Don Juan Ponce de Leon was a Spanish conqueror and explorer. He was born around 1460 in San Tervas de Campos, Spain. Ponce de Leon lived during an age of great discovery and excitement. Ponce de Leon is well known, claiming and naming what is now Florida, the discovery of Puerto Rico, and his never-ending search for the old time classic, the Fountain of Youth!

On November 19, 1493 Ponce de Leon was one of the first Europeans to see the small island of Borinquen, the Indian name for Puerto Rico. Ponce de Leon sailed to Puerto Rico in 1506 with two hundred men to the island and found out that it had rich gold deposits. He enslaved the natives, and forced them to mine gold for him. Ponce de Leon left Puerto Rico a

In 1511 King Ferdinand ordered Ponce de Leon replaced as governor by Diego Columbus. Life for Ponce de Leon would have been difficult if he stayed in Puerto Rico since much of his power over the island was taken when his rank was taken away. It was at this time that Ponce de Leon began his search for the Fountain of Youth. Many historians feel it was not only to discover the LENGENDARY waters, but also for the gold and silver that was supposed to be at the sight of the fountain. Ponce de Leon explored many regional islands in his search for the Fountain of Youth, including the Bahamas and Bimini.

nd returned again in 1508 this time he brought with him only fifty men. On this voyage his ship went through a terrible storm that caused him to run onto the rocks on two occasions. The crew was forced to throw ove

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Approximate Word count = 547
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)