jan 1, 1526 - San Miguel de Gualdape

Description:

San Miguel de Gualdape, founded in 1526 by Spanish explorer Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, was the first European settlement in what became the continental United States. Established on the coast of Georgia, near present-day Georgetown, South Carolina, the colony lasted less than four months before it was overwhelmed by disease, hunger, and a hostile Indian population. Of the 600 persons who set out to establish the settlement, only about 150 returned home alive.

The African slaves brought by the settlers became the first documented instance of black slavery in North America and occasioned the first slave rebellion.