Gran yuivira; they sought the Great Kingdom of the Tejas, the Mountain of Silver, the Streams of Pearls, the Provinces og Wealth and the Fountain of Youth. They added luster to their period and won new empires and lost them. Today the Floridas, the Hew Spain, the Mexico and the California of those days are the joy of the people.
Ancient Settlements
St. Augustine, settled 1565, oldest city in the United States, is the beginning of the Old Spanish Trail on the Atlantic Coast.
San Diego (St„ James)* settled 1769, first settlement in California, is the terminus of the Old Spanish Trail on the "'acific Coast.
Midway lies San Antonio iSsS2± (Saint Anthony), settled 1718, anciently an important mission and military center of How Spain.
West from San Antonio is Hi Paso (PI Paso del Uorte---the Pass of the North), settled 1659, rich in history of earliest days. North of 31 Paso lies Santa Fo (Holy Faith) , settled 1605 dr 1609, it became the second oldest city in the united States and seat of missions, colonising and government. Tucson dates back into the din past and the Santa Cruz Valley southward was dotted with missions. Other places also lay claim to earliest settlements. Old Mexico was conquered by Cortez in 1519. The French occupied Old Louisiana in 1699 by settling on the Gulf of Mexico at Biloxi; they settled Hi-Mobile in 1711 and New Orleans in 1710, Spain afterward controlled those cites and all that land.
Conquest of toe South end Pest
Ponce do Leon discovered and named Florida in 1515. The expedition of "kmfilo dc Narvaez landed at Tampa Bay in 1528 and that of Hernando de Soto/in 1539; both fought powerful Indian tribes around to the Tallahassee country where Narvaez turned south to escape by sea and Bote turned north to wander thru the South, and "'sst. Narvaez was lost in the Gulf of Mexico mid the remnants of his expedition .were wrecked on the Texas shores. Cabesa do Vacs, Narvaez’ treasurer, and three others only survived the Indian enmity, endured six year's of slavery, then escaped across Texas and XEEctaa In 1536 reached the Spanish on the west coast of Mexico— the first white men to cross the continent. Soto reached Arkansas territory, turned back, died in 1542 and was buried in the mighty Mississippi Hirer which he discovered. Ragged survivors of the Soto expedition escaped in 1543 down the Mississippi River and to Panuco, Mexico. Don Tristan do Luna landed at Pensacola Bay in 1559 with tho largest of all the Florida expeditions but Indian strategy scon drove him back to Vara Cruz. There are records of 38 missions established out of St. Augustine, westward to Tallahassee and up into Ceorgia. They were probably of wood for no ruins are known except some Bys±xxxtcka±H: of oyster shell cement north of Brunswick, Oa,
v/hile the Spaniards were exploring the Floridas other remarkable expeditions went northward from Mexico. Francisco Vasques de Coronado and his princely army exploreL the Southwest in 1540-42.
In 1598 Don Juan de Onate took possession of tho northern land at J?s,so del Norte (El Daso) and proceeded up the P.io Grande to colonize the Santa Fe country. In 1691 Father ICino entered the