Jean Baptiste Point du Sable was born on March 3 in St. Marc, Haiti (formerly Sainte-Domingue). While the year of Du Sable’s birth is unknown, it is estimated to have been between 1745 and 1750.

Du Sable traveled to the Great Lakes region in the 1770s, managing an Indiana trading post before settling on farm land in present-day Chicago with his wife, Catherine, and their two children. Du Sable’s farm provided an important link in the fur and grain trade of the time.

Known as the “Father of Chicago,” Du Sable was the first settler of Chicago and the city's first black resident. He moved to Missouri in 1800 where he lived the remainder of his life.

Learn more:
Read more about the life and accomplishments of Jean Baptiste Point du Sable
Learn more about The DuSable Museum of African-American History, a museum on Chicago’s South Side dedicated to the study and conservation of African-American history