Coronado’s Journey Through Kansas: Francisco Vasquez de Coronado commanded an army of 300 strong through some of the New World’s most inhospitable terrain; modern-day Mexico, Arizona, New Mexico, and the panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas.
His journey to find the Seven Golden Cities of Cibola began in 1540, at the request of the Viceroy after rumors of the prosperous cities were confirmed. Along the way, his men discovered the Grand Canyon, bison, numerous Indian tribes, and other landmarks.
An Indian slave named El Turco told him of Quivira, a land where even the poorest lived like royalty. El Turco was eventually discredited and put in chains, and a new guide, Ysopete, was chosen to lead Coronado’s small company of about 30 men into modern-day Kansas.
Coronado Meets Quivira Indians
It’s now July 1541, and they’ve just crossed the Arkansas River at Ford. The anticipation for riches is mounting, and after 18 months of exploration, Coronado hopes to find something worth his efforts.
They continued to travel northeast until they came across the first group of Indians somewhere between Larned and Kinsley. This was the first time these particular Indians were introduced to men riding on horses.
Ysopete calmed the Natives in their own language, and afterwards they interacted with Coronado and his men.
Wichita Indians and Coronado Heights
Shortly after meeting the first Indians, Coronado pressed on to Pawnee Rock, then to Great Bend, and on to Lyons where they found their first Wichita Indian village. The Wichitas were dark-skinned, very tall, tattooed, and lived in small huts made from native grass.
The company drove on until they reached an area near modern-day Lindsborg. They crossed the Smoky Hill River but there’s little evidence that Coronado went any further than that. Some historians say Abilene was the turnaround point. Coronado Heights, a park near Lindsborg, stands today as a symbol of the Captain-General’s farthest push into Quivira.
Coronado Returns to New Spain
Emptyhanded, disheartened, and facing a Kansas winter, Coronado and his men decided it was best to head back to Tiguex to rejoin the main force.
Before going back to New Spain (Mexico), Coronado learned that El Turco had been lying the whole time, and so the commander had the Indian slave strangled to death for his dishonesty.
When Coronado returned to New Spain, his expedition was labeled a complete failure. He spent the last few years of his life as a city council member in Mexico City. He died of an infectious disease on Sep. 22, 1554.
Quivira made a great impression upon Coronado. He wrote, “The soil itself is the most suitable that has been found for growing all the products of Spain, for, besides being rich and black, it is well watered by arroyos, springs, and rivers. I found plums like those of Spain, nuts, fine sweet grapes, and mulberries.”
Source:
William Frank Zornow, Kansas: A History of the Jayhawk State (Norman, 1957)