Brulé, Étienne, << broo LAY, ay TYEHN >> (1592?-1633), a noted French adventurer, was the first European to reach Lake Ontario. He arrived there in 1615 while on a mission for Samuel de Champlain, a French explorer who founded the Canadian city of Quebec. Brulé may have been the first European to see Lakes Erie, Huron, and Superior.
Brulé was born in Champigny, France, near Paris. He probably traveled to Quebec with Champlain in 1608. In 1610, Champlain sent Brulé to live among the native Algonquin people and learn their language and way of life. Brulé returned the next year and later visited the native Huron people near Lake Huron.
During his mission for Champlain in 1615, Brulé also explored the area along the Susquehanna River, possibly as far south as Chesapeake Bay. About 1621, Brulé set out to find copper mines that the native people had described to him. He may have reached the western shores of Lake Superior and, later, the area along Lake Erie. In 1629, an English fleet seized Quebec. Brulé deserted Champlain and fled to the Huron country. The Huron later murdered Brulé.
