Moncacht-Apé

Moncacht-Apé was a Yazoo explorer from the present-day Mississippi area; in the late 17th century or early 18th century, he made the first recorded round-trip transcontinental journey across North America.

Some years after his purported journey from the Atlantic to the Pacific, Moncacht-Apé related his adventures and itinerary to Antoine-Simon Le Page du Pratz, a French explorer and ethnographer in the colony of Louisiana. Le Page published his memoir in the 1750s, including material from Moncacht-Apé's account. Moncacht-Apé said that Native people on the West Coast had told him of their ancients coming to North America by a land bridge.

A partial English translation of Le Page's book was published in 1763. As it included material about the peoples and the geography of the Louisiana area, it was taken as a guide by later European and American pioneers, including Lewis and Clark, during the continuing exploration of North America.

Some historians have disputed the fact of Moncacht-Apé's transcontinental journey. Le Page's is the only firsthand account of Moncacht-Apé's story, and its veracity is difficult to confirm.