FERDINAND CORTES furnished this map of the Gulf of Mexico in a letter he wrote in 1520. It is probable that the northern charting was furnished by Alminos, surviving pilot of the Pineda expedition, who was detained briefly by Cortes in Mexico. Rio de Espirito Santo (River of the Holy Spirit) was the Mississippi. (Archivo General de Indias, Seville)
he had done so successfully elsewhere in the West Indies. His intentions were set forth in a letter to the King:
Porto Rico, Feb. 10, 1521
Among my services I discovered, at my own cost and charge, the Island of Florida, and others in its district, which are not mentioned as being small and useless. Now I return to that island, if it please God's will, to settle it. I am enabled to carry a number of people with which I shall be able to do so, that the name of Christ may be praised there and your majesty served with the fruit that land produces.
I also intend to explore the coast of said island farther and see where Diego Velasquez is (Mexico), or any other. I shall set out to pursue my voyage hence in five or six days.
Ponce's persistence, as late as 1521, in calling Florida an "island," may be puzzling. His first trip should have convinced him that Florida was a peninsula. Subsequent explorations by Miruelo, Cordoba and Pineda provided conclusive proof of peninsular configuration. We must remember, however, that the age of discovery was still in its early stages. The route to
previous page
