For hundreds of years, a large Mississippian site called Common Field near Ste. Genevieve existed, but its population declined around 1400–1500. The area became relatively depopulated. French explorers such as Jacques Marquette passed by Ste. Genevieve as they explored the Mississippi Valley in 1673. Around 1735, European settlers were drawn by the rich bottomland and nearby lead and salt deposits—Sainte Genevieve became the first permanent European settlement.