Chapter 4 Lesson 2
The Search for Gold and
Riches
• Spain’s rulers wanted the
conquistadors to explore
the lands north of Mexico.
– The Spanish King offered
grants to those who would
lead expeditions into the
northern continent.
• Ponce de Leon was a
Spanish explorer who
accepted the offer and
received a grant.
The Spanish Move into Florida
• Ponce de Leon had sailed with Columbus
on his second voyage.
• For a time he lived on the island of
Hispaniola (present-day Haiti and
Dominican Republic)
• Later he explored and conquered what is
now known as Puerto Rico and was named
governor of the island.
The Fountain of Youth
• He heard a story about a fountain whose
waters were said to make old people young
again.
• This “Fountain of Youth” was suppose to be
on an island north called Bimini.
• He sailed north but did not find Bimini.
Instead he landed on the North American
mainland (St. Augustine).
• He named the mainland La Florida (Spanish
for “filled with flowers”)
Fighting Back
• When he tried to establish a settlement in
Florida, the Calusa Indians attacked.
• During the attack, Ponce de Leon was
injured and later died.
• Though he never found the “Fountain of
Youth,” he was the first Spanish explorer
to set foot in what is now today the United
States.
The Seven Cities of Gold
• Many people believed the stories that there were
seven cities that were built of all gold.
• In 1536 four men (Alvar Cabeza de Vaca, two
Spaniards, and a North Afican named Esteban)
told the story to Spanish leaders in Mexico City.
• In 1539 the leaders sent Esteban and a priest,
Marcos de Niza on an expedition to see if the story
was true.
• In their journey, Esteban was killed by Zuni
Indians, but Niza returned saying he had seen a
golden city.
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado
No City of Gold
• In 1540, after hearing about Niza’s journey,
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado and more than
1,000 soldiers set out to find the seven cities.
• He traveled north of Mexico through present-day
Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma.
• After the disappointment of not finding the seven
cities, he began the long trip home.
• The trail that he took home would later become
known as the Santa Fe Trail.
• When he returned home, he claimed many new
lands for Spain.
Hernando de Soto
Hernando de Soto
• The King of Spain gave Hernando de Soto a
grant for an expedition to the northern part
of the new continent.
• De Soto and his army of 600 soldiers sailed
to the west coast of Florida in May 1539.
• They continued to move north and by the
winter they reached present-day Georgia.
• Searching for gold, they went though South
Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and then
back south to Alabama.
Soto’s Expedition
• On his expedition, he encountered many
Indian people and many battles took
place.
– the worst occurring in Alabama
• There were between 2,500 – 11,000
Indians killed in battle.
• The Spanish lost 20 men, but most of
their supplies were destroyed.
New Land for Spain
• Although De Soto and his army were in poor
condition they marched on to the banks of
Mississippi River in May 1541.
• They were the fist Europeans to see this river.
• There they searched for gold for three years and
never found any.
• In 1542, Hernando de Soto died from a fever and
his men buried him in the Mississippi River.
• The soldiers returned home to Mexico claiming
much of the land they explored for Spain.