Explorers in History

Stories of the Great Explorers

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Part of 1689 van Schagen Map
Public domain image from Wikipedia.

Stories of the voyages and travels of the people who discovered new areas of the planet by some of the greatest writers.

Years are when expeditions begin. Some Years listed below are approximate.

Expeditons

YearTitleAuthor(s)
1000Vikings Reach AmericaCharles C. Rafn| |Saga Of Eric the Red, author unknown
1271Height of the Mongol Power In ChinaMarco Polo
1492Columbus Discovers AmericaChristopher Columbus| |Ferdinand Columbus
1497Vasco da Gama Reaches IndiaGaspar Correia
1497Cabots Discover North America MainlandSamuel Edward Dawson
1498Columbus Discovers South AmericaClements Robert Markham
1499America’s Namesake’s Second VoyageAmerigo Vespucci
1513Balboa Discovers the PacificManuel Jose Quintana
1519Magellan’s Voyage Around the WorldAntonio Pigafetta
1521Cortes Captures the Aztec CapitalWilliam H. Prescott
1532Pizarro Conquers the Incan EmpireHernando Pizarro| |William H. Prescott
1541De Soto Discovers The MississippiJohn S. C. Abbott
1554Cartier Explores CanadaH. H. Miles
1576Frobisher Searches for the Northwest PassageGeorge Best
1584Walter Raleigh’s American InvestmentArthur Barlow| |Robert R. Howison
1606Australia DiscoveredGeorge Lewis Becke and Walter Jeffrey
1608Quebec FoundedHenry H. Miles
1609Henry Hudson Explores the Hudson RiverHenry R. Cleveland
1614The Dutch Found New YorkDavid T. Valentine
1642The Founding of MontrealAlfred Sandham
1682La Salle Explores Length of Mississippi RiverFrançois Xavier Garneau
1804The Lewis and Clark ExpeditionJames Davie Butler| |Robert Southey
1840Livingstone’s African DiscoveriesDavid Livingstone| |Thomas Hughes
1909The Search for the North PoleCharles F. Horne
1911South Pole DiscoveredRoald Amundsen
1969First Men on MoonNASA Mission Evaluation Team| |The Astronauts: Neil Armstrong, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, and Michael Collins

First Settlements

YearTitleAuthor(s)
1535Mendoza Settles Buenos AiresRobert Southey
1565Spain’s First Settlement in FloridaGeorge R. Fairbanks
1583England’s First Overseas ColonyMoses Harvey
1607English Settle VirginiaRobert Reid Howison
1620The Pilgrims Settle Plymouth, MassachusetsJohn S. Barry
1681William Penn Founds PhiladelphiaGeorge E. Ellis
1699First French Colony in the Louisiana AreaCharles Gayarr
1775Daniel Boone Settles KentuckyTheodore Roosevelt

Book With Multiple Explorers

YearTitleAuthor(s)
Pioneers of France in the New WorldFrancis Parkman

More at History Moments.