Bernard de la harpe biography samples

French explorer

Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe^[1][2] (4 February 1683 in Saint-Malo – 26 September 1765) was a French explorer who is credited with using the name "Little Rock" in 1722 for a stone outcropping on the bank of the Arkansas River used by early travelers as a landmark. Little Rock, Arkansas was subsequently named for the landmark.

La Harpe was the first known French explorer to set foot in the future state of Oklahoma.

Explorations in Oklahoma

In 1718, La Harpe left France, along with 40 men, and established a trading post in April 1719 on the Red River near what is now Texarkana, Texas. This was near the center of the Caddo Confederacy. La Harpe hoped to establish trade relationships with more distant and unknown Indian tribes and, thus, on 11 August 1718, he set off with 9 men, including 3 Caddo guides, and 22 horses loaded with trade goods to visit a Wichita village to the northwest.^{[3] Bernard de la harpe oklahoma.}