De Soto National Memorial, in

Manatee County Manatee County is a county in the Central Florida portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 US Census, the population was 399,710. Manatee County is part of the North Port-Sarasota- Bradenton Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its county ...

west of

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries A settlement established by Maroons or escaped sl ...

, commemorates the 1539 landing of

Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (; ; 1500 – 21 May, 1542) was a Spanish explorer and ''conquistador'' who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula. He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro's conquest of the Inca Empire ...

and the first extensive organized exploration by Europeans of what is now the southern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The memorial includes , where the

Manatee River The Manatee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 18, 2011 river in Manatee County, Florida. The river forms in the northeastern corner of Manatee County a ...

joins

Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater ...

. It has of coastline; eighty percent of the area is

mangrove swamp Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand fre ...

De Soto expedition

In May 1539, Hernando de Soto and an army of over 600 soldiers landed in the

area. They arrived in nine ships laden with supplies: two hundred and twenty

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million yea ...

s, a herd of pigs, war dogs, cannon, matchlock muskets, armor, tools, and rations. They were executing the order of King Charles V to sail to '' La Florida'' and "conquer, populate, and pacify" the land. The expedition did not yield the gold and treasure these men sought. Instead, they marched from one village to the next, taking food and enslaving the native peoples to use as guides and porters. Hundreds of people died on this calamitous four-year, journey. The de Soto expedition changed the face of the American Southeast and caused

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

to reevaluate their role in the New World. It was the first-hand accounts of survivors, describing the native cultures and the richness of the land, which became the journey's enduring legacy.

Historic recognition

The national memorial was authorized by Congress on March 11, 1948, codified as and . As with all historic areas administered by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

, the memorial was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

on October 15, 1966, with the name Shaw's Point Archeological District. The mission of the De Soto National Memorial is to preserve the controversial story of this exploration and interpret its significance in American history. Visitors can attend living history demonstrations, try on a piece of armor, or walk the nature trail through a Florida coastal landscape similar to the one encountered by conquistadors almost five hundred years ago. with

Activities

Exhibits at the visitor center include historic armor, 16th-century weapons, and period artifacts. A theater displays the movie ''Hernando de Soto in America'', about the DeSoto Expedition and the area's Native American population. A bookstore is also available. During the cooler months, visitors can observe Camp Uzita, a

living history Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to ree ...

camp which runs from December through April. The season ends with a re-enactment of DeSoto's landing on the beaches of

. Other park activities include nature trails and guided trail walks, fishing, bird watching, and picnicking. Park admission is free.

References

External links

*
Hernando de Soto Historical Society
{{authority control Archaeological sites in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Manatee County, Florida National Memorials of the United States Spanish colonization of the Americas Spanish Florida Museums in Manatee County, Florida History museums in Florida Biographical museums in Florida Native American museums in Florida Protected areas established in 1948 National Park Service areas in Florida Monuments and memorials in Florida Parks in Manatee County, Florida Florida Native American Heritage Trail Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida

De Soto expedition

Historic recognition

Activities

See also

References

Further reading

External links