Chapter 3 Section 3

European Explorers Meet the Native Texans

Alvarez de Pineda

• Nationality - Spanish

• Lifespan - 1494 - 1519

• Career - Explorer and Cartographer

• Famous for – Believed to be the first European in Texas– proved that Florida was not an island

Alvarez de Pineda

• 1519—looking for water route to Pacific Ocean

• Sailed along coast of Gulf of Mexico from FL to Mexico

• Met Cortes– Cortes imprisoned some of his men– Cortes saw Pineda as a rival

Alvarez de Pineda

• Tried to est. settlement with people along Rio Grande River

• Abandoned this settlement & sailed to Jamaica– Died there

Alvarez de Pineda

• Voyage– 1st contact between Europeans and TX

Indians– Gave Spanish 1st accurate information about

TX coast including well-drawn map– Spanish now realized no water route to Pacific

Ocean

Panfilo de Narvaez

• Nationality - Spanish• Lifespan - 1470 - 1528• Career - Spanish

Conquistador and Explorer

• Famous for – The exploration of Cuba– leading an ill fated

expedition to Florida and North America

Narvaez Disaster

• Narvaez landed in FL– Split his force– Some men marched inland– Others remained with ship & sailed along coast– 1 year later, ships left the area– Inland party became sick

• Ate horses• Raided supplies that belonged to Native Americans• Decided to leave FL

– Built 5 rafts

– Hoped to stay along coast and reach Mexico

Landing in TX

• 80 men on rafts floated for weeks without food & water

• NA attacked when searching for food

• Violent storm tossed raft onto shore– Believed to be near Galveston– Nov. 6, 1528—1st Europeans to set foot in TX– 15 men survived

Cabeza de Vaca

• Became very ill after landing in Galveston

• Others left him behind• Forced to work for

N.A.• Became trader of

shells & beans• Later met 3 other

survivors of Narvaez expedition

Estevanico

• Enslaved Moor• Survivor of Narvaez

expedition

Travels Through TX

• Survivors lived among Coahuiltecans– Treated Cabeza de Vaca & others as slaves– Group moved often looking for food– Cabaze de Vaca “discovered” bison while

moving around• Spanish had never seen bison before

Travels Through TX

• 1534—Spaniards escaped

• Gained reputations as shamans—medicine men

• Group crossed into Mexico

• 1536—reached Spanish outpost near Pacific coast of Mexico

Relacion

• Originally written as report to King

• Published in 1542• Written by Cabeze de

Vaca• Described land, animals• Recorded details about

N.A.– Identified 23 tribes in TX

Advocate

• Became advocate for N.A.

• Found empathy with them

• Appalled by slave traders