WWilliam Bartram was an American botanist, ornithologist, natural historian, and explorer. Bartram was author of an acclaimed book, now known by the shortened title Bartram's Travels, which chronicled his explorations of the southern British colonies in North America from 1773–1777. Bartram has been described as "the first naturalist who penetrated the dense tropical forests of Florida."
WAlfonso Fernando Gonzalez was a Florida Pioneer, Explorer and Steamship Captain, best known for his participation in an 1893 expedition through the Florida Everglades. Gonzalez was a son of Captain Manuel A. Gonzalez, who founded the City of Ft. Myers, Florida in 1866,
WPedro Menéndez de Avilés was a Spanish admiral and explorer from the region of Asturias, Spain, who is remembered for planning the first regular trans-oceanic convoys and for founding St. Augustine, Florida, in 1565. This was the first successful Spanish settlement in La Florida and the most significant city in the region for nearly three centuries. St. Augustine is the oldest continuously-inhabited, European-established settlement in the continental United States. Menéndez de Avilés was also the first governor of Florida (1565–74).
WAlvaro Mexia was a 17th-century Spanish explorer and cartographer of the east coast of Florida. Mexia was stationed in St Augustine and was given a diplomatic mission to the native populations living south of St. Augustine and in the Cape Canaveral area. This mission resulted in a "Period of Friendship" between the Spanish and the Ais native population.
WJean Ribault was a French naval officer, navigator, and a colonizer of what would become the southeastern United States. He was a major figure in the French attempts to colonize Florida. A Huguenot and officer under Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, Ribault led an expedition to the New World in 1562 that founded the outpost of Charlesfort on Parris Island in present-day South Carolina.
WDenys Rolle of Hudscott, Beam, Stevenstone and Bicton in Devon and East Tytherley in Hampshire, was an independent Member of Parliament for Barnstaple, Devon, between 1761 and 1774. He inherited a large number of estates and by the time of his death he was the largest landowner in Devon. He was a philanthropist and generous benefactor to charities and religious societies.
WJohn Rut was an English mariner, born in Essex, who was chosen by Henry VIII to command an expedition to North America in search of the Northwest Passage; on 10 June 1527 he set sail from Plymouth with two ships, Samson and Mary Guilford. The voyage was set up by Cardinal Wolsey at the wishes of Robert Thorne, a Bristol merchant. Samson was commanded by Master Grube and Mary Guilford was commanded by Rut.
WGiovanni da Verrazzano was a Florentine explorer of North America, in the service of King Francis I of France.
WÁngel de Villafañe was a Spanish conquistador of Florida, Mexico, and Guatemala, and was an explorer, expedition leader, and ship captain, who worked with many 16th-century settlements and shipwrecks along the Gulf of Mexico.