Spanish explorer Hernan de Soto passed this way in 1542. Nearly 130 years later Father Marquette, the French missionary and explorer, reached the nearby mouth of the Arkansas. In 1682 Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle, claimed this territory for France. But not until 1686 did any European establish a settlement in the lower Mississippi Valley. La Salle's lieutenant, Henri de Tonti, settled the first Arkansas Post. Tonti's post was perhaps only a mile or two from here on the banks of the Arkansas. The exact site is unknown. He called it Poste de Arkansea after the Arkancas (Quapaw) Indians with whom he traded. The small post survived fourteen years, strengthening France's claim to the lower Mississippi.