Samuel de Champlain (died in 1635)
The "Father of New France", Champlain was at the heart of the French venture in North America from 1603 to 1635. Under the leadership of Pierre Dugua de Mons, he helped colonize Acadia and, in 1608, founded a settlement at Québec that became the centre of the colony. He formed important alliances with Aboriginal peoples and expanded the French sphere of influence, travelling up the Ottawa River and as far west as the Great Lakes. Champlain explored and mapped large areas of the continent, and in his travel journals left an invaluable record of his era for future generations.
Plaque via Alan L. Brown's site Ontario Plaques. Full page here.