American History - From Discovery To the 19th Century
The Europeans discovered the North & South Americas during the last decade of the 15 th Century. Christopher Columbus discovered the West Indies, Central America, and northern South America for Spain b etween 1492 and 1503 AD. John Cabot was the first person to reach North America in 1497, and discovered Newfoundland (Canada) for England. A Portuguese explorer, Pedro Alvares, discovered Brazil in 1500 AD. A Spanish explorer Juan Ponce was the first person to discover modern-day United States of America (USA). He arrived in modern-day Florida in 1513. This article covers the History of the United States of America (USA) from pre-discovery period to the 19th Century. Period Before Discovery It is not exactly known when the Native Americans initially settled in the Americas and modern-day USA. However, it is estimated that they started arriving in the USA (including Alaska ) about 30,000 years ago during the Ice Age. They travelled through boa...