| Amerigo Vespucci was born in Italy. He lived in one of the most respected families in Florence. He had 5 people in his family. There were 3 children and Amerigo was the youngest child. Amerigo's father was the primary moneymaker for his immediate and extended family. When Amerigo's father died, Amerigo became the new moneymaker of the family. | ||||
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As a child he liked to read books, collect maps, and learn about astronomy. People considered Vespucci to be smart at a young age. Amerigo also attended his uncle’s school and perfected his Latin. When he was a young man, he became a merchant and traveled to Seville, Spain in 1492. While in Spain, he worked on ships as a merchant and astronomer. |  |
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| His first voyage was supported by King Ferdinand. The king gave Amerigo two ships to travel westward. Amerigo was a very skilled navigator. There are several conflicting dates when he left for the first voyage across the Atlantic. One of the earliest dates was May 10, 1497 from Cadiz. It took him about 24 days to reach the Central American/Northern South American coastline and 27 days to reach today's Brazil. He was also the first European to sail the Amazon river. Some sources say that Amerigo traveled through the “Gulf of Mexico,” on his return, where he took 200 slaves from the Bahamas. He returned to Spain on October 15, 1498. | ||||
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| He began in 1503 ready to set sail. His ships were led southward along the new land (South America). They went down far to the Cape of Good Hope. He spotted the Falkland Islands. He returned in 1504. News spread and soon after the islands were mapped properly in their correct area. By 1507, Martin Waldseemuller, a mapmaker named the area commonly known as the New World "America" after Amerigo Vespucci. At first only “South America” was named after him. | ||||
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| In 1508, Amerigo was elected Pilot Mayor (Chief of Navigation) of Spain. The Pilot Mayor had the responsibility of planning navigation for ocean voyages. Soon he caught a deadly disease known today as Malaria, which comes from the mosquitoes in a tropical environment. On February 22, 1512, Amerigo Vespucci died in Seville, Spain. In the end, he possibly made four voyages, but unfortunately only three can be verified. Once again, Amerigo might not have been the first European to reach North and South America, but he was the one to realize that North America was separate from Asia. The northern continent was eventually named “North America”. |
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Original Art work by Sky
Digital Imaging by Kailani
White Wash Shore Photo: Philip Dominguez
