Essipit

Essipit, the “river of shells” in Innu-aimun, flows through Innu country to the north shore of the St. Lawrence. Its mouth lies northeast of Tadoussac, where the Saguenay enters the great river. The neighbouring place was already marked on a European map in 1601 as Escanimes, a name associated with the wild berries found there. In 1603 Innu, Algonquin and Etchemin leaders met the French at Tadoussac, establishing an alliance that shaped relations in the St. Lawrence valley.