I led 3 ships, the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria across the Atlantic Ocean.

I crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513.

Pizarro and I conquered the Inca Indian empire in Peru

I was the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from the New World.

On October 12, 1492 we landed on an island in the Caribbean.

King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella sponsored my expeditions to America.

I made my fortune by selling Indian slaves.

I hid in a barrel on a ship to escape my creditors.

Then in 1539, I set out from Cuba to explore Florida with hundreds of men, pigs, and horses in search of gold.

I helped establish Darien, the first stable Spanish colony in South America.

I was the first European to explore America.

I was falsely charged with treason, arrested, and put to death (killed).

I was born in Genoa, Italy in 1451.  My father was a weaver.

One challenge that I faced was traveling through the dense jungles of Panama.

After a shipwreck, I used pieces of the wrecked ship to build a fort that I called La Navidad.  I left 39 men at this fort, and I returned to Spain.

King Charles I of Spain made me governor of Cuba.  I was expected to colonize the mainland of North America.

My men and I were the first Europeans to see and cross the Mississippi River.