Age of Exploration (1450-1700)

The early history of New World exploration reads like an old-style fantasy novel. Men from Europe literally traversed the North American continent looking for things like the City of Gold and the Fountain of Youth. With such a vast terrain ripe for discovery, there was really no way to prove those things couldn't be found, though not even someone as diligent as Juan Ponce de Leon was able to find any trace of such mystical destinations.

What they found instead was firm ground, mountains, jungles, rivers, deserts, exotic animals, and native inhabitants sometimes happy to greet them, sometimes happy to attack the newcomers. There are a lot of opinions and versions about the European exploration of North and South America, some of them accepted as standard, a few relegated to the conspiracy theorists' corner of shame, and one or two downright shocking.

Most historians agree that the initial Spanish and Portuguese insurgence, particularly in South and Central America, was occasioned primarily by greed and political jockeying. The big villain of this period was Hernan Cortes, a Spaniard who dealt freely in death, communicable disease, treachery, and gold between the Aztec empire and his own nation. It was said he pilfered so much gold his ships sank under it on the return journey.

Christopher Columbus has fared slightly better in the annals of history, though even his methods and motivations have fallen under suspicion. That he claimed the work of a missionary is now seen more as a burden for the Christian community to explain than as a noble mark in his favor. He also took gold, swapped diseases with the Indians, and provoked many to combat.

So what's the truth of all this? Are Europeans just a bunch of terrible people out to exploit everyone else? Is this merely liberal revisionism? The truth (as usual) is probably somewhere in between. Many of the explorers were pretty ruthless, but then again, the kind of personality that could accomplish something as arduous as the years-long journey to an unknown part of the world is bound to have some equally heroic flaws.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Active Filters: 7th grade (Ages 12-13)
Atlas of North American Exploration
by Glyndwr Williams, William H. Goetzmann
Oklahoma Paperbacks Ed from University of Oklahoma Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Balboa, Finder of the Pacific
for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Balboa:
by Jeannette Mirsky
from Harper & Row
for 4th-7th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Balboa: Swordsman and Conquistador
World Landmark #25
by Felix Riesenberg, Jr.
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Benjamin Bonneville, Soldier-Explorer
from Julian Messner
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Book of Discovery
by M. B. Synge
from Yesterday's Classics
for 7th-12th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$20.95
Book of Famous Explorers
Young Folks Library
by Edwin Erle Sparks, editor
from Auxiliary Educational League
for 3rd-9th grade
in Vintage Anthology Collections (Location: VIN-ANTH)
By Right of Conquest
by G. A. Henty
from Preston Speed
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in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
By Right of Conquest
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
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in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
By Right of Conquest
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
By Right of Conquest - MP3 CD
by Jim Hodges
from Jim Hodges Productions
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in Henty Audio Books (Location: CD-Henty)
$14.00
Captain Cook and the South Pacific
by Oliver Warner
from American Heritage Publishing Co.
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in Horizon Caravel Books (Location: VIN-HOR)
Captive
by Scott O'Dell
from HMH Books for Young Readers
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Hans Christian Anderson Award
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Cartier Sails the St. Lawrence
by Esther Averill, illustrated by Feodor Rojankovsky
from Harper & Brothers
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in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
Christopher Columbus
by John Abbott
from A Beka Books
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Columbus and the Renaissance Explorers
from Scholastic Inc.
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$3.00 (3 in stock)
Commodore Perry in Japan
by Robert Reynolds
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Conquest of the Atlantic
by Ingri & Edgar Parin D'Aulaire
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Conquest of the North and South Poles
Landmark #27
by Russell Owen, illustrated by Lynd Ward
from Random House
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in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Cortes and the Aztec Conquest
by Irwin R. Blacker
from American Heritage Publishing Co.
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in Horizon Caravel Books (Location: VIN-HOR)
Discovery of New Worlds
Story of the World Series #2
by M. B. Synge
from Yesterday's Classics
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in History Spines & Surveys (Location: HISRF-SPINE)
$13.95
Discovery of New Worlds
Story of the World Series #2
by M. B. Synge
from Living Book Press
History Reference for 4th-8th grade
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DK Eyewitness: Explorer
by Rupert Matthews
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
DK Eyewitness: Explorer
DK Eyewitness Series
by Rupert Matthews
1st edition from DK Publishing
HIstory Reference for 4th-8th grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Drake: The Man They Called a Pirate
by Jean Lee Latham
from Harper & Brothers
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in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Empires Lost and Won
by Albert Marrin
1st edition from Atheneum
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$14.00 (1 in stock)
Era Of Exploration & Discovery 30,000 Years Ago the the 1600s
Focus on U.S. History
by Kathy Sammis
from Walch Publishing
for 7th-12th grade
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Europe Finds the World
Cambridge Introduction to World History
by Trevor Cairns
from Cambridge University
for 6th-9th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Exploration and Conquest
The American Story Series
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-7th grade
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Exploration and Conquest
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
1st edition from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
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in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Exploration and Conquest
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
1st edition from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Exploration of Africa
by Thomas Sterling
from Harper & Row
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in Horizon Caravel Books (Location: VIN-HOR)
Exploration, Revolution, and Constitution
American History Series
by Cindy Barden
from Mark Twain Media
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in Miscellaneous History Curriculum (Location: HISCUR-MISC)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Explorations of Père Marquette
Landmark #17
by Jim Kjelgaard
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Explorers & Discoverers - 4 Volume Set
from UXL Publishing
biographical encyclopedia for 5th-8th grade
in World History Reference (Location: HISW-REF)
$30.00 (1 in stock)
Explorers of the Pacific
by A. Grove Day
from Duell, Sloan and Pearce
for 7th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Explorers to 1815 - Home Teacher Manual
3rd edition from Veritas Press
History Curriculum for 5th-7th grade
in Veritas Press History (Location: HISCUR-VP)
$39.00
Explorers Who Got Lost
by Diane Dreher
from Tor Classic
Non-fiction for 4th-8th grade
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Explorers Who Got Lost
by Diane Sansevere-Dreher, Illustrated by Ed Renfro
from Starscape
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Finding the New World
by Walter Taylor Field
from Ginn and Co.
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French Explorers in America
by Walter Buehr
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
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Great Explorers
by Joyce Grosseck & Elizabeth Attwood
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
He Went With series
by Louise Andrews Kent
from Living Book Press
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History News: Explorers
by Michael Johnstone
from Scholastic Inc.
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
History of US Book 1
History of US Book 1
by Joy Hakim
3rd Revised Edition from Oxford University
American History Reference for 5th-9th grade
in History of US (Location: HISA-HAKIM)
$15.95 $11.00 (1 in stock)
Interactive Notebook: Discovery and Exploration
American History Series
by Schyrlet Cameron
from Mark Twain Media
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$5.50 (1 in stock)
Journey and Ordeal of Cabeza de Vaca
Dover editions
by Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca
from Dover Publications
for 5th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation Literature (Location: LIT3-REN)
$10.95
Juan Ponce de Leon
by Louise Chipley Slavicek
1st edition from Chelsea House Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Kids Book of Canadian Exploration
by Ann-Maureen Owens & Jane Yealland
from Kids Can Press
for 3rd-7th grade
in Canada (Location: HISMC-CAN)
La Salle, River Explorer
Makers of America
by Alberta Powell Graham
from Abingdon Press
for 4th-7th grade
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Long and Uncertain Journey
by Joan Goodman, Illustrated by Tom McNeely
from Mikaya Press
for 3rd-8th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Magellan
by Michael Burgan
from Compass Point Books
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$6.50 (1 in stock)
Magellan and the Exploration of South America
by Colin Hynson
from Barron's
Non-fiction for 4th-8th grade
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$4.00 (2 in stock)
Marco Polo and the Medieval Explorers
by Rebecca Stefoff
from Chelsea House Publishing
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.00 (2 in stock)
Marco Polo for Kids
by Janis Herbert
from Chicago Review Press
Biography/Activity Book for 4th-8th grade
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$17.95
Men Who Found America
by Frederick Winthrop Hutchinson
from Living Book Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
New Found World
by Katherine B. Shippen, illustrations by C.B. Falls
for 6th-9th grade
1946 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Pizarro and the Conquest of Peru
Horizon Caravel Book
by Cecil Howard
from American Heritage Publishing Co.
for 5th-9th grade
in Horizon Caravel Books (Location: VIN-HOR)
Prisoner of the Indies
by Geoffrey Household, with map and decorations by Warren Chappell
from Little, Brown & Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Search for the Northwest Passage
by Lucile McDonald
from Binford & Mort Publishing
for 7th-10th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
Ships, Sailors and the Sea
Usborne Beginner's Knowledge
by Caroline Young, J. Miles
from Usborne
for 3rd-7th grade
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Sieur de La Salle
by John Paul Zronik
from Crabtree Publishing
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Sir Walter Raleigh and the Quest for El Dorado
by Marc Aronson
from Clarion Books
for 7th-9th grade
2001 Robert F. Sibert Medal winner
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$21.99 $12.00 (2 in stock)
Sir Walter Raleigh: Captain and Adventurer
by Nina Brown Baker
1st edition from Harcourt, Brace & Company
for 4th-8th grade
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Spanish Conquistadores in North America
Buehr's Explorer Histories
by Walter Buehr
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
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Spice and the Devil's Cave
by Agnes Hewes, illustrated by Lynd Ward
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 7th-10th grade
1931 Newbery Honor Book
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Spice and the Devil's Cave
by Agnes Hewes, illustrated by Lynd Ward
from Dover Publications
for 4th-10th grade
1931 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Stories of America Volume 1 - Narration Notecards
by Crystal Hildreth
from Simply Charlotte Mason
for 1st-12th grade
in Simply Charlotte Mason (Location: CUR-SCM)
Story of Christopher Columbus
Grosset & Dunlap Signature #2
by Nina Brown Baker, illustrated by David Hendrickson
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
Story of Marco Polo
Grosset & Dunlap Signature #22
by Olive Price, illustrated by Frederico Castellon
from Grosset & Dunlap
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Grosset & Dunlap Signature Books (Location: VIN-SIG)
Story of the Pacific
by Harold Rabling
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 7th-Adult
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Story of the Thirteen Colonies
by Helene Guerber
from Nothing New Press
History Reference for 3rd-8th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
Streams to the River, River to the Sea
by Scott O'Dell
from Houghton Mifflin
Historical Fiction for 7th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Streams to the River, River to the Sea
by Scott O'Dell
from Houghton Mifflin
Historical Fiction for 7th-9th grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
They Put Out to Sea: The Story of the Map
by Roger Duvoisin
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
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$68.00 (1 in stock)
They Saw America First
by John Bakeless, Katherine Bakeless
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 4th-9th grade
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Three Conquistadores
by Shannon Garst, illustrated by Lee J. Ames
from Julian Messner
for 6th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Time Travelers: New World Explorers - CD-ROM
Time Travelers History Study on CD-ROM
by Amy Pak
from Home School in the Woods
Unit Study for 3rd-8th grade
in Time Travelers (Location: HISRF-TT)
$19.00 $9.00 (3 in stock)
Tomatoes, Potatoes, Corn, and Beans
by Sylvia A. Johnson
1st edition from Atheneum
for 3rd-7th grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Under Drake's Flag
by G. A. Henty
from Preston Speed
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Under Drake's Flag
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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$20.00
Under Drake's Flag
by G. A. Henty
from Dover Publications
for 6th-10th grade
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$6.99
Under Drake's Flag
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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Under Drake's Flag - MP3 CD
by Jim Hodges
from Jim Hodges Productions
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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$14.00
Usborne Book of Explorers
by Usborne
from Scholastic Inc.
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$2.00 (1 in stock)
Vast Horizons
by Mary Seymour Lucas, illustrated by C. B. Falls
from Viking Press
for 5th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Veritas Press Explorers to 1815 - Set
from Veritas Press
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Voyagers, The
by Padraic Colum, illustrated by Wilfred Jones
from Macmillan
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1926 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Voyagers, The
by Padraic Colum, illustrated by Wilfred Jones
from Smidgen Press
for 4th-8th grade
1926 Newbery Honor Book
Voyages of Christopher Columbus
Landmark #1
by Armstrong Sperry
from Random House
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in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Voyages of Christopher Columbus
Spencer Press Landmark #1 (RH#1)
by Armstrong Sperry
from Spencer Press
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Walter Raleigh: Man of Two Worlds
World Landmark #58
by Henrietta Buckmaster
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
We Were There with Cortes and Montezuma
We Were There #25
by Benjamen Appel, illustrated by Reynold Pollack
from Grosset & Dunlap
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in We Were There Series (Location: VIN-HIS)
World Made New
by Marc Aronson & John W. Glenn
from National Geographic
for 3rd-7th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$17.95
World of Columbus and Sons
by Genevieve Foster
from Beautiful Feet Books
History Reference for 7th-10th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
World of Columbus and Sons
by Genevieve Foster, edited by Rea Berg
Edited from Beautiful Feet Books
History Reference for 7th-10th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$21.95
World of Columbus and Sons (pictorial hardcover)
by Genevieve Foster
from Charles Scribner's Sons
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Year of Columbus: 1492
by Genevieve Foster
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 3rd-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Year of the Pilgrims, 1620
by Genevieve Foster
from Charles Scribner's Sons
History Reference/Biography for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)