Ponce's Early Life

Juan Ponce de Leon was born in Santervas de Campo in I474. He fought in a war in Spain. He sailed with Columbus on his second voyage to America. Ponce de Leon set sail from Hispanola to look for gold in Puerto Rico. He later governed it and lost office four years later.

Ponce Found Florida

The king of Spain told him if he could find the island of Bikini,were the Fountain of Youth supposedly is he could govern it. He search for it and instead he found Florida in April 1513.He named it Florida because it had a lot of flowers. He claimed it for Spain too. He explored the entire eastern coast of Florida.When he told the king what he found he told him to govern what he found and to kill all the Indians.He sailed back and fought the Indians in 1515.In 1521 he sailed back with 200 men and fought them again. This time Ponce de Leon got shot with an arrow. He went back to Cuba and bleed to death. He died in 1521.