Richard A. Minnich
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520253537
- eISBN:
- 9780520934337
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520253537.003.0002
- Subject:
- Biology, Plant Sciences and Forestry
Perhaps the greatest asset of the Spanish land expeditions is their remarkable geographic resolution. Vegetation was described almost daily, and landmarks or place names permit accurate mapping of ...
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Perhaps the greatest asset of the Spanish land expeditions is their remarkable geographic resolution. Vegetation was described almost daily, and landmarks or place names permit accurate mapping of the expeditions. The accounts highlight the vast extent of pasture in California, but the Spanish explorers also made clear that the quality of potential grazing lands changed with the seasons and from the coast to the interior. This chapter's epigraph by Anza illustrates another basic observation in Spanish texts: that wildflower fields were seen wherever the expeditions traversed California in the vernal season.Less
Perhaps the greatest asset of the Spanish land expeditions is their remarkable geographic resolution. Vegetation was described almost daily, and landmarks or place names permit accurate mapping of the expeditions. The accounts highlight the vast extent of pasture in California, but the Spanish explorers also made clear that the quality of potential grazing lands changed with the seasons and from the coast to the interior. This chapter's epigraph by Anza illustrates another basic observation in Spanish texts: that wildflower fields were seen wherever the expeditions traversed California in the vernal season.
Richard Minnich
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520253537
- eISBN:
- 9780520934337
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520253537.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Plant Sciences and Forestry
Early Spanish explorers in the late eighteenth century found springtime California covered with spectacular carpets of wildflowers from San Francisco to San Diego. Yet today, invading plant species ...
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Early Spanish explorers in the late eighteenth century found springtime California covered with spectacular carpets of wildflowers from San Francisco to San Diego. Yet today, invading plant species have devastated this nearly forgotten botanical heritage. The book synthesizes a unique and wide-ranging array of sources—from the historic accounts of those early explorers to the writings of early American botanists in the nineteenth century, newspaper accounts in the twentieth century, and modern ecological theory—to give the most comprehensive historical analysis available of the dramatic transformation of California's wildflower prairies. At the same time, this book challenges much current thinking on the subject, critically evaluating the hypothesis that perennial bunchgrasses were once a dominant feature of California's landscape. Instead, it argues that wildflowers filled this role. As the book examines the changes in the state's landscape over the past three centuries, it brings new perspectives to topics including restoration ecology, conservation, and fire management.Less
Early Spanish explorers in the late eighteenth century found springtime California covered with spectacular carpets of wildflowers from San Francisco to San Diego. Yet today, invading plant species have devastated this nearly forgotten botanical heritage. The book synthesizes a unique and wide-ranging array of sources—from the historic accounts of those early explorers to the writings of early American botanists in the nineteenth century, newspaper accounts in the twentieth century, and modern ecological theory—to give the most comprehensive historical analysis available of the dramatic transformation of California's wildflower prairies. At the same time, this book challenges much current thinking on the subject, critically evaluating the hypothesis that perennial bunchgrasses were once a dominant feature of California's landscape. Instead, it argues that wildflowers filled this role. As the book examines the changes in the state's landscape over the past three centuries, it brings new perspectives to topics including restoration ecology, conservation, and fire management.
James H. Merrell
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- July 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780807834039
- eISBN:
- 9781469600772
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9780807834039.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, American History: early to 18th Century
This chapter focuses on the time one hundred and sixty years before John Lawson took ship for America, when the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto plunged into what is now central South Carolina in ...
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This chapter focuses on the time one hundred and sixty years before John Lawson took ship for America, when the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto plunged into what is now central South Carolina in search of the Cofitachiques, a powerful Indian nation he had been hearing about for months. De Soto, who had served in South America under Francisco Pizarro, was now driven ever deeper into the unknown by rumors that the Cofitachiques' riches rivaled those of the Incan city Cuzco. On May 1, 1540, after weeks of grueling travel, he and his army stood gazing over a river at the Cofitachique capital. Summoned by the shouts of the expedition's guides, six headmen crossed over and cautiously approached the Spaniards. The explorer called for the “rest seat” he carried with him specifically to “receive the curacas and emissaries with a gravity and embellishment befitting the grandeur of his station.”Less
This chapter focuses on the time one hundred and sixty years before John Lawson took ship for America, when the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto plunged into what is now central South Carolina in search of the Cofitachiques, a powerful Indian nation he had been hearing about for months. De Soto, who had served in South America under Francisco Pizarro, was now driven ever deeper into the unknown by rumors that the Cofitachiques' riches rivaled those of the Incan city Cuzco. On May 1, 1540, after weeks of grueling travel, he and his army stood gazing over a river at the Cofitachique capital. Summoned by the shouts of the expedition's guides, six headmen crossed over and cautiously approached the Spaniards. The explorer called for the “rest seat” he carried with him specifically to “receive the curacas and emissaries with a gravity and embellishment befitting the grandeur of his station.”
Lynn Gamble
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520254411
- eISBN:
- 9780520942684
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520254411.001.0001
- Subject:
- Anthropology, American and Canadian Cultural Anthropology
When Spanish explorers and missionaries came onto Southern California's shores in 1769, they encountered the large towns and villages of the Chumash, a people who at that time were among the most ...
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When Spanish explorers and missionaries came onto Southern California's shores in 1769, they encountered the large towns and villages of the Chumash, a people who at that time were among the most advanced hunter-gatherer societies in the world. The Spanish were entertained and fed at lavish feasts hosted by chiefs who ruled over the settlements and who participated in extensive social and economic networks. In this modern synthesis of data from the Chumash heartland, this book weaves together multiple sources of evidence to re-create the rich tapestry of Chumash society. Drawing from archaeology, historical documents, ethnography, and ecology, it describes daily life in the large mainland towns, focusing on Chumash culture, household organization, politics, economy, warfare, and more.Less
When Spanish explorers and missionaries came onto Southern California's shores in 1769, they encountered the large towns and villages of the Chumash, a people who at that time were among the most advanced hunter-gatherer societies in the world. The Spanish were entertained and fed at lavish feasts hosted by chiefs who ruled over the settlements and who participated in extensive social and economic networks. In this modern synthesis of data from the Chumash heartland, this book weaves together multiple sources of evidence to re-create the rich tapestry of Chumash society. Drawing from archaeology, historical documents, ethnography, and ecology, it describes daily life in the large mainland towns, focusing on Chumash culture, household organization, politics, economy, warfare, and more.
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780813049885
- eISBN:
- 9780813050355
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813049885.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: early to 18th Century
Florida's lower gulf coast was a key region in the early European exploration of North America, with an extraordinary number of first-time interactions between Spaniards and Florida's indigenous ...
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Florida's lower gulf coast was a key region in the early European exploration of North America, with an extraordinary number of first-time interactions between Spaniards and Florida's indigenous cultures. This book compiles a number of major writings of Spanish explorers in the area between 1513 and 1566. Including transcriptions of the original Spanish documents as well as English translations, this book presents—in their own words—the experiences and reactions of Spaniards who came to Florida with Juan Ponce de León, Pánfilo de Narváez, Hernando de Soto, and Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. These accounts, which have never before appeared together in print, provide an astonishing glimpse into a world of indigenous cultures that did not survive colonization. With introductions to the primary sources, extensive notes, and a historical overview of Spanish exploration in the region, this book offers a first-hand view of La Florida in the earliest stages of European conquest.Less
Florida's lower gulf coast was a key region in the early European exploration of North America, with an extraordinary number of first-time interactions between Spaniards and Florida's indigenous cultures. This book compiles a number of major writings of Spanish explorers in the area between 1513 and 1566. Including transcriptions of the original Spanish documents as well as English translations, this book presents—in their own words—the experiences and reactions of Spaniards who came to Florida with Juan Ponce de León, Pánfilo de Narváez, Hernando de Soto, and Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. These accounts, which have never before appeared together in print, provide an astonishing glimpse into a world of indigenous cultures that did not survive colonization. With introductions to the primary sources, extensive notes, and a historical overview of Spanish exploration in the region, this book offers a first-hand view of La Florida in the earliest stages of European conquest.
