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Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo ( pt, João Rodrigues Cabrilho; c. 1499 – January 3, 1543) was an Iberian maritime explorer best known for investigations of the
West Coast of North America The human history of the west coast of North America is believed to stretch back to the arrival of the earliest people over the Bering Strait, or alternately along a now-submerged coastal plain, through the development of significant pre-Columbi ...
, undertaken on behalf of the
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
. He was the first European to explore present-day California, navigating along the coast of California in 1542–1543 on his voyage from New Spain (modern Mexico).


Nationality

Cabrillo's nationalityPortuguese or Spanishhas been debated for centuries. He was described as Portuguese by Spanish chronicler Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas; in his ''Historia General de los hechos de los Castellanos en las Islas y tierra firme del Mar Oceano'', written 60 years after Cabrillo's death, Herrera referred to Cabrillo as ''Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo''. Several locations in Portugal claim to be his birthplace. However, the source for Herrera's description is unknown. Some historians have long believed that Cabrillo was from Spain, and a set of documents discovered in 2015 gave strength to that opinion. A witness from a 1532 lawsuit, named Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, testified under oath that he was born in Palma de Micergilio (now
Palma del Río Palma del Río is a city located in the province of Córdoba, Spain. According to the 2006 census by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística, the city has a population of 20,640. Agriculture The region was intensively developed agriculturally d ...
), a town in the province of Córdoba in Spain. Other details of the witness's biography match known facts about the explorer. A leader of San Diego's Portuguese community cautioned that the new evidence must be carefully evaluated, and requested that copies of the documents be turned over to the Portuguese government for study. Lapela, in the parish of Cabril and a municipality of
Montalegre Montalegre () is a municipality in northern Portugal, located in the district of Vila Real, along the border with Spain. The population in 2011 was 10,537, in an area of 805.46 km². History Early construction in Montalegre date back 3500 ...
(Portugal), is the region where allegedly the nickname "Cabrilha" originated. It became the surname Cabrilho and was pronounced at the time ''Cabrilhe'' in Galician and ''Cabrillo'' in Spanish, according to the historian João Soares Tavares, biographer of João Rodrigues Cabrilho. The name still exists in Portugal as a surname, and several localities named Cabril in
Beira Alta Beira Alta may refer to: * Beira Alta Province, a province in the north of Portugal * Beira Alta (region) Beira Alta was one of the 13 regions of continental Portugal identified by geographer Amorim Girão, in a study published between 1927 and 19 ...
and neighboring regions such as Castro Daire, Viseu or Pampilhosa da Serra have been claimed as Cabrillo's birthplace. In Lapela there is an ancient house where local tradition claims he was born. Local people, and alleged local descendants of branches of his ancient family with the same surname ("Rodrigues Cabrilho"), call the house ''Casa do Galego'' (''House of the Galician'') and ''Casa do Americano'' (''House of the American'').


Voyages

Cabrillo shipped for
Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
as a young man and joined forces with Hernán Cortés in
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
(then called New Spain). Later, his success in mining gold in Guatemala made him one of the richest of the conquistadores in Mexico. According to his biographer Harry Kelsey, he took an indigenous woman as his common-law wife and sired several children, including at least three daughters. Later he married Beatriz Sanchez de Ortega in Seville during a hiatus in Spain. She returned to Guatemala with him and bore him two sons. He accompanied Francisco de Orozco to subdue the indigenous
Mixtec The Mixtecs (), or Mixtecos, are indigenous Mesoamerican peoples of Mexico inhabiting the region known as La Mixteca of Oaxaca and Puebla as well as La Montaña Region and Costa Chica Regions of the state of Guerrero. The Mixtec Cult ...
people at what would eventually become the city of
Oaxaca Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the Federative Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 570 municipaliti ...
, in Mexico. Little is known of what Cabrillo did there. In 1539, Francisco de Ulloa, who had been commissioned by Cortés, explored and named the Sea of Cortés (
Gulf of California The Gulf of California ( es, Golfo de California), also known as the Sea of Cortés (''Mar de Cortés'') or Sea of Cortez, or less commonly as the Vermilion Sea (''Mar Bermejo''), is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean that separates the Baja C ...
) and reached nearly as far north as the 30th parallel. Cabrillo was then commissioned by the new Viceroy of New Spain, Antonio de Mendoza, to lead an expedition up the Pacific coast in search of trade opportunities, perhaps to find a way to China (for the full extent of the northern Pacific was unknown) or to find the mythical Strait of Anián (or
Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the ...
) connecting the Pacific Ocean with
Hudson Bay Hudson Bay ( crj, text=ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, translit=Wînipekw; crl, text=ᐐᓂᐹᒄ, translit=Wînipâkw; iu, text=ᑲᖏᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ ᐃᓗᐊ, translit=Kangiqsualuk ilua or iu, text=ᑕᓯᐅᔭᕐᔪᐊᖅ, translit=Tasiujarjuaq; french: b ...
. Cabrillo built and owned the flagship of his venture (two or three ships), and stood to profit from any trade or treasure. In 1540, the fleet sailed from Acajutla, El Salvador, and reached Navidad, Mexico on Christmas Day. While in Mexico, Pedro de Alvarado went to the assistance of the town of
Nochistlán Nochistlán () is a city in the Mexican state of Zacatecas. Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán, on December 3, 1531, hired Cristóbal de Oñate to establish a village in Nochistlán; the village would be named Guadalajara to honor Guzmán for having bee ...
, which was under siege by hostile natives, and was killed when his horse fell on him, crushing his chest. Following Alvarado's death, the viceroy took possession of Alvarado's fleet. Part of the fleet was sent off to the Spanish East Indies under Ruy López de Villalobos and two of the ships were sent north under the command of Cabrillo. On June 27, 1542, Cabrillo set out from Navidad with three ships: the 200-ton
galleon Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships first used as armed cargo carriers by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries during the age of sail and were the principal vessels drafted for use as warships until the Anglo-Dutch ...
and flagship '' San Salvador'', the smaller ''La Victoria'' (c. 100 tons), and the lateen-rigged, twenty-six oared "fragata" or "bergantin" ''San Miguel''. On August 1, Cabrillo anchored within sight of Cedros Island. Before the end of the month they had passed Baja Point (named "Cabo del Engaño" by de Ulloa in 1539) and entered "uncharted waters, where no Spanish ships had been before". On September 28, he landed in what is now San Diego Bay and named it "San Miguel". A little over a week later he reached Santa Catalina Island (October 7), which he named "San Salvador", after his flagship. On sending a boat to the island "a great crowd of armed Indians appeared" – whom, however, they later "befriended". Nearby San Clemente Island was named "Victoria", in honor of the third ship of the fleet. The next morning, October 8, Cabrillo came to San Pedro Bay, which was named "Baya de los Fumos" (English: Smoke Bay). The following day they anchored overnight in
Santa Monica Bay Santa Monica Bay is a bight of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, United States. Its boundaries are slightly ambiguous, but it is generally considered to be the part of the Pacific within an imaginary line drawn between Point Dume, ...
. Going up the coast Cabrillo saw Anacapa Island, which they learned from the Indians was uninhabited. The fleet spent the next week in the islands, mostly anchored in Cuyler Harbor, a bay on the northeastern coast of San Miguel Island. On October 18 the expedition saw Point Conception, which they named "Cabo de Galera". Cabrillo's expedition recorded the names of numerous Chumash villages on the California coast and adjacent islands in October 1542 – then located in the two warring provinces of ''Xexo'' (ruled by an "old woman", now Santa Barbara County, California) and ''Xucu'' (now Ventura County, California). On November 13 they sighted and named "Cabo de Piños" (possibly either Point Pinos or
Point Reyes Point Reyes (, meaning "Point of the Kings") is a prominent cape and popular Northern California tourist destination on the Pacific coast. Located in Marin County, it is approximately west-northwest of San Francisco. The term is often applie ...
), but missed the entrance to San Francisco Bay, a lapse that mariners would repeat for the next two centuries and more, most likely because its entrance is frequently shrouded by fog. The expedition may have reached as far north as the Russian River or even the Columbia before autumn storms forced them to turn back. Because of the vagueness of his description, it is uncertain which northern river the expedition sighted. Coming back down the coast, Cabrillo entered Monterey Bay, naming it "Bahia de Los Piños". On November 23, 1542, the little fleet arrived back in "San Salvador" (Santa Catalina Island) to overwinter and make repairs. There, around Christmas Eve, Cabrillo stepped out of his boat and splintered his shin when he stumbled onto a jagged rock while trying to rescue some of his men from attacking
Tongva The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . Some descendants of the people prefer Kizh as an endonym that, they argue, is more historically ...
warriors. The injury became infected and developed gangrene, and he died on January 3, 1543 and was buried. A possible headstone was later found on San Miguel Island. His second-in-command brought the remainder of the party back to Navidad, where they arrived April 14, 1543. A notary's official report of Cabrillo's expedition was lost; all that survives is a summary of it made by another investigator, Andrés de Urdaneta, who also had access to ships' logs and charts. No printed account of Cabrillo's voyage appeared before historian Antonio de Herrera's account early in the 17th century.


Namesakes and commemorations

His discoveries went largely unnoticed at the time, so none of his place names were permanently adopted. Despite this, Cabrillo is now remembered as the first European to travel the California coast, and many parks, schools, buildings and streets in California bear his name. Most notably, the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...
operates Cabrillo National Monument, overlooking the bay and ocean from Point Loma in
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
, commemorating his first landing in California and offering views of San Diego and the Pacific Ocean. The monument features a larger-than-life statue of Cabrillo, donated by the government of Portugal, as well as a plaque honoring him donated in 1935 by the Portuguese ambassador to the United States. A museum in the park focuses on Cabrillo and his voyages of discovery. Every September Cabrillo Festival Inc. hosts the Cabrillo Festival, an annual three-day celebration of his discovery of San Diego Bay, including a re-enactment of his landing at Ballast Point. Another Cabrillo Monument is located on San Miguel Island. In the state of California, September 28th is officially "Cabrillo Day". A civic organization of Portuguese-Americans primarily in California is called the Cabrillo Club. In northern California, the
Point Cabrillo Light Point Cabrillo Light is a lighthouse in northern California, United States, between Point Arena and Cape Mendocino, just south of the community of Caspar. It has been a federal aid to navigation since 1909. It is part of the California state ...
is named after him. San Pedro, part of the city of
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
, has
Cabrillo Beach Cabrillo Beach is a historic public beach located in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California. It is named after Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, a Portuguese explorer who was the first to sail up the California coast. Cabrillo has two separate beach areas. ...
and the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. Schools named for him include Cabrillo College in Aptos, California, high schools in Lompoc and
Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporat ...
, and several middle and elementary schools. The portion of California State Route 1 that runs from Las Cruces in Santa Barbara County north to
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
is called the Cabrillo Highway. The
Cabrillo Bridge The Cabrillo Bridge in San Diego, California is a historic bridge providing pedestrian and light automotive access between Balboa Park and the Uptown area of San Diego. It was built for the 1915 Panama–California Exposition. The bridge was nom ...
and Cabrillo Freeway ( California State Route 163) running through San Diego's Balboa Park are also named for him. There are streets named for him in many cities in California. The SS ''Cabrillo'' was a wooden steamer launched in 1914 to serve as a ferry across the San Pedro Channel to Santa Catalina Island. It was later requisitioned by the United States Army and served as a troop transport in northern California during World War II. In 1992, the
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...
issued a 29¢ stamp in honor of Cabrillo.Colnect
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo
Accessed 2009.09.28.


''San Salvador'' replica

The
Maritime Museum of San Diego The Maritime Museum of San Diego, established in 1948, preserves one of the largest collections of historic sea vessels in the United States. Located on the San Diego Bay, the centerpiece of the museum's collection is the '' Star of India'', an 1 ...
, in partnership with Cabrillo National Monument, has built a full-sized, fully functional, and historically accurate replica of Juan Rodriquez Cabrillo's flagship, '' San Salvador''. The construction of the replica was based on historical and archeological research into early Spanish and Portuguese shipbuilding techniques. The construction was carried out in full public view on the shores of San Diego Bay by professional boat builders, assisted by scores of volunteers. Her keel was laid in April 2011; her first official public unveiling was in September 2015 when she led a parade of tall ships. The replica ship now sails on regular tours in the waters of the
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...
coast as an educational historical resource.


Footnotes


References

* Kelsey, Harry. 1986. ''Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo''. The Huntington Library, San Marino * Kramer, Wendy, 2018, ''El español que exploró California: Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo (c.1497–1543) De Palma del Río a Guatemala''. Editorial Córdoba, Esp. (Diputacion de Córdoba, Spain) * Tavares, João Soares, 1998, " João Rodrigues Cabrilho um Homem do Barroso?", Lisboa, Portugal * Tavares, João Soares, 2009, "Montalegre e o descobridor da Costa da Califórnia", Editora Cidade Berço, Guimarães, Portugal * Cabrillo National Monument Foundation. 1999 "An Account of the Voyage of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo."


External links


Instituto CamõesSan Salvador build site at the Maritime Museum of San Diego


* ttp://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/2016/july/juan-rodriguez-cabrillo-citizen-of-guatemala-and-native-of-palma-del-rio/ San Diego History Center – Summer Fall 2016, Volume 62, Number 3 & 4 {{DEFAULTSORT:Cabrillo, Juan Rodriguez 1490s births 1543 deaths 16th-century explorers People of New Spain 16th-century Portuguese people Navigators The Californias Channel Islands of California Pre-statehood history of California 1540s in Mexico 1542 in New Spain Year of birth missing Spanish exploration in the Age of Discovery Spanish conquistadors Spanish conquests in the Americas Spanish explorers of the Pacific Spanish explorers of North America Portuguese explorers of the Pacific Portuguese explorers of North America Explorers of California Namesakes of San Francisco streets