80-675: Sand Mountain may refer to: Locations in the United States [ edit ] Sand Mountain (Alabama) , a sandstone plateau in the Appalachian foothills of northeast Alabama (and, to a far lesser extent, extreme northwest Georgia) Sand Mountain (Florida) , a hill in Florida Sand Mountain (Nevada) , a singing sand dune in Nevada Sand Mountain Volcanic Field ,
160-459: A chevron pattern made in Venice for a limited period of time and believed to be indicative of the de Soto expedition. Six metal objects were also found, including a silver pendant and some iron tools. The rarest items were found within what researchers believe was a large council house of the indigenous people whom de Soto was visiting. The expedition continued to present-day South Carolina . There
240-771: A chapel be erected within the Church of San Miguel in Jerez de Los Caballeros, Spain, where De Soto grew up, at a cost of 2,000 ducats, with an altarpiece featuring the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of the Conception , that his tomb be covered in a fine black broadcloth topped by a red cross of the Order of the Knights of Santiago , and on special occasions a pall of black velvet with the De Soto coat of arms be placed on
320-658: A child at each place, De Soto stipulated in his will that his body be interred at Jerez de los Caballeros, where other members of his family were buried. A few years before his birth, the Kingdoms of Castille and Aragon conquered the last Islamic kingdom of the Iberian Peninsula . Spain and Portugal were filled with young men seeking a chance for military fame after the defeat of the Moors . With Christopher Columbus 's discovery of new lands (which he thought to be East Asia ) across
400-574: A consensus (although not total) to end the expedition and try to find a way home, either down the Mississippi River, or overland across Texas to the Spanish colony of Mexico City . They decided that building boats would be too difficult and time-consuming and that navigating the Gulf of Mexico was too risky, so they headed overland to the southwest. Eventually, they reached a region in present-day Texas that
480-683: A diagonal northeast-southwest direction from the northeastern corner of Alabama, and includes parts of Jackson , DeKalb , Marshall , Etowah and Blount counties in Alabama, as well as part of Dade County, Georgia . Sand Mountain, especially the northern end, i.e. eastern Jackson County and northern DeKalb County, is mostly a rural, agricultural area, with a mix of chicken, cow, and potato farms, as well as other assorted farms, and large expanses of both rolling pastures and forests. It contains many small towns (less than 1,000 people) and unincorporated communities. Politically and religiously, Sand Mountain
560-452: A fever on 21 May 1542, in the native village of Guachoya . Historical sources disagree as to whether de Soto died near present-day Lake Village, Arkansas McArthur, Arkansas , or Ferriday, Louisiana . Louisiana erected a historical marker at the estimated site on the western bank 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
640-409: A fortified city in southern Alabama, to receive the women. De Soto gave the chief a pair of boots and a red cloak to reward him for his cooperation. The Mobilian tribe, under chief Tuskaloosa, ambushed de Soto's army. Other sources suggest de Soto's men were attacked after attempting to force their way into a cabin occupied by Tuskaloosa. The Spaniards fought their way out, and retaliated by burning
720-552: A month resting the horses while his men searched for gold. De Soto next entered eastern Tennessee . At this point, de Soto either continued along the Tennessee River to enter Alabama from the north (according to John R. Swanton ), or turned south and entered northern Georgia (according to Charles M. Hudson ). Swanton's final report, published by the Smithsonian, remains an important resource but Hudson's reconstruction of
800-745: A passage between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean to enable trade with the Orient, the richest market in the world. Failing that, and without means to explore further, de Soto, upon Pedro Arias Dávila 's death, left his estates in Nicaragua. Bringing his own men on ships which he hired, de Soto joined Francisco Pizarro at his first base of Tumbes shortly before departure for the interior of present-day Peru . Pizarro quickly made de Soto one of his captains. When Pizarro and his men first encountered
880-401: A pitched battle with Inca troops in front of the city, but the battle had ended before Pizarro arrived with the rest of the Spanish party. The Inca army withdrew during the night. The Spanish plundered Cuzco, where they found much gold and silver. As a mounted soldier, de Soto received a share of the plunder, which made him very wealthy. It represented riches from Atahualpa's camp, his ransom, and
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#1732854569645960-448: A public office in León, Nicaragua . Brave leadership, unwavering loyalty, and ruthless schemes for the extortion of native villages for their captured chiefs became de Soto's hallmarks during the conquest of Central America . He gained fame as an excellent horseman, fighter, and tactician. During that time, de Soto was influenced by the achievements of Iberian explorers: Juan Ponce de León ,
1040-546: A volcanic field in Oregon Sand Mountain (Chester County, Tennessee) Fictional [ edit ] Sand Mountain, a ski resort in the fictional city of Bikini Bottom, in the TV series SpongeBob SquarePants [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
1120-539: Is a sandstone plateau in northeastern Alabama and (to a far lesser extent) northwestern Georgia and southeastern Tennessee where the plateau is known as Raccoon Mountain and Elder Mountain. It is part of the southern tip of the Appalachian mountain chain and it is the largest plateau in the chain. Geologically a continuation of Walden Ridge , Sand Mountain is part of the Cumberland Plateau , separated from
1200-427: Is a fairly conservative place, consistently voting for conservative candidates in elections, and with Baptists claiming the largest number of congregants of any church denomination. Much of Sand Mountain is dry , with the sale of alcoholic beverages being forbidden. Sand Mountain is one of the last places in the country with churches which still use Sacred Harp singing in their Sunday morning church services, and
1280-455: Is disputed only in minor details. His route beyond Mabila is contested. Swanton reported the de Soto trail ran from there through Mississippi , Arkansas , and Texas . Historians have more recently considered archeological reconstructions and the oral history of the various Native American peoples who recount the expedition. Most historical places have been overbuilt and much evidence has been lost. More than 450 years have passed between
1360-591: Is home to many of the largest and oldest continuous Sacred Harp singings in the country, as well as many important singers (i.e. editors of the Sacred Harp tunebook). Snake handling by some churches on Sand Mountain was the subject of Salvation on Sand Mountain , a 1996 book by Dennis Covington. Those who live on Sand Mountain state that the book mostly took place in Scottsboro , in the Tennessee River valley to
1440-497: Is not known. According to one source, de Soto's men hid his corpse in blankets weighted with sand and sank it in the middle of the Mississippi River during the night. De Soto's expedition had explored La Florida for three years without finding the expected treasures or a hospitable site for colonization. They had lost nearly half their men, and most of the horses. By this time, the soldiers were wearing animal skins for clothing. Many were injured and in poor health. The leaders came to
1520-592: Is solid sandstone bedrock . The soil is generally loam -based, and is a mixture of sandy loam and silty loam, drawing from such series as Apison, Atkins, Cotaco-Barbourville, Crossville, Hartsells, Lickdale, and Muskingum. It is extremely acidic, growing more so the deeper you go from the top. It is classified as "well-drained". 34°27′N 86°00′W / 34.450°N 86.000°W / 34.450; -86.000 Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto ( / d ə ˈ s oʊ t oʊ / ; Spanish: [eɾˈnando ðe ˈsoto] ; c. 1497 – 21 May 1542)
1600-518: Is the first European documented as having crossed the Mississippi River . De Soto's North American expedition was a vast undertaking. It ranged throughout what is now the southeastern United States , searching both for gold, which had been reported by various Native American tribes and earlier coastal explorers, and for a passage to China or the Pacific coast. De Soto died in 1542 on the banks of
1680-623: The Caddo River , where they clashed with a Native American tribe called the Tula in October 1541. The Spaniards characterized them as the most skilled and dangerous warriors they had encountered. This may have happened in the area of present-day Caddo Gap, Arkansas (a monument to the de Soto expedition was erected in that community). Eventually, the Spaniards returned to the Mississippi River. De Soto died of
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#17328545696451760-509: The Gulf of Mexico to meet two ships bearing fresh supplies from Havana . De Soto demanded women and servants, and when Tuskaloosa refused, the European explorers took him hostage. The expedition began making plans to leave the next day, and Tuskaloosa gave in to de Soto's demands, providing bearers for the Spaniards. He informed de Soto that they would have to go to his town of Mabila (or Mauvila ),
1840-566: The Pánuco River and the Spanish frontier town of Pánuco . There they rested for about a month. During this time many of the Spaniards, having safely returned and reflecting on their accomplishments, decided they had left La Florida too soon. There were some fights within the company, leading to some deaths. But, after they reached Mexico City and the Viceroy Don Antonio de Mendoza offered to lead another expedition to La Florida , few of
1920-561: The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire . He was admitted into the prestigious Order of Santiago and "granted the right to conquer Florida". His share was awarded to him by the King of Spain, and he received 724 marks of gold, and 17,740 pesos. He married Isabel de Bobadilla , daughter of Pedrarias Dávila and a relative of a confidante of Queen Isabella . De Soto petitioned King Charles to lead
2000-579: The Uzita while searching for the lost Narváez expedition ; he later escaped to Mocoso . Ortiz had learned the Timucua language and served as an interpreter to de Soto as he traversed the Timucuan-speaking areas on his way to Apalachee . Ortiz developed a method for guiding the expedition and communicating with the various tribes, who spoke many dialects and languages. He recruited guides from each tribe along
2080-527: The anthropologist John R. Swanton published The Final Report of the United States De Soto Expedition Commission in 1939. Among other locations, Manatee County, Florida , claims an approximate landing site for de Soto and has a national memorial recognizing that event. In the early 21st century, the first part of the expedition's course, up to de Soto's battle at Mabila (a small fortress town in present-day central Alabama ),
2160-517: The Cherokee village of Wills Town, near present-day Fort Payne in Wills Valley. The first Europeans to see it were probably Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto and his men, who are believed to have crossed Sand Mountain during their journey through southeastern North America between 1539 and 1543. One of the likely routes for the expedition traces their path across Sand Mountain on the way south from
2240-595: The Gulf of Mexico. From their winter location in the western panhandle of Florida, having heard of gold being mined "toward the sun's rising", the expedition turned northeast through what is now the modern state of Georgia . Based on archaeological finds made in 2009 at a remote, privately owned site near the Ocmulgee River , researchers believe that de Soto's expedition stopped in Telfair County . Artifacts found here include nine glass trade beads , some of which bear
2320-637: The Heat Zone Map published by the American Horticultural Society . By comparison, the great majority of the upper Midwest and Northeast has less than 30 such days per year. These hot days, combined with the South's high humidity, make it sweltering in the summer. The average daytime temperature is in the high 70s or above for at least five months out of the year (May through September). Sand Mountain has higher rainfall than almost anywhere else in
2400-473: The Mississippi River; sources disagree on the exact location, whether it was what is now Lake Village, Arkansas , or Ferriday, Louisiana . Hernando de Soto was born around the late 1490s or early 1500s in Extremadura , Spain, to parents who were both hidalgos , nobility of modest means. The region was poor and many people struggled to survive; young people looked for ways to seek their fortune elsewhere. He
2480-482: The Napituca Massacre, the first large-scale massacre by Europeans in the current United States. One of Soto’s most important battles with the natives, along his conquest of Florida, was a 1539 battle with Chief Vitachuco. Unlike other native chiefs who entered into peace with the Spanish, Vitachuco did not trust them and had secretly plotted to kill Soto and his army, but he was betrayed by interpreters who told Soto
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2560-604: The Richardson/UF Village site (8AL100) in Alachua County , west of Orange Lake , appears to have been accepted by archaeologists as the site of the town of Potano visited by the de Soto expedition. The 17th-century mission of San Buenaventura de Potano is believed to have been founded here. Many archaeologists believe the Parkin Archeological State Park in northeast Arkansas was the main town for
2640-479: The South, including anywhere else in Alabama, with the exception of the Gulf Coast area. Some areas of Sand Mountain get more than 66 inches (1,700 mm) of rainfall per year (though others get as little as 54 inches (1,400 mm)). The following is a general idea of Sand Mountain's climate, taken from Ider, Alabama : Sand Mountain has, on average, a 2-to-4-foot (0.6 to 1.2 m) depth of soil - after which
2720-463: The Spanish held Atahualpa captive in Cajamarca for months while his subjects paid for his ransom by filling a room with gold and silver objects. During this captivity, de Soto became friendly with Atahualpa and taught him to play chess . By the time the ransom had been completed, the Spanish became alarmed by rumors of an Inca army advancing on Cajamarca. Pizarro sent de Soto with 200 soldiers to scout for
2800-721: The Tennessee Valley to the Coosa Valley . Union troops under Major General George H. Thomas crossed Sand Mountain in September 1863 in an attempt to cut off the Confederate troops in Chattanooga . They were unsuccessful, and the opposing armies met at the Battle of Chickamauga on September 19–20, 1863, resulting in a major Confederate victory. Jackson and DeKalb counties, along with
2880-626: The altar; that a chaplain be hired at the salary of 12,000 maravedis to perform five masses every week for the souls of De Soto, his parents, and wife; that thirty masses be said for him the day his body was interred, and twenty for our Lady of the Conception, ten for the Holy Ghost , sixty for souls in purgatory and masses for many others as well; that 150000 maravedis be given annually to his wife Isabel for her needs and an equal amount used yearly to marry off three orphan damsels...the poorest that can be found," to assist his wife and also serve to burnish
2960-460: The army of Inca Atahualpa at Cajamarca , Pizarro sent de Soto with fifteen men to invite Atahualpa to a meeting. When Pizarro's men attacked Atahualpa and his guard the next day (the Battle of Cajamarca ), de Soto led one of the three groups of mounted soldiers. The Spanish captured Atahualpa. De Soto was sent to the camp of the Inca army, where he and his men plundered Atahualpa's tents. During 1533,
3040-702: The army worked at Sauta Cave in the Tennessee Valley, mining potassium nitrate to make gunpowder at Selma. In September 1861, the "Paint Rock Rifles" were raised on Sand Mountain by Confederate Colonel Lemuel Green Mead of Jackson County. They became Company C of the 26th Alabama Infantry Regiment , and served with distinction at the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862. Mead resigned his infantry commission in July 1862, after Union troops had invaded north Alabama, and organized an independent company of partisan rangers who carried out guerrilla raids against occupying Union forces. The company
3120-478: The boats. They survived through the winter, and the spring floods delayed them another two months. By July they set off on their makeshift boats down the Mississippi for the coast. Taking about two weeks to make the journey, the expedition encountered hostile fleets of war canoes along the whole course. The first was led by the powerful paramount chief Quigualtam , whose fleet followed the boats, shooting arrows at
3200-416: The end of the war. Sand Mountain was home, from 1903 to 1905, to a short-lived commune of forty Russian Jewish families attempting to form a collective farm and manufacturing concern. Due to the isolation of the area from other Jewish communities, the limestone soil of the area, and disharmony within the group, the project was abandoned and the inhabitants relocated after two years. Sand Mountain runs in
3280-503: The events and current history tellers, but some oral histories have been found to be accurate about historic events that have been otherwise documented. The Governor Martin Site at the former Apalachee village of Anhaica , located about a mile east of the present Florida capital in Tallahassee , has been documented as definitively associated with de Soto's expedition. The Governor Martin Site
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3360-478: The expedition recorded being received by a female chief ( The Lady of Cofitachequi ), who gave her tribe's pearls, food and other goods to the Spanish soldiers. The expedition found no gold, however, other than pieces from an earlier coastal expedition (presumably that of Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón .) De Soto headed north into the Appalachian Mountains of present-day western North Carolina , where he spent
3440-465: The expedition. At the time of death, de Soto owned four Indian slaves, three horses, and 700 hogs. De Soto had deceived the local natives into believing that he was a deity, specifically an "immortal Son of the Sun ," to gain their submission without conflict. Some of the natives had already become skeptical of de Soto's deity claims, so his men were anxious to conceal his death. The actual site of his burial
3520-511: The first European to reach Florida ; Vasco Núñez de Balboa , the first European to reach the Pacific Ocean coast of the Americas (he called it the "South Sea" on the south coast of Panama ); and Ferdinand Magellan , who first sailed that ocean to East Asia . In 1530, de Soto became a regidor of León, Nicaragua . He led an expedition up the coast of the Yucatán Peninsula searching for
3600-819: The government of Guatemala , with "permission to create discovery in the South Sea." He was granted the governorship of Cuba instead. De Soto was expected to colonize the North American continent for Spain within 4 years, for which his family would be given a sizable piece of land. Fascinated by the stories of Cabeza de Vaca , who had survived years in North America after becoming a castaway and had just returned to Spain, de Soto selected 620 Spanish and Portuguese volunteers, including some of mixed-race African descent known as Atlantic Creoles, to accompany him to govern Cuba and colonize North America. Averaging 24 years of age,
3680-445: The indigenous province of Casqui , which de Soto had recorded. They base this on similarities between descriptions from the journals of the de Soto expedition and artifacts of European origin discovered at the site in the 1960s. Theories of de Soto's route are based on the accounts of four chroniclers of the expedition. Milanich and Hudson warn that older translations of the chronicles are often "relatively free translations in which
3760-515: The land as Espíritu Santo after the Holy Spirit . The ships carried priests, craftsmen, engineers, farmers, and merchants; some with their families, some from Cuba, most from Europe and Africa. Few of the men had traveled before outside of Spain, or even away from their home villages. Near de Soto's port, the party found Juan Ortiz , a Spaniard living with the Mocoso people. Ortiz had been captured by
3840-404: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sand_Mountain&oldid=1082686594 " Category : Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Sand Mountain (Alabama) Sand Mountain
3920-472: The main portion of the plateau by the Tennessee River and Sequatchie Valley . The average elevation on Sand Mountain is around 1,500 feet (460 m) above sea level, compared to about 650 feet (200 m) in the surrounding area. This elevation leads to its having the coolest climate in the state of Alabama. The largest city on Sand Mountain is Albertville , in Marshall County. As of the 2020 census,
4000-467: The memory of De Soto as a man of charity and substance. Historians have worked to trace the route of de Soto's expedition in North America, a controversial process over the years. Local politicians vied to have their localities associated with the expedition. The most widely used version of "De Soto's Trail" comes from a study commissioned by the United States Congress . A committee chaired by
4080-458: The men embarked from Havana on seven of the King's ships and two caravels of de Soto's. With tons of heavy armor and equipment, they also carried more than 500 head of livestock, including 237 horses and 200 pigs, for their planned four-year continental expedition. De Soto wrote a new will upon arriving in what is now the Tampa Bay area of Florida. On 10 May 1539, he wrote in his will: That
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#17328545696454160-500: The natural geography has not changed much since de Soto's time, scholars have analyzed those journals with modern topographic intelligence , to develop a more precise account of the De Soto Trail. In May 1539, de Soto landed nine ships with over 620 men and 220 horses in an area generally identified as south Tampa Bay . Historian Robert S. Weddle has suggested that he landed at either Charlotte Harbor or San Carlos Bay . He named
4240-511: The ocean to the west, young men were attracted to rumors of adventure, glory and wealth. De Soto sailed to the New World with Pedro Arias Dávila , appointed as the first Governor of Panama . In 1520 he participated in Gaspar de Espinosa 's expedition to Veragua , and in 1524, he participated in the conquest of Nicaragua under Francisco Hernández de Córdoba . There he acquired an encomienda and
4320-589: The other counties of north Alabama, had voted against immediate secession in December 1860, and pro-Union sentiment remained strong on Sand Mountain. In early 1861, citizens in several northeastern counties proposed breaking away from Alabama and joining with neighboring counties of East Tennessee to create a new Union state of Nickajack . Industries such as mining, milling, and working for the railroad were acceptable as exemptions to military service for Southern unionists, and some on Sand Mountain who did not wish to serve in
4400-485: The plan. So, Soto struck first and, in the process, killed thousands of natives. Those that survived were surrounded and cornered by woods and water. Thousands were killed during the 3 hours battle and 900 survivors took refuge in the pond, specifically Two-mile Pond in Melrose, where they continued to fight, while swimming. Most eventually surrendered, but after 30 hours in the water, 7 men remained and had to be dragged out of
4480-523: The plunder from Cuzco. On the road to Cuzco, Manco Inca Yupanqui , a brother of Atahualpa, had joined Pizarro. Manco had been hiding from Atahualpa in fear of his life, and was happy to gain Pizarro's protection. Pizarro arranged for Manco to be installed as the Inca leader. De Soto joined Manco in a campaign to eliminate the Inca armies under Quizquiz , a general who had been loyal to Atahualpa. By 1534, de Soto
4560-488: The population of the city was 22,386. The Sand Mountain area has been inhabited for at least 9,000 years, as evidenced by archaeological finds at nearby Russell Cave National Monument , near Bridgeport, Alabama . In historical times, Cherokee and Creek villages were located in the Tennessee Valley to the west of Sand Mountain, and in Wills Valley to the east. Sequoyah , creator of the Cherokee syllabary, lived in
4640-482: The process of the Columbian Exchange . For instance, some of the swine brought by de Soto escaped and became the ancestors of feral razorback pigs in the southeastern United States . De Soto was instrumental in contributing to the development of a hostile relationship between many Native American tribes and Europeans. When his expedition encountered hostile natives in the new lands, more often than not it
4720-599: The river, the expedition continued traveling westward through modern-day Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. They wintered in Autiamique , on the Arkansas River . After a harsh winter, the Spanish expedition decamped and moved on more erratically. Their interpreter Juan Ortiz had died, making it more difficult for them to get directions and food sources, and generally to communicate with the Natives. The expedition went as far inland as
4800-401: The river, which in his view was an obstacle to his mission. There has been considerable research into the exact location where de Soto crossed the Mississippi River. A commission appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935 determined that Sunflower Landing, Mississippi , was the "most likely" crossing place. De Soto possibly traveled down Charley's Trace , which had been used as a trail through
4880-412: The route was conducted 40 years later and benefited from considerable advances in archaeological methods. De Soto's expedition spent another month in the Coosa chiefdom a vassal to Tuskaloosa , who was the paramount chief , believed to have been connected to the large and complex Mississippian culture , which extended throughout the Mississippi Valley and its tributaries. De Soto turned south toward
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#17328545696454960-431: The route. A chain of communication was established whereby a guide who had lived in close proximity to another tribal area was able to pass his information and language on to a guide from a neighboring area. Because Ortiz refused to dress as a hidalgo Spaniard, other officers questioned his motives. De Soto remained loyal to Ortiz, allowing him the freedom to dress and live among his native friends. Another important guide
5040-422: The rumored army. While de Soto was gone, the Spanish in Cajamarca decided to kill Atahualpa to prevent his rescue. De Soto returned to report that he found no signs of an army in the area. After executing Atahualpa, Pizarro and his men headed to Cuzco , the capital of the Incan Empire. As the Spanish force approached Cuzco, Pizarro sent his brother Hernando and de Soto ahead with 40 men. The advance guard fought
5120-430: The ships at Mobile Bay , de Soto led them away from the Gulf Coast. He moved into inland Mississippi , most likely near present-day Tupelo , where they spent the winter. In the spring of 1541, de Soto demanded 200 men as porters from the Chickasaw . They refused his demand and attacked the Spanish camp during the night. On 8 May 1541, de Soto's troops reached the Mississippi River . De Soto had little interest in
5200-450: The soldiers for days as they drifted through their territory. The Spanish had no effective offensive weapons on the water, as their crossbows had long since ceased working. They relied on armor and sleeping mats to block the arrows. About 11 Spaniards were killed along this stretch and many more wounded. On reaching the mouth of the Mississippi, they stayed close to the Gulf shore heading south and west. After about 50 days, they made it to
5280-453: The survivors volunteered. Of the recorded 700 participants at the start, between 300 and 350 survived (311 is a commonly accepted figure). Most of the men stayed in the New World, settling in Mexico, Peru, Cuba, and other Spanish colonies. The Spanish believed that de Soto's excursion to Florida was a failure. They acquired neither gold nor prosperity and founded no colonies. But the expedition had several major consequences. It contributed to
5360-523: The swamps of the Mississippi Delta , to reach the Mississippi River. De Soto and his men spent a month building flatboats, and crossed the river at night to avoid the Native Americans who were patrolling the river. De Soto had hostile relations with the native people in this area. In the late 20th century, research suggests other locations may have been the site of de Soto's crossing, including three locations in Mississippi: Commerce , Friars Point , and Walls , as well as Memphis, Tennessee . Once across
5440-633: The town to the ground. During the nine-hour encounter, about 200 Spaniards died, and 150 more were badly wounded, according to the chronicler Elvas. Twenty more died during the next few weeks. They killed an estimated 2,000–6,000 Native Americans at Mabila, making the battle one of the bloodiest in recorded North American history. The Spaniards won a Pyrrhic victory , as they had lost most of their possessions and nearly one-quarter of their horses. The Spaniards were wounded and sickened, surrounded by enemies and without equipment in an unknown territory. Fearing that word of this would reach Spain if his men reached
5520-518: The translators took considerable liberty with the Spanish and Portuguese text." The chronicles describe de Soto's trail in relation to Havana , from which they sailed; the Gulf of Mexico , which they skirted while traveling inland then turned back to later; the Atlantic Ocean , which they approached during their second year; high mountains, which they traversed immediately thereafter; and dozens of other geographic features along their way, such as large rivers and swamps, at recorded intervals. Given that
5600-474: The water by the Spanish. De Soto's first winter encampment was at Anhaica , the capital of the Apalachee people. It is one of the few places on the route where archaeologists have found physical traces of the expedition. The chroniclers described this settlement as being near the "Bay of Horses" . The bay was named for events of the 1527 Narváez expedition , the members of which, dying of starvation, killed and ate their horses while building boats for escape by
5680-403: The way. Hernando de Soto's army seized the food stored in the villages, captured women to be used as slaves for the soldiers' sexual gratification, and forced men and boys to serve as guides and bearers. The army fought two battles with Timucua groups, resulting in heavy Timucua casualties. After defeating the resisting Timucuan warriors, Hernando de Soto had 200 executed, in what was to be called
5760-413: The west of Sand Mountain. Sand Mountain, being located in the mid-South, has long hot humid summers, and winters which are short and mild by comparison to much of the rest of the country, with snow being a real rarity. Its elevation, however, leads to it being cooler than the rest of the state of Alabama. On Sand Mountain, between 60 and 90 days per year are over 86 °F (30 °C), according to
5840-675: Was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula . He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro 's conquest of the Inca Empire in Peru, but is best known for leading the first European expedition deep into the territory of the modern-day United States (through Florida , Georgia , Alabama , North Carolina , South Carolina , Mississippi , and most likely Arkansas ). He
5920-484: Was born in the current province of Badajoz. Three towns— Badajoz , Barcarrota and Jerez de los Caballeros —each claim to be his birthplace. Historian Ursula Lamb writes that the Barcarrota claim can be traced to Inca Garcilaso de la Vega and is probably incorrect, having been written down 45 years after De Soto's death. According to Lamb, his birthplace is most likely Jerez de los Caballeros. Although he spent time as
6000-657: Was discovered by archaeologist B. Calvin Jones in March 1987. It has been preserved as the DeSoto Site Historic State Park . The Hutto/Martin Site, 8MR3447, in southeastern Marion County, Florida , on the Ocklawaha River , is the most likely site of the principal town of Acuera referred to in the accounts of the entrada , as well as the site of the seventeenth-century mission of Santa Lucia de Acuera. As of 2016,
6080-439: Was dry. The native populations were made up mostly of subsistence hunter-gatherers. The soldiers found no villages to raid for food, and the army was still too large to live off the land. They were forced to backtrack to the more developed agricultural regions along the Mississippi, where they began building seven bergantines , or pinnaces . They melted down all the iron, including horse tackle and slave shackles, to make nails for
6160-403: Was merged with the 33rd Alabama Infantry Regiment . A Union regiment, the 1st Tennessee and Alabama Vidette Cavalry, was formed at Union-occupied Stevenson, Alabama , in 1863, drawing men primarily from Sand Mountain, many of them Confederate deserters. However, the regiment was never all together and the companies were scattered around the area on guard duty. It was eventually disbanded before
6240-585: Was serving as lieutenant governor of Cuzco while Pizarro was building his new capital on the coast; it later became known as Lima . In 1535 King Charles awarded Diego de Almagro , Francisco Pizarro's partner, the governorship of the southern portion of the Inca Empire. When de Almagro made plans to explore and conquer the southern part of the Inca empire (now Chile ), de Soto applied to be his second-in-command, but de Almagro turned him down. De Soto packed up his treasure and returned to Spain. De Soto returned to Spain in 1536, with wealth gathered from plunder in
6320-468: Was the core of what eventually became Mead's Alabama and Tennessee Cavalry Battalion. In the summer of 1862, "Gunter's 1st Partisan Ranger Battalion" was formed on Sand Mountain in Jackson County by Major William T. Gunter. The battalion consisted of five mounted companies and served under Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest in skirmishes along the Tennessee River. In November 1862, the battalion
6400-455: Was the seventeen-year-old boy Perico , or Pedro, from what is now Georgia . He spoke several of the local tribes' languages and could communicate with Ortiz. Perico was taken as a guide in 1540. The Spanish had also captured other Indians, whom they used as slave labor. Perico was treated better due to his value to the Spaniards. The expedition traveled north, exploring Florida's West Coast, and encountering native ambushes and conflicts along
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