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Nov 27, 1484
Diogo Cão
Discovered the mouth of the Congo River. -
Nov 27, 1486
Bartolomew Dias
Sets off from Portugal and finds the Cape of Good Hope and sails to the north-eastern part of Africa -
Aug 3, 1492
Christopher Columbus (First Voyage)
Set sail looking for trade route to India. Instead discovered Cuba, Española, and other islands in West Indies. Returned March 4, 1493. -
Sep 25, 1493
Christopher Columbus (Second Voyage)
Set sail from spain and discovered many islands in the Carribean including Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and northern Cuba. -
May 20, 1497
John Cabot (First Voyage)
Sailed for England and reached Newfoundland, on June 24, 1497. He sailed down the east coast of Newfoundland, but he never landed again on the coast, before he returned to England on July 30, 1497 -
Jul 8, 1497
Vasco de Gama
Sailed from Portugal. Sailed by the Cape of Good Hope, and reached India. Returned to Portugal on August 29, 1499. -
May 18, 1498
Amerigo Vespucci
Sailed from Spain, reached coast of Brazil in June, 1499 and explored 3,000 miles of the coast of South America. Returned in June, 1500. -
May 27, 1498
John Cabot (Second Voyage)
Sailed from Bristol. His four ships, and crew were lost at sea, and never heard from again. -
Nov 27, 1510
Francisco Coronado
First European to explore North America's Southwest. -
Mar 3, 1513
Juan Ponce de Leon
Set sail from San German, Puerto Rico, in search of the Fountain of Youth. He sailed northwest and on April 2nd, sighted, what he thought was a large island, which he gave the name of Pascua Florida. On April 3rd, he went ashore to claim it for Spain. -
Feb 8, 1519
Hernando Cortéz
Set of to Mexico from Santiago, Cuba with 11 ships, and 600 men and 16 horses. When he arrived at Tenochtitlan, on November 8, 1519, his force numbered more than 5,000 men. Cortez arrested Motecuhzoma and eventually burned him to death. After many fierce battles, in which over 2/3 of the Spaniards were killed. -
Sep 19, 1519
Ferdinand Magellan
Sailed from Sevilla, Spain. Followed the Straits of Magellan to discover the Pacific Ocean. He was killed in April 27, 1521, off the coast of Mactan Island, Philippines, and his crew continued the circumnavigation of the world, arriving back in Spain on September 6, 1522. -
Mar 27, 1528
Francisco Pizarro
In early 1530, he returned to Panama to continue the preparations for his third expedition. Early in January, 1531, Pizarro sailed from Panama on 3 ships. Pizarro sailed south and landed in Ecuador, and started plundering the small villages he found along the way. On November 15, 1532, they entered the Inca city of Coxamaraca. He invited the Inca ruler to meet with him, and captured him. -
Apr 20, 1534
Jacques Cartier
Set sail from Saint-Malo, Frace and made landfall at Newfoundland on May 10th. Cartier sailed all around the coast of Newfoundland, Labrador, Arcadia, and all the islands in the area. He returned on September 5th, 1534. -
May 25, 1539
Hernando de Soto
Setting sail from Havana, Cuba, he landed near Fort Myers, Florida with a force of 570 men and 223 horses. During his expedition, de Soto, killed many Indians, where ever he went. They marched north from Florida, into Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Near Memphis, he built barges and crossed the Mississippi River, two years after landing in Florida. They marched through Arkansas and Oklahoma, then back to the Mississippi. De Sota, died of fever on May 21, 1542, at the mouth of the Red River. -
Walter Raleigh
Raleigh sent colonists to the east coast of North America; Raleigh later named that area Virginia, in honour of Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen. He is often credited with bringing tobacco and potatoes from the New World to Britain, but they were already known there. Raleigh was later executed by King James I for treason. -
Henry Hudson
Hudson sailed to Nova Scotia, and then sailed south. He found what is now called the Hudson River. Hudson is credited with discovering the location which is now New York City. -
Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette
Canadian explorer who explored the Canadian wilderness, including the Great Lakes area. He and Father Jacques Marquette found the Mississippi River in 1673. -
Daniel Boone
Boone explored the Kentucky wilderness from 1769 to 1782. He traveled down the Ohio River, and trapped furs in the Green and Cumberland Valleys. Boone explored the Kentucky wilderness from 1769 to 1782. He traveled down the Ohio River, and trapped furs in the Green and Cumberland Valleys. -
James Cook
Found Easter Island and attempted to find a Northwest Passage across North America to Asia -
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark
Explored and map the American West. Accompanied by a crew of men, and later, the Shoshone Indian guide and interpreter Sacagawea.
