De Soto National Memorial in Bradenton, Florida

PARK OVERVIEW

De Soto National Memorial is located in Bradenton, Florida, on what is thought to be Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto’s landing point for his 1539 expedition of what was then known as La Florida and lands farther to the north. The park was established in 1948 as a National Memorial instead of a National Historic Site because the location of De Soto’s actual landing point can only be speculated. To obtain the designation of “Historic Site,” the location of the event must be certain. In 1987 archaeologists did find a significant amount of Indian and European artifacts on the site, and while this points to the park being the probable camp of De Soto, it is still conjecture.

De Soto had been a secondary commander in a Francisco Pizarro-led expedition into Peru and now yearned for an expedition of his own. He was eventually granted permission by Spain’s King Charles V and sailed in 1537 for Cuba where he organized his expedition. He departed Havana in May 1539 and landed on the west cost of Florida. His journey would take him farther into North America than any European had been before. He made it as far north as modern day Charlotte, North Carolina, and as far west as Texas.

Spanish explorers promised many things to the King, but they had only one intention—to get rich by finding gold, silver, and jewels. This involved brutal conquest of the native people, as was the case in South America with the Inca and Aztec tribes. De Soto’s journey was no different, except he was often met with stiff resistance from the North American Indians. Though he killed and enslaved many of them, battles cut his army from 700 men to half that number by the spring of 1542 when he caught a fever and died. The surviving men aborted the expedition and headed down the Mississippi River and on to Mexico. The men had found no gold, no land to colonize, and their tales of hostile Indians were a major factor in why Spain never attempted further colonization beyond La Florida.

De Soto National Memorial is a small park that you can visit in a few hours. Learn about De Soto and his expedition at the Visitor Center and Museum, and visit a replica of his first camp, Camp Uzita, where park Rangers and volunteers dress in period costume and conduct blacksmithing, cooking, and weapons demonstrations. You can even try on armor and chain mail. A short trail takes visitors to De Soto Point and follows the shoreline of the Manatee River.