b. Montreal, Canada, 1692
d. Winnebago, Wisconsin, October, 1753

Paul Marin de la Malgue was an officer of the French colonial troops who drove the Fox Indians from what is now the Fox River. His name is also found as Marin de la Marque, Moran and Morand.

Achieving Rank

Marin began serving in the west in 1720. He was commissioned as an ensign in 1722. The same year, he was put in charge of the Chequamegon region and much of its fur trade. Although accused of being more interested in profits than military affairs, he was promoted and achieved great success as a commander.

In 1729, he opened a trading post among the Menominee near Green Bay. He employed a mixed force of Indians, voyageurs and soldiers to suppress the Fox Indians. For decades, the tribe had stationed warriors at strategic points on the Fox River and demanded tolls or bribes of every canoe that passed, harassing anyone who refused to pay. Marin is most famous for a sneak attack around 1730, described by Augustin Grignon. Shortly after, the Fox and Sauk withdrew southward. They had largely left Wisconsin by 1775. Over the next decade, Marin traded with small outposts scattered throughout the region throughout Wisconsin and the Upper Mississippi. He usually employed about a dozen voyageurs in the 1730s and up 30 in the 1740s.

Failure and Death

In 1746, Marin was sent to lead French troops against the British in New York. He was promoted to captain and appointed to the command at Baie-des-Puants — now Green Bay. He also employed up to 190 voyageurs annually. His trading and military activities reinforced one another, and Marin grew quite wealthy.

In 1752, when the French decided to seize control of the Ohio Valley, colonial officials put Capt. Marin in charge. Marin led a force of 1,500. The 61-year-old Marin cleared forests between Montreal and modern Pittsburgh, built bridges, dams and roads and quelled opposition from the Iroquois and frontier American settlers throughout the summer of 1753. The effort proved too much for him, and he died October 29, 1753, at modern Waterford, Pennsylvania. The next year, his successors built Fort Duquesne at Pittsburgh, giving France control of the interior.

Learn More

Paul Marin

See more images, essays, newspapers and records about Paul Marin.

Dictionary of Wisconsin History

Explore more than 1,600 people, places and events in Wisconsin history.

Dictionary of Canadian Biography; Wisconsin Historical Collections, vols. 3 and 17.