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Exploring the Americas
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2
The Backstory
How much would you risk for your country?
European explorers were willing to risk everything.
They didn’t have a lot of information. The journey
was always dangerous. They could get lost. Storms
could wreck their ships. The crew could get sick.
Still, their desire to reach the far-off regions of the
world was unstoppable. They wanted wealth, fame,
and adventure. They were also looking to bring glory
to their country and themselves. Their journeys were
often paid for, or sponsored, by monarchs seeking
new trade routes, more natural resources, and new
territory around the world. Many Europeans also
wanted to spread Christianity. They saw it as their
sacred duty.
For these reasons, explorer after explorer set sail
from the mid-15th to the mid-16th centuries. This
was the beginning of the Age of Discovery, a time
that changed the course of human history forever.
exploring_americas_sp1.indd 16
u TRADE AND TRAVEL
over hundreds
of years had provided Europeans
with some information about the
rest of the world.
However, much of
what they knew
was limited by
geography and
based on stories or rumors.
They could not
yet cross large
oceans. So they
knew nothing of
the continents that
lay on the other
side of the world.
Trade with Asia was
important to Europe’s
economy. Europeans
cooked with pepper,
cinnamon, ginger,
cloves, and other
spices from Asia.
How do you think
they reacted when
they could no longer
get these spices?
2/6/17 11:57 AM
3
d THE SILK ROAD
was a collection
of trade routes
that linked the
markets of China
and India with
those of the
Middle East and
Europe. Goods
changed hands
many times along
the route, from
one merchant
to another. In
1453, however,
the Ottoman
Empire stopped
all trade with the
West. That cut off
European access
to the routes.
Without a land
route, Europeans
looked to the sea.
d CONFLICTS
between
Christians and
Muslims erupted
during the Middle
Ages. Backed
by the Catholic
Church, Christian
monarchs waged
the Crusades in
the Middle East
to drive Muslims
out of Jerusalem.
Muslim invaders
conquered territory in Europe,
including much
of the Iberian
Peninsula, which
is now Spain
and Portugal.
Muslim people
were driven out
of the Iberian
Peninsula during
the Reconquista,
a movement to
make all of Spain
Catholic. Because
of these conflicts,
Muslim rulers
began restricting
European access
to trade routes in
North Africa and
the Middle East.
exploring_americas_sp1.indd 17
u HENRY THE
Navigator was a
Portuguese prince.
He wanted a direct
source of trade
in ivory and gold;
he didn’t want to
have to rely on
trade routes controlled by Muslim
leaders and others. He sponsored
voyages to explore
the African coast
l ONE OF THE
most famous
travelers of the
Silk Road was the
Italian merchant
Marco Polo. The
records of Polo’s
travels became a
bestseller across
Europe in an age
before the printing press. Polo’s
descriptions of
lands of riches
and incredible
wonders in the Far
East captured the
imaginations of
many Europeans.
Some explorers
set sail with
copies of Polo’s
book on board
their ships.
of the Atlantic.
Later, King John
II of Portugal sent
explorers to find
sea routes to
India. He wanted two routes:
one through the
Mediterranean and
Red Seas, and one
around the African
continent.
2/6/17 11:57 AM
4
The Technology
The right tools can make any job easier.
In fact, without the right tools, some jobs
might not be possible at all. For a long time,
lengthy sea expeditions, or voyages, were
simply not worth the effort. As technology
improved, crews became able to sail farther
and farther from shore. Navigation, or the
science of planning and following a route,
became more reliable. Thanks to these
advances, European explorers were able
to set foot on continents they hadn’t even
known existed.
u IN GERMANY
during the mid1400s, Johannes
Gutenberg invented the printing
press. Until then,
anything written
had been copied
by hand. Suddenly,
knowledge and
u GUNPOWDER,
learned from the
Chinese, and steel
gave Europeans
military strength.
They were able
to overcome just
about any resistance they met
in their travels.
Explorers had
cannons and early
firearms. Swords
and armor made
with Spanish steel
were another
advantage. The
people they conquered in America,
for example, often
used weapons
made of bronze,
stone, or wood.
exploring_americas_sp2.indd 16
ideas could
spread more easily. Early explorers
wrote about their
journeys. They
wrote about what
they found and
the hardships they
faced. The printing
press allowed
their stories to
be shared across
Europe. These
accounts inspired
other explorers
to set sail and
monarchs to
sponsor them.
r THE ASTROLABE
was used for
hundreds of years.
This hand-held
device helped with
many types of calculations. It helped
tell explorers at
sea where they
were. It could tell
them their latitude,
or position in relation to the equator.
It could measure
the angle of the
sun at noon or of
other well-known
stars at night.
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5
r THE COMPASS IS
a tool we still
use today. First
developed as a
navigational tool
in China and
Europe in the
12th century, a
magnetic compass has a needle
that reacts to the
magnetic pull of
the Earth’s poles.
A compass tells a
user where north
is. Once you know
where north is,
you know the other directions.
r THE CHRONOMETER
was the first tool
that let sailors
measure longitude. Put simply, a
chronometer is a
timekeeping tool –
a clock that works
at sea. Because
of the Earth’s
regular rotation,
time can be used
to measure longitude. But back
then, clocks didn’t
work on boats
because of temperature changes
exploring_americas_sp2.indd 17
u THE LATEEN SAIL
was one of the
most important
developments of
sailing. Previously,
European ships
had used square
sails, which could
and motion. The
Longitude Act of
1714 promised
rewards for anyone who could
find a reliable way
to measure longitude. Between
1735 and 1762,
cabinetmaker
John Harrison
built four chronometers. He
eventually won
the £20,000
prize (about $3.5
million in today’s
money).
only trap wind
coming from one
direction. This
limited a ship’s
mobility. The
lateen sail was
triangular, so it
could take wind
from either side
of the ship. Used
on the Portuguese
caravels, these
sails made the
ships faster
and more
maneuverable.
l THE SEXTANT AND
its predecessor,
the octant, measure latitude more
reliably than the
astrolabe does.
The first modern
sextant was produced in 1759. It
is made with an
arc of one-sixth of
a circle. Degrees
are measured
along that arc.
Navigators could
read the angle of
the sun, the moon,
or a star using
the sextant. Then
they’d read published tables to
find their latitude.
What technology
do you use today to
find your way? How
would the journeys
of early explorers
have been different if
they’d had the technology you use?
2/6/17 11:59 AM
6
Early Exploration
Have you ever heard the rhyme that starts, “In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean
blue”? American children have been reciting that line
for at least the last hundred years. It shows how important the early explorers are in our history. With every
expedition that set sail, the world seemed to get a little
bit smaller. Nations have grown and changed so much
since the first European explorers went looking for a
sea route to Asia. Each early explorer had a goal and a
destination in mind and set off over uncharted waters
to reach it. Their journeys shaped the world, and their
legacy can still be seen – and heard – today.
u CHRISTOPHER
COLUMBUS was an
entrepreneur as
well as a sailor.
He set up his
expedition like a
business. Portugal
was getting closer
to sailing around
Africa. King
Ferdinand and
Queen Isabella
of Spain didn’t
want Portugal
to be the first
to reach Asia
by sea. They
agreed to sponsor
Columbus’s
journey.
r AFTER
Columbus’s voyage, Spain and
Portugal signed
the Treaty of
Tordesillas. In
the treaty, or
agreement
between nations,
the countries
1441
Henry the
Navigator, prince
of Portugal, initiates the search for
a sea route to Asia,
prompting exploration of the western
coast of Africa.
1492
Columbus begins
his first voyage.
1493
Columbus starts
his second voyage.
exploring_americas_sp3.indd 16
u AMERIGO VESPUCCI
was an Italian who
sailed for Spain
as a navigator.
Like Columbus
and Cabot, he first
thought he had
reached China.
Later, however,
he became con-
vinced that they
had found a New
World. In 1507,
mapmaker Martin
Waldseemüller
proposed that the
New World be
named America in
honor of Amerigo
the Discoverer.
drew a line from
the North to the
South Pole. All
new lands east
of the line were
Portugal’s. All new
lands west of it
were Spain’s. In
1506 the line was
moved to allow for
Portugal’s claims
in Brazil.
1494
Treaty of
Tordesillas divides
ownership of
much of the world
between Spain
and Portugal.
1497
John Cabot lands
in Canada and
claims it for
King Henry VII of
England.
1498
Columbus sets
sail on his third
voyage.
2/6/17 12:13 PM
7
Shift the
Perspective!
What would you have thought
if you were living in the
Americas when Europeans
first arrived? Would you have
welcomed them, or tried to
drive them out? How would
you have decided?
u JOHN CABOT
was an Italian
sailor living in
England with his
family. When news
of Columbus’s
voyage reached
England, King
Henry VII sent
Cabot off to
explore for
England. Cabot
landed on either
Newfoundland
or Cape Breton
Island in what is
now Canada. He
thought he had
reached China.
He claimed
the region for
England. Cabot’s
claims opened the
door for the British
in North America
in the coming
centuries.
l VASCO NÚÑEZ
DE BALBOA was a
Spanish explorer.
He led a group
of settlers to set
up one of the first
European colonies
in the Americas,
at Santa María
de la Antigua
in present-day
Colombia. Balboa
and the settlers
1502
Columbus
starts his
fourth and
final voyage.
exploring_americas_sp3.indd 17
1510
Santa María
de la Antigua
becomes one
of the first
successful
European settlements in the
Americas.
1513
Balboa is the
first European
to see the eastern shore of the
Pacific Ocean.
1513
Ponce de León
sails from
Puerto Rico and
finds Florida,
which he
names.
collected gold
from the native
people through
trade and warfare.
He became the
first European to
see the eastern
shores of the
Pacific Ocean.
Power struggles
among the settlers
led to Balboa’s
execution in 1519.
1519
Magellan
embarks on a
journey to sail
completely
around the
world.
1520
Magellan sails
around the
southern tip of
South America.
l FERDINAND
MAGELLAN decided
to sail around,
or circumnavigate, the entire
world. He almost
succeeded, but
was killed in the
Philippines before
he could finish.
One of his ships
completed the
journey. On the
way, he discovered a strait near
the southernmost
tip of South
America. This
narrow, winding
channel of water
links the Atlantic
and Pacific
Oceans. It was
later named the
Strait of Magellan.
1521
Magellan is
killed in the
Philippines.
2/6/17 12:13 PM
8
Conquistadors and More
What do you think of someone who takes
something that doesn’t belong to them?
What if it’s something that person really,
really wants? What if it’s something that
an entire country really, really wants? The
European exploration of the Americas
presented European nations with an
opportunity for great wealth. Spanish
explorers called conquistadors (conquerors) led military campaigns throughout the
Americas in order to obtain this wealth. As
they traveled, they claimed the lands they
saw for Spain.
Conquistadors in North America
u THE PROTESTANT
Reformation
spread through
Europe in the 16th
century. The goal
of the Protestants
was to reform,
or change, the
Catholic Church.
u THE AZTEC AND
Inca empires controlled large areas
of Central and
South America.
You can still see
ruins of these
exploring_americas_sp4.indd 16
empires today in
Mexico and Peru.
Each empire had
a large, skilled
army. But civil
unrest and new
diseases weak-
ened them. As a
result, Spanish
conquistadors
were able to
defeat them.
1521
Ponce de León
returns to Florida to
establish a Spanish
settlement, but is
driven away by wellarmed native people.
As Spain claimed
more and more
territory in the
Americas, priests
and missionaries
worked to convert
native people to
Catholicism.
1521
Cortés conquers the
Aztecs and
claims Mexico
for Spain.
2/6/17 12:19 PM
9
l WITH A FORCE
of less than 200
men, Francisco
Pizarro ambushed
the Inca emperor,
Atahualpa. Pizarro
soon executed
l JUAN RODRÍGUEZ
CABRILLO is known
as the first
European to discover California.
He was looking
for rich cities
and an all-water
route through
the Americas. He
found neither.
Francisco Vázquez
de Coronado traveled from Mexico
to present-day
Kansas by land
looking for the
legendary Seven
Golden Cities of
Cibola. Members
of his group
were the first
Europeans to see
the Grand Canyon
and the Colorado
River. They never
found any golden
cities.
1532
Pizarro overthrows Inca leader
Atahualpa and
conquers Peru.
1535
Pizarro founds the
city of Lima.
exploring_americas_sp4.indd 17
Atahualpa and
joined with the
Incas’ enemies
to help put down
resistance.
Diseases caught
from earlier
European explorers had already
killed off many
Incas before
Pizarro arrived.
Others had died
in a civil war
l HERNANDO
DE SOTO helped
Pizarro conquer
the Incas. Later,
he took 600 men
and traveled from
Cuba to Florida.
He voyaged by
land through
present-day
Georgia, the
Carolinas,
Tennessee,
Alabama, Mississippi, and
Missouri. He
fought with native
peoples, including
the Mobile people
in Alabama. De
Soto died on the
journey and was
buried along the
Mississippi River.
r JUAN PONCE DE
LEÓN was governor of Puerto
Rico until he lost
his position to
political rivals.
Seeking new
land, he explored
the Caribbean. In
1513, he landed
on the North
American mainland and named
the region Florida.
A later attempt
to settle Florida
failed when
Native Americans
attacked. Ponce
de León was
struck by an arrow
during the attack.
He later died from
his wounds on
Hispaniola.
l HERNÁN CORTÉS
was a Spanish
conquistador
who defeated
the Aztecs and
conquered Mexico
for Spain. The
Aztecs were not
well liked by
neighboring cultures. One such
neighbor, the citystate of Tlaxcala,
joined forces with
Cortés. A thousand
1540
Vázquez de
Coronado journeys north from
present-day
Mexico into the
United States.
1541
Pizarro is
assassinated by
political rivals.
1542
Cabrillo is the
first European to
discover California
and sail up its
coast.
Atahualpa had
waged against his
brother. This lack
of stability helped
Pizarro defeat the
Incas.
Millions of
native people
were infected
and killed by
germs brought
to the Americas
by European
explorers. What
would have
happened if the
native people
had not gotten
sick? Could
they have
fought off the
conquistadors?
Tlaxcaltecs went
with him to attack
Tenochtitlán, the
capital of the
Aztec empire.
1542
Coronado
completes his
two-year land
expedition.
2/6/17 12:20 PM
10
Inside a
Caravel
Imagine living on a ship for months and months. The boat is always
moving. You eat the same thing, day after day – hard biscuits, salted
meat, and fish. Stale water sits in barrels below deck for you to drink.
Your work is hard and tiring. When storms aren’t throwing the ship
around, sun beats down without shade. This was the life of countless
sailors who joined the explorers on their voyages to distant shores.
The ships they sailed on were uniquely built for long sea journeys . . .
but that doesn’t mean they were comfortable!
FOREMAST
MAINSAIL
FORESAIL
SCRUB
THE DECK!
DECK
KEEL
exploring_americas_sp5.indd 16
2/7/17 11:17 AM
11
MAINMAST
MIZZENMAST
LAND? NOPE!
JUST MORE
SEA, BOYS!
LATEEN SAIL
MEND
THE ROPES!
MOVE
THE
SAILS!
ECK
CAPTAIN’S CABIN
HULL
exploring_americas_sp5.indd 17
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12
Later Explorers
Despite the hardships of the journey west,
Europeans were eager to discover and claim
new lands. Explorers continued to venture
to the New World. Spanish and Portuguese
settlements grew more established in
Mexico and in Central and South America.
Other nations set their sights on the rest of
u EUROPEANS STILL
hoped to find a
direct route to
China through the
North American
continent. Many
waterways
emptied into the
Atlantic Ocean
and the Gulf of
Mexico. This
gave them hope
that such a route
existed. North
America, however,
is a big continent.
No rivers stretch
across it. The only
true Northwest
Passage lies in the
dangerously icy
seas in northern
Canada.
1524
Verrazzano
explores the
eastern coast of
North America for
France, discovering New York
Harbor.
1534
Jacques Cartier
sails for the New
World and explores
the St. Lawrence
River, allowing
France to claim
lands in Canada.
exploring_americas_sp6.indd 16
1585
English colony
of Roanoke is
founded.
North America. Early on, many explorers
still hoped to find the coveted sea route to
China called the Northwest Passage. As time
passed, no such route was found. Other
opportunities presented themselves,
however. The New World proved to be
rich in natural resources.
1590
English colony
of Roanoke is
discovered to be
deserted.
1604
The French settle
St. Croix Island.
1607
Hudson begins his
first journey from
England in search
of the Northwest
Passage.
2/6/17 12:32 PM
13
u GIOVANNI DA
VERRAZZANO, an
Italian explorer working for
France, was
looking for a sea
route to Asia. His
voyages took
him along the
North American
coast. There, he
first spotted New
York Harbor. He
continued north
to Newfoundland
before returning to
France. He made
two additional
trips to the New
World and was
killed by Native
Americans on his
final voyage.
u KING FRANCIS I
of France sponsored Jacques
Cartier’s multiple
voyages to North
America. Cartier
kept promising
that riches lay
further west.
Cartier, however,
continued to return
without any gold
or gems. The king
commissioned a
colony in order to
secure French land
claims. When the
colony failed and
no riches were
found, France lost
interest in exploring the New World
for the next half
century.
1607
English colony
at Jamestown,
Virginia, becomes
the first permanent
English settlement
in the Americas.
1608
Hudson begins his
second voyage
from England.
exploring_americas_sp6.indd 17
u JACQUES CARTIER,
a French explorer,
was sent to find
the Northwest
Passage. His voyage took him up
the St. Lawrence
River into what
is now Quebec,
Canada. On a later
voyage, he tried to
establish a colony
in the area. Before
the colonists
arrived, Cartier
found what he
thought were gold
and diamonds. He
took the stones
and hurried back
to France. He
soon learned that
he was wrong
and the stones
were worthless.
The colonists he
left behind lasted
through one harsh
winter before
giving up and
also returning to
France.
u HENRY HUDSON
led four voyages
to North America
in search of
the Northwest
Passage. The
Hudson River in
New York and
Hudson Bay
in Canada are
named for him.
He was the first
European known
to have explored
these waterways.
His fourth voyage
ended in a mutiny, or rebellion,
that left Hudson
behind as his
ship returned to
England.
1608
French explorer Samuel de
Champlain builds a
fortress in what is
now Québec City.
1609
Hudson begins his
third expedition
and discovers the
Hudson River in
present-day New
York.
u HUDSON’S FIRST
two voyages
were paid for
by the Britishbased Muscovy
Company. Always
the entrepreneur,
he found investors with the
Dutch East India
Company for his
third trip. Later,
back in England,
Hudson was
ordered not to sail
for other nations.
The British East
India Company
joined the
Muscovy Company
in sponsoring his
fourth voyage.
The territories he
charted were split
between British
and Dutch claims.
Why do you think so many explorers
were trying to find the Northwest
Passage? How do you think it might
benefit the first country to find such a
waterway?
1610
Hudson’s fourth
and final voyage
leads him to discover Hudson Bay
and Hudson Strait,
north of Quebec.
1620
English
Separatists,
now known as
Pilgrims, sail to
North America on
the Mayflower.
2/6/17 12:32 PM
CTIC
14
Explorers at a Glance
OCEAN
Europeans had soon mapped, charted, and
claimed much of the world. Nations would
never again be unaware of what lay beyond
the horizon. Instead, the great differences
between one place and another slowly
began to fade away. The Age of Exploration
may have ended, but pioneers, colonies,
settlements, and global trade were just
getting started. From that point on, the
fortunes and futures of people all over the
world were forever tied together.
E U R O P E
N O R T H
A M E R I C A
PORTUGAL
ATLANTIC
SPAIN
OCEAN
San Salvador
PACIFIC
A F R I C A
OCEAN
Isthmus of
Panama
S O U T H
A M E R I C A
N
0
W
1,000 mi.
E
0
S
exploring_americas_sp7_v2.indd 16
1,000 km.
EACH VOYAGE FACED
its own hardships.
From illness to
treachery to bloody
battles with native
people, explorers
faced very real
dangers. The lure
of great rewards,
however, drove
them forward.
This ambition for
wealth and power, along with a
belief in European
superiority, led to
the cruel treatment
of many native
people.
2/6/17 12:43 PM
OCEAN
ARCTIC
l THE DANGERS OF
the voyage itself
weren’t the only
risks explorers
faced. Jealous
rivals at home
often plotted
against them. New
groups were sent
15
out to take control
of lands already
claimed. Such
power struggles
led to the deaths
of both Vasco
Núñez de Balboa
and Francisco
Pizarro.
Columbus, 1492
Cabot, 1497
Balboa, 1501, 1513
Vespucci, 1501–1502
E U R O P E
Ponce de León,
Le 1513
Cortés, 1519
Magellan, 1519–
1519–1522
1519
–1522
Verrazzano, 1524
Pizarro, 1531–1535
Cartier, 1535–1536
R I C A
De Soto, 1539–1542
Coronado, 1540–1542
Cabrillo, 1542
Hudson, 1609, 1610
ASIA
u EUROPEAN
nations often put
a single ruler in
charge of a territory. Governors
or viceroys were
appointed by monINDIA
archs and often
had complete
control over an
area. Assemblies
and other systems
of representation
developed only as
colonies grew. The
more Europeans
lived in an area,
the more they
demanded to take
part in the new
governments.
PACIFIC
OCEAN
Phillipine
Islands
By the Numbers
COLUMBUS
Journey Across the Atlantic:
2 months 9 days
Length of Complete Voyage:
7 months 12 days
MAGELLAN
Magellan’s Voyage Before Death:
1 year 7 months 7 days
INDIAN
OCEAN
Length of Complete Voyage:
2 years 11 months 19 days
VESPUCCI
Length of Complete Voyage:
1 year 2 months 9 days
PONCE DE LEÓN
Length of Voyage from Puerto Rico
to Florida:
Less than 1 month
exploring_americas_sp7_v2.indd 17
A
u AS THE AGE
of Exploration
Uended,
S T aRnew
ALIA
danger arrived
on the high seas.
Pirates began to
take advantage of
naval traffic. They
attacked merchant
ships and stole
valuable cargo.
Pirate crews came
from all over
Europe and Africa.
Some pirates,
called privateers,
were backed by
European nations
and encouraged to
prey on the ships
of rivals. Many
crew members
had escaped from
the slave trade.
The legends of
famous pirates like
Blackbeard have
lived on. In classic
books and modern movies alike,
pirates’ lives are
shown as free and
full of adventure.
2/6/17 12:43 PM
16
A Changing World
The legacy the explorers left behind
was more than just one of conquest.
The movement of peoples between
continents changed world cultures
and ecosystems, or networks of
living things. This cultural and biological exchange is known as the
Columbian Exchange. Plants and
livestock from one part of the world
began to flourish on the other side
of the globe. In more ways than one,
the world was never the same again.
Land Claims - 17th Century
l CHRISTOPHER
COLUMBUS introduced sugarcane
into Cuba on his
second and third
voyages. Cuba
became Spain’s
primary source of
sugar in later
centuries. Vast
sugar plantations
in the Caribbean
relied on the use
of slave labor.
Sugar made the
Caribbean islands
an important stop
on slave trade
routes. Even today,
sugar is still grown
in North and South
America.
l TODAY, MOST
areas that were
once claimed by
European explorers
have gained their
independence and
become strong
nations of their
own. The effects
of European influence, however,
can still be seen.
Cultures, religions,
ethnicities, and
languages across
the Americas still
strongly reflect the
European nations
that seized control
of the land so
many years ago.
exploring_americas_sp8.indd 16
2/6/17 12:54 PM
17
r POTATOES WERE
a New World plant
that flourished
across Europe.
Many European
nations soon
added potatoes
to their diets.
Some areas relied
heavily on this
crop for food.
Ireland was one of
these areas. From
1845 to 1849,
a blight (accidentally brought
from America)
destroyed many
potato crops in
Northern Europe.
About a million
people died from
the Potato Famine
in Ireland alone.
Two million people
left Ireland for the
United States.
u IMAGES OF THE
American
Southwest often
show wild horses and herds of
cattle. Neither of
these animals is
native to North
America. The
Spanish brought
horses and cattle
with them. Today
in places like the
United States and
Argentina, tens of
millions of cattle
are raised for the
beef industry.
exploring_americas_sp8.indd 17
Horses became
important to many
Native American
tribes. They have
been central to
tribal traditions for
hundreds of years.
u DISEASE WAS
probably the most
effective and brutal conquistador
of the New World.
Native Americans
had no resistance
to European
diseases. These
included smallpox,
measles, malaria,
yellow fever, influenza, and chicken
pox. The deadliest
was smallpox.
Estimates put its
death toll in the
Americas at nearly
90 percent of the
population in some
regions. Across
the hemisphere,
whole villages
disappeared.
l THE ORAL
traditions of
Native American
tribes are deeply
rooted in their
various cultures.
Stories are told
and passed from
one generation to
the next. Some
stories included
tales of creation
and morality. Some
outlined codes
of law and the
histories of the
people. Most tribes
did not have a
written language,
and no tribes
north of Mexico
did. Europeans
brought writing
to these parts of
the Americas. This
allowed the histories and cultures
of some tribes,
passed down
orally for thousands of years, to
be written down
and recorded.
2/6/17 12:54 PM
18
Activities
BUILD AN EXHIBIT
Your job is to work in small
groups to build a museum exhibit about a particular explorer.
Create maps, artifacts, journal
entries, and other items to tell the
story of your explorer. Be sure to
make your display interesting and
eye-catching. Share your exhibit
as part of a museum of exploration. Encourage other groups to
ask questions about your explorer.
INTERVIEW ROLE PLAY
Imagine that you could interview an explorer. What would
you want to ask? With a partner, think of some questions
that would help you better
understand the experiences of a
particular explorer. Take turns
playing the part of the interviewer and the explorer. You
might want to pretend you’re
on a talk show! Each of you
should have the chance to ask
and answer questions as you act
out the interview.
Exploring_Americas_18-19.indd 18
2/6/17 12:56 PM
19
MAKE CONNECTIONS WITH THESE RELATED TITLES
America 1492
Early Settlements
13 Colonies
The place was America. The year was
1492. A rugged, unspoiled land where
native farmers and hunter-gatherers
killed only the animals they needed
to survive. Learn about the Native
American tribes and their way of life,
just before European nations began
building settlements and claiming this
vast mass of land.
America – a newly discovered land
with robust resources and new
opportunities. European nations such
as Spain and Britain were eager to
settle this land and claim it as their
own. Discover the early settlements of
New Spain and New England, as well
as colonies such as Jamestown.
Before America was the United
States, it was a group of 13 colonies.
Learn about the individuals who helped
found these colonies and the role
that religion played in colonies such
as Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
With growing opposition to British rule,
these colonies would unite to fight for
their independence.
CALIFORNIA
STANDARDS
HSS 5.1 Students trace the routes of early
explorers and describe the early explorations of the Americas.
LEARN
MORE
ONLINE!
• Prince Henry of
Portugal was more
than just one of the
first Europeans to
put out to sea to
find a route to Asia
and Africa. He also
started a school of
navigation.
• One of the deadliest
illnesses sailors
faced was scurvy.
Scurvy is a vitamin
deficiency, which
means a person
Exploring_Americas_18-19.indd 19
isn’t getting enough
of one or more
vitamins.
• In 1540, Ignatius
de Loyola received
approval from the
Pope for his new
order of Catholic
priests. Called
the Jesuits, they
played an active
role in the CounterReformation.
• Most Spanish
explorers and
settlers paid little
attention to the
rights of native
peoples. Some
Europeans spoke
out against these
injustices, such
as Bartolomé
de Las Casas, a
Spanish historian
and Dominican
priest.
5.2.1 Describe the entrepreneurial characteristics of early explorers (e.g., Christopher
Columbus, Francisco Vásquez de Coronado) and
the technological developments that made sea
exploration by latitude and longitude possible
(e.g., compass, sextant, astrolabe, seaworthy
ships, chronometers, gunpowder). 5.2.2 Explain
the aims, obstacles, and accomplishments of the
explorers, sponsors, and leaders of key European
expeditions and the reasons Europeans chose to
explore and colonize the world (e.g., the Spanish
Reconquista, the Protestant Reformation, the
Counter Reformation). 5.2.3 Trace the routes of
the major land explorers of the United States, the
distances traveled by explorers, and the Atlantic
trade routes that linked Africa, the West Indies,
the British colonies, and Europe. 5.2.4 Locate
on maps of North and South America land
claimed by Spain, France, England, Portugal, the
Netherlands, Sweden, and Russia.
Historical and Social Sciences Analysis
Skills:
Chronological and Spatial Thinking
2. Students correctly apply terms related to time,
including past, present, future, decade, century,
and generation.
2/6/17 12:57 PM
hmhco.com
EDITOR: Jennifer Dixon
ART DIRECTION: Brobel Design
DESIGNERS: Ian Brown, Ed Gabel,
David Ricculli, Jeremy Rech
PHOTO RESEARCH: Ted Levine,
Elisabeth Morgan
ACTIVITIES WRITER: Kristine Scharaldi
PROOFREADER: Margaret Mittelbach
FACT-CHECKER: David Stienecker
AUTHOR: Amanda M. Gebhardt
AUTHOR TEAM LEAD: Barak Zimmerman
PRESIDENT AND CEO: Ted Levine
CHAIRMAN AND FOUNDER: Mark Levine
GRADE 5 TITLES
Regions of North America
George Washington
Eastern Woodland Indians
Thomas Jefferson
Plains Indians
Benjamin Franklin
Southwest Peoples
The Constitution
Northwest Coast Peoples
The New Nation
America 1492
Lewis and Clark
Exploring the Americas
Westward Expansion
Early Settlements
Pioneers
13 Colonies
Immigration
Declaration of Independence
Industrial Revolution (in America)
American Revolution
Civil Rights
Revolutionary Women
ON THE COVER: Christopher Columbus’s embarkation and departure from the port of Palos,
Spain, on August 3, 1492, painting by Ricardo Balaca, 1892: Shutterstock: Everett
Historical.
PICTURE CREDITS: Alamy: Art Directors & TRIP: p.5 top left (compass); Digital Image
Library: p.5 bottom (chronometer); Paris Pierce: p.15 bottom right (pirates); The Print
Collector: p.17 top (potato famine); Peter J. Hatcher: p.18 top left (Potawatomi Indians);
Richard Cummins: p.18 top center (Jamestown settlers). Bridgeman Images: English
School (20th Century):© Look and Learn: p.5 top right (Portuguese caravel). Getty
Images: Hulton Archive: p.2 bottom right (crusades battle); DEA / G. DAGLI ORTI:
p.3 right (Henry the Navigator); DEA Picture Library: p.6 lower right (map showing line
of Treaty of Tordesillas); Corbis Historical: Stefano Bianchetti: p.7 center (Magellan);
Underwood Archives: p.8 lower right (Cabrillo arriving in California); ZU_09: pp.10–11
(Portuguese caravel). iStock: HadelProductions: p.5 left (sextant); pictore: p.9 bottom
(Hernan Cortés); ZU_09: p.9 top left (Francisco Pizzaro), pp.8–9 center (Hernando
de Soto), p.13 top center (Jacques Cartier), p.13 lower left (King Francis of France);
mashuk: p.13 top left (Giovanni da Verrazzano); leezsnow: p.13 lower center (Henry
Hudson); sureshsharma: p.13 top right (Dutch flag); tinnakorn: p.13 middle right (British
Flag); ilbusca: p.17 left (Native Americans with horse); Linda Steward: p.17 bottom left
(15th-century alphabet). North Wind Picture Archives: p.3 left (Silk Road); p.4 top
right (printing press); p.4 left (Spanish soldier with arquebus); p.5 top right (lateen sail);
p.9 right (Juan Ponce de León); p.15 upper right (settling in Jamestown); p.7 top left
(John Cabot); p.7 bottom left (Balboa); p.8 upper right (Spanish mission). Shutterstock:
Marzolino: p.2 top (Ptolemy’s 2nd Projection); Juan Aunion: p.4 bottom right (astrolabe);
Everett Historical: p.6 left (Columbus leaving Spain), p.17 right (smallpox epidemic);
Maciej Czekajewski: p.16 top right (sugarcane); I. Pilon: p.18 top right (early map of
northeast America); Macrovector: p.18 top (museum vector); Nikolayenko Yekaterina:
p.18 bottom (Columbus); Vladimir Melnik: p.19 bottom (Henry the Navigator).
University of California Libraries: cdl; americana: p.15 top left (Balboa’s Execution, by
Frederick A. Ober).
ORIGINAL ILLUSTRATIONS:
Brobel Design: Map of Conquistadors in North America, p.8; speech bubbles and labels,
pp.10–11; map, p.12; Explorers’ Routes Map, pp.14–15; Map of Land Claims, p.16.
Michael Kline Illustration: Hello Horses!, Marco!, Polo!, cover; Marco Polo, p.3;
Amerigo Vespucci, p.6.
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