Saint Charles is the first permanent white settlement on the Missouri River, and was
 settled before the American Revolutionary War. Saint Charles was settled in 1769 by Louis
 Blanchette, who was a French Canadian fur trader and hunter. By virtue of authority given
 him by the Governor of Upper Louisiana, he established a post in Saint Charles under the
 Spanish Governor. Blanchette was its first Civil and Military Commandant. He came here
 five years earlier on a hunting and exploring trip, and was delighted with the location and
 excellent hunting and fishing. He returned to his home St. Louis de Lauzon, a small town near
 the Capitol city of the province of Quebec, Canada. There he gathered a few followers who
 were fur traders, and with his supplies returned here in April 1769. He called the settlement
 Les Petites Cotes (The Little Hills). He established his post at what is now City Block 20, near
 Blanchette Creek which flowed into the Missouri River. He built several log houses, a log church
 for the soul, and a grist mill for the body. Blanchette established a successful fur trading
 business, and he served as Commandant until his death in 1793. He was followed by Don
 Carlos Tayon as Commandant, who remained in command until 1801, when James Mackay
 took office, and served as Commandant until March 9, 1804.

 In 1791 when the Catholics built their second church off Main Street facing what is now
 Jackson Street, Manuel Perez, Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana, dedicated the church on
 November 7, 1791. Saint Carlos Borromeo was selected as the Patron Saint of the Church.
 The name was shortened to harmonize with the name of Charles IV, King of Spain. That
 same day Manuel Perez officially change the name of the village from Les Petites Cotes to
 San Carlos. This was anglicized to Saint Charles after the Louisiana Purchase. Since the
 commemorative day of March 9, 1804, the day of the raising of the three flags, the town has
 been called Saint Charles.