During these nine years, Father Marquette mastered several native languages and joined Louis Jolliet in his expedition to explore and map a navigable route to the Pacific Ocean, which resulted in the French discovery of the Mississippi River.

They did not proceed to the mouth of the Mississippi due to hostility of the natives and fear of confronting Spanish colonials.

The grave of Father Marquette was found to be located in downtown St. Ignace near the Ojibway Indian Museum on State Street.

Subsequent to the destruction of the Marquette Memorial Museum by fire in 2000, the site contains exhibits and a fifteen-station interpretive trail.

The 52-acre (210,000 m2) memorial is owned and administered by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and is an affiliated area of the National Park Service.