Preview

Discovery of St. Augustine

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
9375 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Discovery of St. Augustine
May 7, 2013
St. Augustine, Discovery to Present Day

It was April in the year 1513 that Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon landed in an area between Cape Canaveral and the mouth of the St. Johns River. Over the years, archeologists have performed many “digs” at the Fountain of Youth, which is a National Archeological Park, where the village called Seloy was once occupied by the Timucuan Indians. This is where the city of St. Augustine began.
Ponce de Leon arrived during the Easter season which was known as the Pascua Florida, he was on a mission of exploration and his visit to Florida was brief. Juan Ponce de Leon named this new discovery La Florida because its vegetation was lush and floral. Besides claiming and naming the land for Spain, he made a discovery that would lead to the creation of St. Augustine. As he was sailing along the coastline of Florida, Juan realized that an exceptionally strong currant was sweeping his ships northward. This was to aid in the quick return of the Spanish ships back to Spain and later was called the Gulf Stream. After exploring the coast he returned to Spain and it was in 1521 that Ponce de Leon returned to Florida with two ships and two hundred men, and with instructions to settle the land. This time he was wounded by an arrow during an Indian attack, he and his colonists immediately sailed to Cuba, where he soon died of the wound.
Many men, such as Hernando do Soto, Tristan de Luna, and Cabeza de Vaca, followed Ponce de Leon to Florida and concluded that it was not worthwhile to make a major investment in settling this land. It was filled with all types of insects, and dangerous animals like snakes and alligators. There were many unavoidable problems such as heat, humidity, hurricanes and frequent dangerous thunder storms. In many parts of Florida the natives welcomed the Spanish but the war like natives would not be easily subdued. Due to the agriculture not taking hold on the coasts, it was apparent that any colonies



References: "History of Saint Augustine." St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce in Saint Augustine, FL 32084 - Chamber of Commerce. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. "Juan Ponce De Leon." 2013. Biography." The Biography Channel. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. Mar.-Apr. 2013. Staugustinelighthouse.org. N.p., N.d. Web. 01 May 2013. The British Period, 1763 - 1783 "A View of the Town and Castle of St World Book Enclopedia: F, P. 262-265. Vol. 7. Chicago, IL: World Book, 1988. Print.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Juan Ponce de Leon in 1513 discovered Florida and was later met by a southern Indian tribe that would cut Leon’s triumphant moment short. A second attempt to colonize in America was led unsuccessful by Panfilo de Norvaez in 1528. Many men were lost at sea and others were among the Indian people. The first Spanish expedition in 1539…

    • 1767 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Christopher Columbus

    • 327 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In reviewing this website, I looked at the timeline to see exactly everything Columbus did. I now know that my little rhyme is actually incorrect. Columbus might have been noted in discovering America, but in fact he discovered Cuba and Hispaniola. Columbus assumed that he had reached the new world America, but instead he only reached the small island nations now known as Cuba and Hispaniola. All of this was done in his first voyage. Over his lifetime, Columbus made four voyages to what he considered the continent of America. In his other voyages, Columbus arrived at Jamaica, Trinidad, Gomera (modern day Canary Islands), and Mosquito Coast (modern day Nicaragua).…

    • 327 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Cabeza de Vaca

    • 1121 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Soon after the Governor purchased another ship for Cabeza De Vaca and his remaining crew. On April 12, 1528, the armada sighted land and came to anchor in Sarasota Bay. The following day the Governor and Cabeza De Vaca with his men began to move inland where they spent the next months encountering Native encampments, some friendly, some not. Six months later, the remaining men in the Governors party founded the sea again and made a flotilla or barges to take back to the water. After many attacks by the Indians, his men…

    • 1121 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tallahassee Research Paper

    • 1071 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Over the next hundred years over 25 Spanish missions were established throughout North Central Florida. These early missions played an important role in the early colonization of the New World. Until 1704, the San Louis Mission located in Tallahassee was the western capital of Spanish America. Today, the mission remains preserved on one of the region's highest natural elevations.…

    • 1071 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It’s April 14th, 1528 and as the sun rises, 600 conquistadores land on the coast of Florida. The king of Spain had sent Panfilo De Narvaez to the new world, for many different reasons, but most importantly, gold. That summer they set out trekking through the swamps of south Florida, heading north. Their numbers were slowly decreasing, due to lack of food, snakes, alligators, sickness, and hostile Indians. Panfilo De Narvaez was cocky and incompetent to complete his goals; which drove them to the decision to build boats and head for Mexico. The group had reduced to nearly 300 men, and on the 22nd of September 1528, they set out in 5 boats bound for Mexico. The seas were rough, causing the ships to separate. Panfilo De Narvaez was never seen again.…

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Did you know that the Calusa Indians were the first civilization of southwest Florida? They originated on Mound Key, an island in Estero Bay, just 80 miles south of St. Petersburg, FL. The Calusas lived on Mound Key from 800 A.D. till the end of the 17th Century. The view points from the two texts; William Bradford’s History of Plymouth Plantation and John Smiths’ The General History of Virginia; proclaim the Calusa Indians as “savages”. Although after reading a couple of texts including William Bradford’s Plymouth Plantation, John Smith, and Water World the Calusa Indians reveal more of a highly advanced society. Therefore, it is true that early settlers viewed Indians as savages; however, archaeological studies of civilizations like the Calusa Indians reveal a highly advanced society.…

    • 380 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cabeza De Vaca traveled to America by boat to establish colonies in Mexico and to reach Mexico city, but he landed near modern Tampa Bay, Florida. The captain of the vessel told all 300 of his men to abandon ship and go on shore. 2 months later with no treasure or ships in sight. The captain told his men to smelt down there firearms to make rafts big enough to carry 50 men on each. Every couple of…

    • 386 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Juan Ponce De Leon he was born in 1474 in the village of Santervas del Campo . He died July 1521 in Havana, Cuba for an arrow after of the travel to Florida. He was an explorer and conquistador the first to discovered Florida.…

    • 410 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Essay On Latino Americans

    • 1845 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Juan Ponce de Leon is the first confirmed European who landed on America’s shores in 1513. This shore…

    • 1845 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although there were many Europeans, Juan Ponce de Leon was one of the hardest working explorers of his time. Juan Ponce De Leon, was born in Santervas de Campos, Spain in the year of 1460. He married Leonora, and had three children with her. When his earlier expedition led him to the Southeast Coast, which would later be known as the United States. He gave Florida its name, and went on to become governor of Puerto Rico.…

    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Did you know Hernando De Soto was the first to see the Mississippi river? De Soto was born in Spain. He might was born in the year 1496 or 1501. His real name is Fernando. In 1539 De Soto and his men went ashore at Tampa Bay Florida. He grew wealthy as a trader as a trader of Indian slaves. Hernando sailed for Spain. He started from Spain. He went to Tampa Bay. He discovers the Mississippi river. It ended when he was going back to the Mississippi river. His death is on May 21, 1542. De Soto joined the enterprise. De Soto was a conquistador. In 1514 he traveled to the West Indies. De Soto returned to Spain in 1535. He brought fame for his accomplishments as well as a large amount of gold. De Soto was given a year to recruit and…

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This drove some of them into insanity, starting wars and making decisions that they probably would not make under different conditions. Diseases weren’t the only thing the explorers brought with them; they brought Commodities like food and animals with them as well. Some of the foods the Europeans brought over were grapes and wheat, which we now grow here in America. The food the Europeans sailors took back helped change Europe’s population as well, more than doubling their populations between 1650 and 1850 with the help of the potato, sweet potato, corn, and maniaqua cassava. The Europeans also brought animals with them such as pigs, cows, and horses, lessening the stress of travel and food on the Native American…

    • 550 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Juan Ponce de Leon was born in 1474 and lived to 1521. He was a Spanish explorer and one of the conquerors of many lands in the New World. Very little is recorded and known about Juan Ponce de Leon’s early life. Ponce de Leon grew up in Santervás de Campos, a Spanish town located near the town of Placencia. He is reported to have fought in the Spanish campaign is 1492 that drove the the Moors out of Granada. After that, many historians agree on the fact that he then accompanied the prestigious explorer Christopher on his second expedition. Columbus’ fleet then reached the island of Hispaniola, an island in the Caribbean Sea. Then, it is believed that Ponce de Leon returned to Spain before going back to the island of Hispaniola in 1502. Although,…

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    How Did Ronce De Leon?

    • 1282 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Legends, not facts, say that Ponce de Leon discovered Florida while in pursuit for the mythical Fountain of Youth. The story behind the Fountain of Youth, is that anyone who drinks from or bathes in the fountain will restore youthfulness in themselves. There was never any proof that de Leon was searching for the fountain and it was not until after his death that people said he was searching for these fountains to reverse his age. The lack of proof has disproved these assumptions of such explorations. Gold and other forms of wealth were more important and higher up on de Leon’s…

    • 1282 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    On March 5, 1731, Mission San Francisco de la Espada was established along this bank of the San Antonio River. Here the Spaniards took in the Coahuiltecan, a group of hunter and gatherers. The Spaniards attempted to convert them to Catholicism. They were also taught the ways of the Spanish. By the mid 1700s it was a working Spanish community.…

    • 60 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays

Related Topics