Hernando de Soto

Exploring the Southeast for Spain, including Georgia, and reaching the Mississippi River.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 35

Hernando de Soto was a Spanish soldier. He had already gotten rich from gold in Peru, in South America. He hoped to find even more gold in the land Spain called La Florida.
In 1539, he landed in Florida with about 600 soldiers, plus horses and pigs. They traveled mostly on land.
In 1540, his army marched through Georgia. De Soto was one of the first Europeans to explore Georgia! Then he went on through the Carolinas, Tennessee, and Alabama.
In 1541, he reached the Mississippi River. His group were the first Europeans known to cross it.
Some American Indian nations gave the army food and guides. But de Soto's soldiers also took food, forced people to carry supplies, took captives, and fought battles, like one at Mabila in Alabama.
Diseases his army carried made many people sick. De Soto never found gold. He got sick and died near the Mississippi in 1542.
Try it with a grown-up: look for a historical marker about de Soto's route in Georgia.

Georgia Standards of Excellence in Social Studies:

SS3H2.b — Describe the accomplishments of: John Cabot (England), Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), Hernando de Soto (Spain), Christopher Columbus (Spain), Henry Hudson (The Netherlands), and Jacques Cartier (France).
SS3H2.c — Describe examples of cooperation and conflict between European explorers and American Indians.