The monument was erected in honor of the visit of Laperouse's round-the-world expedition, which arrived in Petropavlovsk harbor on the frigates "Astrolabe" and "Boussole" in 1787. The residents of Petropavlovsk warmly welcomed the sailors and provided them with all possible assistance. Laperouse expressed his gratitude in a letter to the French envoy in St. Petersburg, which is still kept in the archive of the Leningrad branch of the Institute of History.

Laperouse's expedition ended tragically: the last news from him came from the shores of Australia, after which the expedition disappeared. Only 34 years later, the remains of his ships were found in the Veracruzes archipelago.

The Laperouse monument was established in the city at the initiative of the French government. The drawings of the monument were handed over to the authorities of Kamchatka, and after receiving permission from St. Petersburg, it was installed in 1843 on the isthmus between Signal and Nikolskaya hills.

The monument stood until 1854 when it was destroyed by shells from the Anglo-French squadron during the defense of Petropavlovsk port. In 1882, it was restored by exiled scientist B.I. Dyubovsky at his own expense. It was a white wooden cross on a stone base with a metal plaque inscribed in French: "In memory of Laperouse. 1787." Ten years later, the sailors of the cruiser "Zabiyaka" erected a new monument, adding a round stone, an anchor, and anchor chains to the stone base. In the 1930s, the monument was moved to a square on Lenin Street, where it remains today.