Work in Progress, Winter 2008

Juan Ponce de Leon, who had sailed with Columbus, explored Florida's west coast and discovered Charlotte Harbor in 1513. He died from wounds received near there on his return to colonize in 1521. In 1528, Panfilo de Narvaez with Cabeza de Vaca aimed to colonize North America from Ponce's harbor but a storm kept them from first stopping at Havana to procure needed provisions. Narvaez' fleet was blown into the Gulf of Mexico, leaving one ship behind. He found Florida several days later, but with 300 men, a critical food shortage and sick horses, Narvaez was forced to disembark his army between breaker islands.

He dispatched his ships to Havana for supplies with orders to meet him further up the coast where they all surmised Juan Ponce's good harbor to be located. Narvaez had been blown further north from Havana than he realized, however, and the captains of his vessels reported finding Ponce's harbor just five leagues south of his disembarkation point. Stump Pass, at today's Englewood on Lemon Bay, was exactly that distance from the mouth of Charlotte Harbor on the Florida Township survey of 1896; Narvaez, with Vaca, had disembarked there.

Narvaez, with his small army and with no livestock to drive, explored the area then departed northeast, crossing the Myakka River bridge which DeSoto's people would use years later; Narvaez had landed less than three leagues from Charlotte Harbor's bay head at the bridge. He passed through Ucita, where he cut off Chief Hirrihigua's nose, which DeSoto would learn when he landing there, then headed northeast to feed his horses and find the gold he had heard about.

He crossed the Peace River just before reaching today's Arcadia, where he found maize growing; all within his ten to twelve league journey from Ucita. He continued north, inland of the Peace River, but was led by circumstance over the Great Swamp, the only fording place on a river which flows across all northbound routes from Ucita. DeSoto's people would report crossing the same swamp, on the same river, at the same place and for the same reason eleven years later...

Narvaez encountered several hundred Indians while crossing the Great Swamp with much difficulty, but was led to a village half-a-league away; today's Branchton. He found large quantities of maize close-by at today's Zephyrhills, still one of the richest agricultural areas in Florida today. When Cabeza de Vaca was dispatched to find a harbor reported to be nearby (Tampa Bay), he encountered wetlands filled with oysters and a river he could not cross. The Hillsborough River re-broadens just below its branches at the Great Swamp; raccoons eat the oysters there today. That once extensive swamp on very flat land near today's Rock Hammock would be substantially drained in this century by Tampa's Bypass Canal into McKay Bay.

When scouts re-crossed the swamp and spent a day proceeded down the river's south bank tree line, they found a shallow bay the next morning. They had found McKay Bay on May 20, 1528, at which Spring Low Tide occurs on the morning of the new moon, precisely when they examined it. They could wade across it. If they saw the deep water of Tampa Bay from McKay Bay it would have looked like the Gulf of Mexico from their vantage point just east of today's Ybor City. They returned that day with news that the harbor was too shallow for ships, and Narvaez proceeded north, looking for his ships along the shallow Gulf Coast shoreline.

Narvaez proceeded north from the Great Swamp, but may NOT have used the same trail DeSoto's people would profusely describe twelve years later: down the Withlacoochee River and through today's Withlacoochee State Forest, a game preserve, described as being abundant in "fallow deer... red deer like large bulls... very large bears and panthers", all on high and dry land. Then their trail went over Florida's Rock Phosphate Ridge and "as it had maize in abundance, they gave it the name Villafarta, meaning "fertile place" in Spanish (at todays Dunnellon), then on to the Suwannee River at today's Janney. The natives which DeSoto's people encountered beyond the Great Swamp, until they reached the Suwannee River, had no knowledge of Narvaez/DeVaca, probably because they took a different trail thru West Central Florida (see 12 y map at left).

Narvaez' trail from the Great Swamp was, most likely, nearer the coast given that he was looking for his ships with supplies. If that be the case, then he traveled northwest to Homosassa Springs, then north to todays Crystal River and Yankeetown, then on to the Suwannee River, a place Vaca would call Dulchanchellin (today's Janney). They crossed that giant river with great difficulty; one horseman lost his life in doing so.

Near the Suwannee River crossing, DeSoto's people and Vaca all reported "flute players" near a road which Vaca says "was difficult to travel but wonderful to look upon.... In it were vast forests, the trees being astonishingly high." They were all in the flat woods when they made similar reports, and both Narvaez and DeSoto used the same trail leading to Vitachuco, a village which Narvaez found and called "Apalachen." Vitachuco Village might have been in Apalache Province at that time, given the warring nature of that province and the European diseases (population movers) delivered by Narvaez.

At Apalache, South and East of today's Tallahassee, "The Lakes", says Vaca, "are much larger here.. as we sallied they fled to the lakes nearby... shooting from the lakes which was safety to themselves that we could not retaliate", which is similar to the incident observed by DeSoto's army. Narvaez, apparently, did not have a sufficient army to surround the Indians. Then, Vaca says, the natives told them that the land and villages inland were very poor, but that by "journeying south nine days was a town called Aute...(with) much maize, beans and pumpkins and being near the sea they had fish." Biedma says these Indians told many great lies about the country further inland, and, I think, Narvaez had believed them; Narvaez had no Juan Ortiz to sort them out.

If Narvaez had been at Vitachuco, and departed to the south, as Vaca indicates, he would have encountered country exactly as he described. That is, "The first day we got through those lakes and passages without seeing anyone, on the second day we came to a lake difficult of crossing... (but got through)... at the end of a league we arrived at another of the same character, but worse, as it was half a league in extent."

DeSoto's Chroniclers later reported, from their base camp at today's Marianna...

Inca says that Juan de Anasco was dispatched from that place to find the sea just before he was sent back down DeSoto's trail leading the Thirty Lancers. Anasco needed to mark the trees along that seashore in order to find Iviahica Apalache on his return from Ucita in DeSoto's ships . He first rode south to Aute, twelve leagues from Iviahica, today's Econfina. He reported crossing only two small rivers along the way, easy to cross; they are called Econfina and Sweetwater Creeks today. He camped along the way at Compass Lake, the half way point. Just over two leagues beyond Aute, after crossing a creek up to his horse's pasterns, Anasco came to the head of a bay; today's North Bay, just above St. Andrew Bay. The creek Anasco forded is called Bear Creek today and it, too, is the same with shallow water and a hard bottom. By skirting the bay, Anasco found the place where Narvaez built his boats, on the north shore of today's Bayou George.

If Narvaez had been at Vitachuco and had departed to the south, as suggested earlier, he would have passed over Gum Swamp, East River Pool and the St. Marks River. Then, having been turned west by the Gulf of Mexico, he would have passed a plain (just north of today's Medart), more swamps (the Sopchoppy, Ochlockonee, and New River swamps), and a big stream which he called Magdalina; the Apalachicola River, all as Vaca reported. Just before entering Aute, Narvaez came onto planted fields where his army was fallen upon by the enemy.

Vaca reports that during their 280 league trip through Florida, Narvaez never saw a mountain. Apparently he bypassed Florida's pride and joy, Tallahassee. DeSoto's people reported that they were the first whites ever seen near the Apalache Swamp, which confirms that Narvaez had taken a different route to the bay. Vaca's reported distance traveled through Florida to the bay, 280 leagues, would indicate its estimate along the trails and various diversions, not along paced and charted lines as was DeSoto's habit.

Narvaez camped for several days in Aute (today's Econfina), where Vaca was dispatched on horseback to find an escape route from that hostile country. He rode down the same trail Anasco would ride to Bayou George. There he found a place favorable for building boats, with cedar, pine, oak, palmetto, shell fish coves and a fresh water stream, but no rocks (see the Township survey of 1831, Bayou George is depicted and described in the Field Notes exactly as Vaca described it). That trail from Aute, about six leagues round trip to the bayou, was ridden many times by Narvaez' people to fetch sick men and food from Aute during the time it took them to build the boats.

Since the water in Bayou George is shallow, Narvaez had to time his departure on favorable tides. According to modern lunar reports, that is exactly what he did: Narvaez completed his boats so they could be launched and maneuvered out of the bay on Spring Tides. That, I believe, was his first wise move in conquest but, no doubt, his last (the timing of the Narvaez Florida expedition is, perhaps, the most neglected event in Florida's history, despite the fact that his was the first; scholars have ignored critical activity dates from the time of the Narvaez landing, in relation to Easter Sunday of that year, to his departure in shallow draft vessels on Spring Tides). Narvaez would vanish, and his defeat would bolster the credibility of the natives who sent him there. Their lies, recorded by missionaries near Vitachuco years later, would be given credence by historians for centuries.

Desoto's trail from Ucita to the bay where Narvaez built his boats was only 173 leagues long. Vaca's estimate of 280 leagues traveled by Narvaez to the bay probably included scouting for food, plus the distance from his landing site to Ucita, then the greater distance to the Great Swamp on his trail up the east side of the Peace River through Arcadia's rich but scattered fields. Narvaez never got to meet Chief Mococo or his fine people; Mococo's Village was six leagues north of the route Narvaez chose to take to Apalache.