In Search of Gold

PHOTOGRAPHER:

Image Credits Below

Issue:

09/2022

De Soto traversed through much of the American southeast before concluding his journey.

Hernando de Soto.

Linville Falls, one of several probable stops for Hernando de Soto's army on their route along the North Toe River.

Upon arriving on the coast of what the Spanish called "La Florida," de Soto set off on hunt for riches, leaving a trail of destruction behind him.

Through mangrove swamps, stands of cypress, and patches of palmetto scrub, de Soto's troop hacked their way north into the lands of the Apalachee.

Heading to the northeast in Georgia, conquistadors passed natives grilling meat over open fires. Chroniclers called in barbacoa, the first European reference to southern barbeque.

Arriving at Cofitachequi near Camdem, S.C., the chief presented de Soto with strings of freshwater pearls and food for his men. De Soto repaid her hospitality by taking her hostage in hopes she would lead the expedition to gold mines in the mountains.

The floodplain where Irish and Upper Creeks meet was a prosperous Native American trading center, Joara, when de Soto arrived on May 21, 1540.

A generation later in 1566, Spanish explorer Juan Pardo arrived to establish a fort at Joara. It was the first European settlement in eastern America's interior. Spanish brutality toward natives triggered their revolt. They destroyed Fort San Juan and killed many of its occupants in 1568.

De Soto's expedition was often forced to wade in the Nolichucky River's icy waters as they made their way west.

Douglas Dam flooded Zimmerman's Island in the French Broad and native town of Chiaha where conquistadors rested for three weeks after crossing the Blue Ridge.

Before his arrival on the Mississippi, de Soto stopped in Chiaha, a chiefdom located in what is now Douglas Lake in Tennessee.

On May 21, 1542, Hernando de Soto died of a fever on the banks of the Mississippi River. Before his death, de Soto chose Luis de Moscoso Alvarado, his former maestro de campo (or field commander), to assume command of his expedition.

View of the Orchard at Altapass on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The Loops Overlook.

NC Minerals Museum.

Downtown Burnsville.

Penland School of Craft.

Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park.

Hot Springs.

RESOURCES:

Images (desoto engraving) by John Sartain; (waterfall) by JH Shelton; Images (engraving) Library of Congress; (map) Herb Roe after Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun, Charles Hudson, 1997; photographs (forest engraving) courtesy of Libary of Congress; (barbacoa) by John White; photographs (engraving) courtesy of Library of Congress; (Joara) by John Ross; illustration by John Klauseyer, courtesy of Warren Wilson College; photographs (Nolichucky River) by John Ross; (Zimmerman’s Island) courtesy of Google Earth Pro; photographs (douglas dam) by Linda Blakeman; (Burial of de Soto engraving) courtesy of Wikipedia; photographs (orchard at altapass) by Jill Lang; (the loops) courtsey of NPS; (map) by Greg Dobson; (burnsville) by Hannah Brown; (NC Minerals Museum) by Jon Elliston; photographs (penland) courtesy of Penland School of Craft; (davy crockett) by John Ross; (hot springs) courtesy of town of Hot Springs

ISSUE DATE:

Fall 2022

Search form

In Search of Gold

In Search of Gold

In Search of Gold