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1000
Leif Eriksson
Leif Eriksson was the first European to discover the new world. He was a viking who set up a Norse settlement in Vinland in the year 1000. -
1488
Bartolomeu Dias
Dias was the first European to sail around the tip of Africa. He sailed in 1488 representing Portugal. -
1492
Christopher Columbus
Columbus was a Geonese sailor. He sailed west looking for Asia and happened to land in North America. He is credited for discovering the new world even though he was not the first to be there. -
1497
John Cabot
Lead the first European exploration into the mainland of North America in 1497. He was funded by the king of England. -
1498
Vasco da Gama
A Portuguese explorer who was the first European to reach India by sea. -
1507
Amerigo Vespucci
An Italian explorer who discovered that the east coast of South America was its own land and no the coast of Asia. -
1512
Ponce de Leon
He was a Spanish conquistador, named the first govonor of Puerto Rico by the crown. -
1513
Vasco Nunez de Balboa
A Spanish explorer best known for crossing the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean. -
1519
Ferdinand Magellan
A Portugese explorer who organized a Spanish expedition to the east indies. -
1524
Giovanni Verrazano
The first European to explore the Atlantic coast of North America between Florida and New Brunswick -
1534
Jacques Cartier
A Breton explorer who claimed Canada for the country of France -
1535
Francisco Pizarro
A Spanish conquistador who conquered the Inca empire. -
1539
Hernando de Soto
A Spanish explorer and conquistador who led the first European expedition deep into the territory of the modern-day United States. -
1540
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado
A Spanish explorer who lead an expedition from Mexico to modern day Kansas. -
1577
Sir Frances Drake
He was an English captain who was the first to sail around the whole world. -
Hernan Cortez
The Spanish explorer responsible for the downfall of the Aztec Empire. He was the first generation of Spanish to colonize the Americas. -
Henry Hudson
An English explorer, best known for his explorations of Canada and Northeastern United States.
