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Jan 1, 1492
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an Italian sailor who believed he could sail across the Atlantic to Asia instead of going around Africa. Little did he know what he would really discover along the way. He ended up finding the Americas as well as starting the Columbian Exchange in October 1492 bringing many new plants and animals to and from Spain and the Americas. This all seems good and well but this also diseases which killed many. -
Jan 1, 1519
Hernan Cortes
Hernan Cortes was sent from Cuba by Spain to expand the empire, and in 1519 he established the first Spanish settlement on the American mainland. He named it La Villa Rica de Vera Cruz which still exists today as the city of Veracruz. Soon after this establishment, Cortes learned about the Aztec Empire and just as quickly decided to take their leader, Moctezuma II captive or make him loyal to Spain. Once he had accomplished that in their capital of Tenochtitlan fighting broke out between... -
Jan 1, 1519
Alonzo Alarez de Pineda (part 2)
in vain however, because he still was able to map the Northern Gulf of Mexico for the first time ever. -
Jan 1, 1519
Alonzo Alvarez de Pineda
Alonzo Alvarez de Pineda was sent from Jamaica by Spain in 1519 to explore the land from Florida to Mexico of which they had claimed beforehand. Along his sail he and his crew came across the Panuco River with several Indian villages near its waters. Pineda and some of his men decided to make a colony near the rivers as well. He then sent his ships back to Jamaica for supplies. Unfortunately, when the ships returned all the settlers had been killed by the natives. Pinda’s exploration was not... -
Jan 1, 1521
Hernan Cortes (part 2)
...Cortes’s tropes and the Aztec forcing the Spaniards to retreat. Cortes then planed a new attack with more people and boats with armed cannons which ended up being a success. Cortes had conquered the Aztecs for Spain in August 1521. -
Jan 1, 1528
Panfio de Narvaez (part 2)
their group killed or hurt, they found no gold and soon began the journey home. Even worse when the remaining people got back to the shore, including Navaez, they couldn't find their ships. As a final struggle, the explorers built some small flimsy boats and around a month after they set sail they a storm kicked up and three of the boats were washed ashore on the Texas coast. While this did include Narvaez's boat, he then disappeared when his poorly made boat was washed out to sea. The other... -
Jan 1, 1528
Panfio de Narvaez (part 3)
...two boats ended up shipwrecked on a Texas island which only included 80 survivors and that number grew even smaller once winter came, even with some help from some Karankawa Indians. -
Jan 1, 1528
Alvar Nunez Cabeza
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was one of the few survivors of the Narvaez's expedition who was taken in by in by the Kawakawa and made it to spring. However, he was held captive and was forced to work very as a servant, a trader and a healer. Later he was captured by some Coahuiltecan Indians where he meet the other survivors of the Narvaez expedition who he later escaped from the Indians with. They then began to search for Mexico, traveling from one American Indian village to another. At one... -
Jan 1, 1528
Panfio de Narvaez
Panfio de Narvaez led another voyage to the Gulf of Mexico after Pineda, searching for gold like most Spainish explorers did. He and his crew landed in Florida on April, 1528. At some point while they were exploring they saw some natives wearing gold jewelry so they asked where they could find more and were told of a place called Apallachee. Narvaez then sent his ships to search for a harbor while he and 300 men looked for Apallachee. When the Spaniards found Apallachee after getting some of... -
Jan 1, 1536
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca (part 3)
...did get a detailed description of North America’s land and people. -
Jan 1, 1536
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca (prat 2)
Cabeza de Vaca removed an arrowhead from an Indians chest and stitched up the wound saving his life. Because of this, the Spaniards became well known healers among some tribes. One of his fellow travelers, Estevanico, became very good at talking to the Indians as well. This especially helped Cabeza de Vaca’s group get directions and eventually they came across some Spanish soldiers in 1536 that took him back to Mexico City and later they returned to Spain. This made him the first European to... -
Jan 1, 1540
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado was sent by Spain in 1540 to conquer the seven cities of gold from legend which they named Cibola once discovered not too long after Cabeza de Vaca returned to Spain. Once the city was found a battle between the Spaniards and the Zuni Indians who lived there took place but the Spaniards quickly won. However, they found no gold. Cibola were just Zuni Pueblo villages with houses made of adobe brick that looked like gold as it sparkled in the sunlight. Although he... -
Jan 1, 1540
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado (part 2)
didn’t find Cibola, Coronado sent groups to search for treasure. One group became the first known Europeans to see the Grand Canyon and another went to an area near the Rio Grande in what is now New Mexico. This was the home of the Tigua Indians who were friendly to the explorers so Coronado moved his main force into that area and while they were there they heard tales of Quivira, a nearby region where the cities were said to be full of gold. Although Coronado doubted the story, he decided to... -
Jan 1, 1542
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado (part 3)
take an expedition across the Llano Estacado to check it out. This was when Europeans first saw American Buffalo which they saw as humpbacked cows. They then went across Caprock Escarpment and probably the Palo Duro Canyon. They then headed north to destination but found no gold. He then killed the Indian, Turk, who had lied to them but had been taken on the expedition for directions. Then the remaining men returned to Mexico City in 1542 and told of the new things they had discovered. -
Juan de Onate
Juan de Onate was sent by Spain to control the expanding settlement of New Spain in 1598. The colony he was sent to establish was named New Mexico. He and 500 plus colonist traveled north across the Chihuahuan Desert and they celebrated their survival once they reached the Rio Grande. They named the place they celebrated in El Paso del Norte and near today’s San Elizario they claimed the area drained by the Rio Grande for Spain. The group then traveled upriver until they reached many Pueblo... -
Juan de Onate (part 2)
villages north of Santa Fe New Mexico is now. Then they made the first Spanish settlement in New Mexico but life was hard. Onate decided to explore northeast towards Quivira in hopes of finding treasure where Coronado didn’t but he found nothing. Because of the lack of treasure, Spain lost interest in Texas although they now had much control over thanks to all of their exploration, and colonies continued to thrive. -
Corpus Christi
The first Spanish mission in Texas was founded. -
Rene Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle
Rene Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle was a French explorer who claimed Louisiana for France and named it after his king Louis XIV. After that he asked if he could establish a colony near the Mississippi River. The king agreed and La Salle left France in 1684 with four ships of people. Unfortunately, one ship was captured by Spanish pirates, some people deserted La Salle, and later he got lost himself. Despite this, the remaining group came ashore in February 1685 on Matagorda Bay on the... -
Rene Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle (part 2)
Texas Coast. However, the colonists that stayed there had very little supplies and they quickly realized they needed to move inland and did so making a settlement there they called Fort St. Louis. La Salle then took a small group towards the Rio Grande searching for Spanish mines and food supplies. Meanwhile, at Fort St. Louis more than half of the settlers were dead by July of that year. When La Salle returned in 1686 and saw how bad things were he decided to go to Canada for help. The... -
Rene Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle (part 3)
journey was ultimately a failure starting in 1687 La Salle and 17 men went east. The men argued about how poorly everything went. This resulted in violence and in the process La Salle, the first French explorer to enter Texas, was killed by one of his own men. Only 6 made it to Canada. -
San Antonio
San Antonio was founded. -
Nacogdoches
The settlement of Nacogdoches is founded in the spring of 1779. -
Texas Missions
Spain stops supporting most Texas missions. -
Philip Nolan
Philip Nolan, a filibuster from the U.S., and his men fight the Spanish near Waco. -
Louisiana Purchase
The British buy all of the land claimed by France for less than three cents an acre. This cause some conflict between Spain and the U.S. Over borders later. -
Neutral Grounds
The Neutral Ground Agreement is established -
Mexican fight for independence
Father Hidalgo is executed but earns many supports from his cry of Dolores speech. Las Casas leads a revolt and declares Texas independent from Spain before being executed. -
Battle of Medina
The Gutierrez-Magee Expedition is defeated. -
James Long
Filibuster James Long leads a group of Anglo American to Nacogdoches -
Period: to
The Austin Family
Moses Austin receives permission to settle 300 families in Texas and then his son, Stephen F. Austin, brings and settles these families to Texas who are later know as the old 300. -
Martin de Leon
Martin de Leon petitions to establish the first Tejano colonies in Texas -
Green DeWitt
Green DeWitt is granted permission to settle 400 families. -
Father Miguel Hidalgo
Farther Hildalgo issues the Grito de Dolores or Cry of Dolores
