Show de sotos solos futile quest for gold brought Z exploration of arkansas arkansas was one of the earliest of the mississippi states to be explored the first white man to touch arkansas soil was hernando de soto the spanish explorer who discovered the mississippi river in may 1541 he came to a river so broad that he be ca called U ea d it in spanish the rio grande or great river the indian name for or the stream cebe father of waters has come down to us however as mississippi de soto crossed the river to the arkansas side for nearly a year the last year of his life de soto traveled over what is now arkansas through a vast wilderness inhabited by wild wad animals and equally wild savages beginning near the mouth of the white river de soto went up the western shore of the mississippi beyond the mouth of the st francis river then jour journeyed neye southwest until he came to the A arkansas river there is a tradition that he was defeated in a battle with the indians near where jacksonport Jackson port now stands and that he was compelled to turn north again learning that there were mountains to the northwest he continued toward northeast arkansas where he hoped to find gold traveling through swamps and dense forests and crossing mountain streams disappointed in not finding gold he turned south passed over the boston mountains crossed the arkansas river near dardanelle rock and came into the land of the cayas here de soto fell ell seriously in ill and a friendly tri endly indian chief brought him to a lake of very hot water where h he e w was healed this lake was ess doubtless the now famous hot springs spring s on Ou ouachita achita river near the springs de soto and his party found salt which the indians gathered and sold to their neighbors the explorers spent the winter of 1541 a severe one in an indian village on the ouachita Ou achita de sotos solos faithful interpreter ter preter juan ortiz died dis heartened by not finding gold and losing so many of his men de soto resumed his journey south in the spring of 1542 he followed the oua chita to the red river and then went downstream to the mississippi exposure brought on a fever and de soto died his survivors burying him in the great river he had discovered spain profited little by the explorations pl orations of de soto through her negligence the mississippi valley had remained unsettled tor for nearly a century and a half but while spain slept the french were active after securing the lands bordering on the st lawrence river france had pushed southward along the mississippi |