USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Southwestern U.S. has undergone multiple waves of settlement since Europeans began arriving in North America in 1492. First on the scene were the Spanish conquistadors who arrived in present day Arizona and New Mexico by the mid 1500’s. Spanish missionaries soon followed.

Detailed explanation-2: -The first explorers and settlers of the Southwest were American Indians; they gave the vast area much of its distinctive culture and learned how to live in its climate and geography. Some of the earliest and most expansive attempts at colonizing were made by the Spanish.

Detailed explanation-3: -Santa Fe, the first permanent European settlement in the Southwest, was established in 1610. Few Spaniards relocated to the southwest due to the distance from Mexico City and the dry and hostile environment.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1540, Coronado led a major Spanish expedition up Mexico’s western coast and into the region that is now the southwestern United States.