Craig Esmond, age 14, of Baton Rouge, La., for his question:
WAS THERE EVER A FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH?
When the New World was discovered, there were many legends told about a wonderful Fountain of Youth
that was supposed to make old persons young. The fountain was also supposed to heal all kinds of sicknesses. But the Fountain of Youth was just an imaginary spring that never existed.
Spanish explorers heard tales of a magical spring that was supposed to be in the Bahama Islands. Indians in Central America and the West Indies all had stories about a spring that would restore youth to people who bathed in or drank its waters.
A Spanish explorer named Juan Ponce de Leon was one of the men who listened to the reports of the Fountain of Youth. Although he never found the special spring, he became one of the first explorers to claim part of the North American mainland for Spain.
Ponce de Leon sailed on Christopher Columbus' second voyage to America in 1493. He became a soldier
in the settlement that the Spaniards founded on Hispaniola, in the West Indies. From 1502 to 1504, Ponce de Leon led the Spanish forces against the Indians in Higuey, the eastern province of Hispaniola. He defeated the Indians and was appointed governor as a reward.
Ponce de Leon left Hispaniola in 1508 to explore what became Puerto Rico. He discovered gold on the island and conquered Puerto Rico. He was made governor in 1509 and became one of the most powerful Spaniards in the New World.
In 1512 Ponce de Leon went in search of an island called Bimini. This imaginary island was said to be the site of the Fountain of Youth. According to medieval folklore, the spring was the Water of Life in the the Garden of Eden.
In 1513 the explorer landed in Florida, which he thought was another island, and he claimed it
for Spain. According to one story, he named the land Florida, which in Spanish means "full of flowers". Another story says the name was chosen becuse he arrived there during Easter, which Spaniards call Pascua Florida.
Ponce de Leon landed near the site of present day St. Augustine in Florida. A spring there is shown today as one that Ponce de Leon discovered.
The explorer sailed down the coast and explored almost the entire eastern shoreline and southern tip of Florida. His search for the Fountain of Youth led him partway up Florida's western coast.
In June 1513, Ponce de Leon decided to return to Puerto Rico. During the voyage back he landed on what is now Yucatan which he thought was Bimini.
In 1514, Ponce de Leon sailed to Spain with news of his findings. King Ferdinand ordered him to colonize Bimini and Florida, and to rid the West Indies of the Carib Indians who were fierce cannibals.
Ponce de Leon returned to the New World in 1515 and fought this tribe. The Indian fighting delayed his second expedition to Florida until 1521.
In February 1521, Ponce de Leon sailed from Puerto Rico with two ships and 200 men to establish a colony. He landed on the west cost of Florida,
probably near Charlotte Harbor. The Indians attacked and Ponce de Leon was wounded by an arrow.
Ponce de Leon and a few other survivors sailed to Cuba where he died.