St. Charles Historical Ties to France and Spain

St Charles has strong historical ties to both France and Spain. French trapper Louis Blanchette established a trading post at “Les Petites Côtes” (the Little Hills), the site that would become the city of St. Charles. More French trappers and their families soon took up residence there and many Frenchmen moved from St. Louis to St. Charles during the following years. Most of these early settlers are buried at St. Charles’s Borromeo Cemetery.

The Louisiana Territory, including the site of St. Charles, passed to Spain in 1762, though actual possession was not in effect until 1766. Blanchette became a member of the Spanish St. Louis Militia Infantry Company and was present when the British attacked St. Louis in 1780. Later, Blanchette was appointed commandant of St. Charles under the Spanish regime, which lasted until the Louisiana Purchase in 1804. Many of the militia soldiers of St. Louis who fought in 1780 later moved to St. Charles.