (11)
- Cultural Immersion (6)
- Historic Markers (7)
French Heritage Corridor Events
- Now through April 28, 2024: The Peoria Riverfront Museum celebrated the opening of two of its self-curated exhibitions, Insects and Critters: Animals in Art. Critters showcases the largest exhibition of animals featured in art in the museum’s history, blending creature and creator to bring to audiences a close-up encounter with animals, real and imagined, like never before. One piece of art especially exciting for the exhibition is an original print of the Kittiwake Gull (Rissa tridactyla) plate 244, by artist and ornithologist John James Audubon (1785-1851) from his renowned book Birds of America, 1834. Exhibits | Collections – CRITTERS: Art and Animal – Peoria Riverfront Museum
- March 9-7, 2024: Annual Fort de Chartres Heritage Jardin Potager Seed Swap, Prairie du Rocher, IL Events – Fort de Chartres
- March 20, 2024 (6:00-7:30 pm): “Louis Jolliet: A Path Through Water”, a one-person performance by Dr. Jim Healy, Chicago Public Library, Clearing Branch, Chicago, IL, https://chipublib.bibliocommons.com/events/65c131baf797a6fee574319d
- March 31, 2024 (11:00am-4:00pm): Living History at the Linden House, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://www.facebook.com/HOHLindenHouse
- April 6-7, 2024: Fort de Chartres Colonial Market Faire, Prairie du Rocher, IL Events – Fort de Chartres
- April 8, 2024: L’Eclipse du Soleil, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://frenchcolonialamerica.square.site/
- April 13, 2024: Spring Militia Encampment, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://www.frenchcolonialamerica.org/events
- April 13, 2024 (11:00am): Speaker Guillaume Teasdale, “Connections, Disconnections: The St. Lawrence Valley and the Detroit River Region in the Pre-Industrial Era.” (Zoom Meeting). French-Canadian Heritage Society of Michigan, French-Canadian Heritage Society of Michigan Meetings (habitantheritage.org).
- April 14, 2024 (1:00pm):“Louis Jolliet: A Path Through Water”, a one-person performance by Dr. Jim Healy, The Historic Prairie House, Westchester, IL,
- https://savetheprairiesociety.org/friends-of-wolf-road-prairie/the-historic-prairie-house/
- April 27, 2024: reservation Award, the Linden House, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://www.frenchcolonialamerica.org/news-updates
- May 1, 2024 (7:00 pm): “Louis Jolliet: A Path Through Water”, a one-person performance by Dr. Jim Healy, Joliet Public Library Black Road Branch, Joliet, IL, https://jolietlibrary.org/
- May 11, 2024 (11:00am): Speaker Erika Hartley, Update on Fort St. Joseph Excavation. Additional details to follow. French-Canadian Heritage Society of Michigan Meetings (habitantheritage.org).
- May 15, 2024 (10:00am-4:00pm): Opening Day-2024 Season, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- May 17-19, 2024: Fourth Annual French Heritage Corridor Conference “What’s Cooking: Creating Collaboration in the French Heritage Corridor”, River Raisin National Battlefield Park, 333 N. Dixie Hwy, Monroe, MI, Save the Date: French Heritage Corridor 4th Annual Conference – May 18, 2024 (mailchi.mp). Sponsorship opportunities and registration will soon be available.
- May 18, 2024 (10:00am-4:30pm): Fourth Annual French Heritage Corridor Conference “What’s Cooking: Creating Collaboration in the French Heritage Corridor”, River Raisin National Battlefield Park, 333 N. Dixie Hwy, Monroe, MI
- May 18-19, 2024: La Fete a Renault Rendezvous
- May 26, 2024: Commemoration for battle of Fort San Carlos, Ste. Genevieve, MO http://www.battleoffortsancarlos.org/
- June 1, 2024: FHS Chicago-Midwest will present Fort de Chartres a plaque at the Rendezvous Opening Ceremonies for their completed restoration work on the Land Gate, an FHS grant, 54th Annual FORT DE CHARTRES RENDEZVOUS, June 1 & 2, 2024 – Fort de Chartres.
- June 1 (10:00am-4:00pm)-2 (12:00-3:00pm): Living History Tours, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- June 1-2, 2024: 54th Annual Fort de Chartres Rendezvous, Prairie du Rocher, IL Events – Fort de Chartres
- June 8, 2024: French Heritage Festival, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://visitstegen.com/2022/04/french-heritage-festival-2/
- June 11, 2024 (6:30pm): The Making of Pioneer Wisconsin: Voices of Early Settlers” by Dr. Michael Stevens, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- June 29, 2024 (10:00am-4:00pm): Ho-Chunk Cultural Arts Day, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- July 6, 2024: Independence Day Celebration, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://www.frenchcolonialamerica.org/news-updates
- July 14, 2024: Bastille Day Celebration, St. Louis, MO https://www.demenil.org/bastille-day-history
- August 3-4 (10:00 am -4:00p pm): French Canadian Historical Society of Michigan Field Trip to the Fort St. Joseph Open House in Niles, Michigan. French-Canadian Heritage Society of Michigan Meetings (habitantheritage.org).
- August 10-11, 2024: Jour de Fête, Ste. Genevieve, MO http://www.saintegenevievejourdefete.com/
- August 13, 2024 (6:30pm): “Sovereign Waterways: Indigenous Persistence and Wisconsin Rivers in the Nineteenth Century” by Dr. Rob Harper, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- September 7, 2024: Artillery Safety School at Fort de Chartres, Prairie du Rocher, IL Events – Fort de Chartres
- September 10, 2024 (6:30pm): “Citizens of a Stolen Land: A Ho-Chunk History of the 19th Century United States” by Dr. Stephen Kantrowitz, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- September 21, 2024 (10:00am-4:00pm): “Follow the Trail of History”, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- September 24, 2024 (5:30-9:00pm): Bourbonnais Grove Historical Society’s Seventh Annual Fleur-de-Lis Celebration Dinner, Kankakee Country Club Fleur-de-Lis Celebration (bourbonnaishistory.org)
- October 8, 2024 (6:30pm): “The Old Military Road: An Historic Highway Winding Through a Bigger Story” by Dr. Patrick Jung, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- October 12. 2024: Fall Militia Encampment, Ste. Genevieve, MO https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064413890791
- October 13, 2024 (12:00-5:00pm): Closing Day-2024 Season, Historic Indiana Agency House at Fort Winebego, 1490 Agency House Road, Portage, WS Events | Historic Indian Agency House | Portage
- November 2-3, 2024: Fort de Chartres Winter Rendezvous, Prairie du Rocher, IL Events – Fort de Chartres
- December 31, 2024: Prairie du Rocher La Guiannée at Fort de Chartres, Prairie du Rocher, IL Events – Fort de Chartres
French Heritage Corridor Initiatives
Conferences
Click here to discover our First Annual Conference, “A Midwest Renaissance”, held in May 2021 in Prairie du Rocher, IL.
Click here to discover our Second Annual Conference, “Making our Dream a Reality”, held in May 2022 in Lafayette and West Lafayette, IN.
Click here to discover our Third Annual Conference, “We’re All In This Together!”, held in June 2023 in Prairie du Chien, WI.
History Module
Click on the links below to see our module presenting a suite of information on the history of the French Heritage Corridor, including the arrival of the French, introductions to state-by-state French heritage, teaching materials, and more.
Module d’histoire en français
Pour voir la suite de pages qui présentent l’histoire du Corridor en français, cliquez ici.
Bienvenue!
The French Heritage Corridor invites you to discover this region’s rich history and culture. The resources presented here–written materials, maps, images, and more–will help you get to know this distinct heritage.
Whether we’re residents or visitors, our first hint that this region has a French past often comes through an encounter with its many place names of French origin: Prairie du Chien, Detroit, Joliet, Vincennes, Des Moines, Dubuque, Mille Lacs, Portage, La Crosse, Bourbonnais, Ste. Genevieve, St. Louis, Sault Ste. Marie, Marquette—the list goes on and on!
How did there come to be so many places reflecting a past with French connections? The materials here help to answer that question, and many more.
A section introducing the French colonial presence in the French Heritage Corridor.
A section that highlights the stories of other French speakers who came to the states of the French Heritage Corridor during and after the French colonial period, enriching the region through their varied cultural contributions.
A section that describes the workings of the fur trade. It underlines theimportant relationship between the French and their Native trading partners.
A section that introduces seventeenth-and eighteenth-century French maps and invites you to think about what and who the French explorers encountered as they moved westward and southward in this region.
A section presenting the account books of one French-speaking fur trader who worked in this region.
A section for learners or speakers of French that offers French-language information about the region’s French heritage. The texts are appropriate for high school or college language learners, and are accompanied by pedagogical activities that can be adapted by teachers.