Oldest European Settlement in US

[rognvald]

The oldest European settlement in the continental US was recently discovered in Pensacola Bay, Florida. This was the first settlement founded by Spanish colonizers that pre-dates St. Augustine and the English settlement at Jamestown. The great Spanish navigator/captain Tristan de Luna brought 1500 people to establish the colony that was eventually destroyed by a hurricane. Here's the interesting account below. I wonder if Luna has AIS, GPS, Satnav or radar?
Oldest European multi-year settlement found in Pensacola - UPI.com

[tuffr2]

There are about 10 oldest european settlements from New England to Florida. All are tourist traps.


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[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by rognvald

I wonder if Luna has AIS, GPS, Satnav or radar?

None of the above, that's why Pensacola, it wasn't intentional

[boatman61]

I guess Norway and Denmark are NOT in Europe.. and here we are thinking they are..

[Polux]

Now you get me confused. I thought the first European settlers were Icelanders of Norwegian ascendency leaded by a well known murderer, son of a murderer.

One of the history mysteries has to do with why they did not survived for many generations. Some talk about a colder period. There are some theories about miscegenation with the natives.

Anyway I don't know if the original settlement was already found. I heard theories about that but don't know if it is something solid enough

[Mirage35]

The Icelanders established a settlement in what is now northern Newfoundland, and visited the US, but I don't recall hearing that they established any settlements there.

[Ungvar]

I think Rognvald in his original post said oldest European settlement in the continental US.

I can say with confidence northern Newfoundland is not in the continental US, its an island in Canada. After reading this post earlier in the day, I did some further reading because I found the topic interesting.

It seems Norwegians made several settlements in Northern Newfoundland and the Canadian Arctic, but my reading didn't indicate they visited the continental US.

I also learned the first English settlement in the Americas was in St Johns Newfoundland, which I have visited and is very nice. The first French settlement in the Americas was in Tadousac, which I have also visited and is also very nice. Neither place seemed like a tourist trap to me.





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[Mirage35]

Thanks, that was my point - I just forgot to say it.

They settled in what is now Canada, not the US.

[Mirage35]

And, if you like, here are some photos from L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland; the reconstruction and archaeological site. (Taken on last summer's road trip.)

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by Polux

Now you get me confused. I thought the first European settlers were Icelanders of Norwegian ascendency leaded by a well known murderer, son of a murderer.

One of the history mysteries has to do with why they did not survived for many generations. Some talk about a colder period. There are some theories about miscegenation with the natives.

Anyway I don't know if the original settlement was already found. I heard theories about that but don't know if it is something solid enough

Polux,
The Vikings were the first to discover the North American continent in AD 1000 and established the first European settlement at the present L'Anse Aux Meadows site in NE Newfoundland. Their leader, Leif Ericson, and his crew were the first Europeans to set foot on the North American continent. They also explored Baffin Island, Labrador, the St. Lawrence River and present-day Quebec and Nova Scotia. The Viking settlement in Newfoundland lasted about three years but was abandoned largely because of the ever-present warfare with the indigenous Beothuk Indians and the Vikings imminent safety. The above article focuses on the first settlement in the United States which was founded by the Spanish who along with the Portuguese were the next to explore North America in their quest for codfish. The English followed and the rest is History, so to speak. I hope this is clear. Good luck and safe sailing.

[Polux]

Originally Posted by rognvald

Polux,
The Vikings were the first to discover the North American continent in AD 1000 and established the first European settlement at the present L'Anse Aux Meadows site in NE Newfoundland. Their leader, Leif Ericson, and his crew were the first Europeans to set foot on the North American continent. They also explored Baffin Island, Labrador, the St. Lawrence River and present-day Quebec and Nova Scotia. The Viking settlement in Newfoundland lasted about three years but was abandoned largely because of the ever-present warfare with the indigenous Beothuk Indians and the Vikings imminent safety. The above article focuses on the first settlement in the United States which was founded by the Spanish who along with the Portuguese were the next to explore North America in their quest for codfish. The English followed and the rest is History, so to speak. I hope this is clear. Good luck and safe sailing.

Sorry about that I did not pay enough attention, somehow I mistakenly thought you were talking about America even if the title of the thread was clear. I guess the previous post was the reason.

Few now that Newfoundland is just a translation of the name the Portuguese gave them but it is incomplete because the complete name was New foundland of the cod fish (Terra Nova do Bacalhau).

The first representation of Newfoundland appears on a Portuguese map. It is not known when it was made but it is known that was acquired by a spy in 1502:
"Alberto Cantino, an agent for the Duke of Ferrara, who successfully smuggled it from Portugal to Italy in 1502."

The explorer of those coasts was João Vaz Corte Real that has re-discovered Newfoundland back in 1473.

Unfortunately for us and history all that was state secret and very few documents have survived and curiously most of them smuggled by spies.

If you have an interest in history of the discoveries this is a great site, not in English, but you can use a translator:
http://cvc.instituto-camoes.pt/navegaport/d34.html

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Polux

Sorry about that I did not pay enough attention, somehow I mistakenly thought you were talking about America even if the title of the thread was clear. I guess the previous post was the reason.

ehehehehehheheeheeee

[Ungvar]

So, I just read the oldest European settlement in the Americas West of Montreal is Windsor Ontario. I find this interesting because Windsor is a long way west of Montreal, nearly 1000 km. I guess they must have just camped in between?

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[Ribbit]

Originally Posted by boatman61

I guess Norway and Denmark are NOT in Europe.. and here we are thinking they are..

Or Wales.

Apparently, according to recent translations anyway, King Arthur II (there wasn't just one) led a fleet of over 700 ships to America, some time during the 6th Century (the Lewis and Clark expedition was trying to find descendants of this migration, and messages back to the Government were written in Welsh, so any intercepts wouldn't know what the messages contained).

At the time of this migration (due to the devastation of Britain caused by a comet strike that had its final impact in South America, recently proven to have taken place at the right time, and its trajectory would have put it over Britain prior to the final impact in South America), when ship builders were approached to build the fleet, they said animal skin boats were not suitable for such a journey, and that the journey needed wooden ships. As they knew where to go(!), they offered to accompany the fleet to guide them.

Might go some way towards explaining why this inscription is inside the Washington Monument:

"Fy iaith, fy ngwlad, fy nghenedl Cymru — Cymru am byth" (My language, my land, my nation of Wales — Wales for ever).

Oh and apparently, Lewis & Clark did find descendant tribes from that early migration.

It would certainly explain some of the untypical 'Celtic type' historic sites in the East of the USA I suppose.

There's some mind boggling stuff only recently been translated from the Coelbren alphabet (the old Bard's alphabet). Historians are very keen to pretend that the Coelbren alphabet was only created in 1791, by Edward Williams, but reading them in Welsh from inscriptions up to 2,000 BC or more, are perfectly legible.

I think knowledge of America was very widespread, a very long time ago.

[Seymore]

And a few years ago there were media articles about archeologists unearthing a Viking longboat in Guatemala.