Famous Explorers and Americans

4th Grade Standards

King George III

• Ruler of Great Britain

• Decided that the colonists should help pay for the French and Indian War.

• Passed taxes on the colonists.

• Gave the colonists their independence when his country lost the American Revolution.

Christopher Columbus

• Queen Isabella of Spain paid for his voyage in search of a shorter route to Asia.

• He and his crew traveled on three ships: the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.

• On October 12, 1492, Columbus reached the East Indies, which is the present-day Bahamas.

• He never stepped foot on the mainland of the USA.

Christopher Columbus’s exploration route

Juan Ponce deLeon

• He was the first conquistador to reach what is now the United States.

• Led an expedition to present-day Florida.

• Claimed Florida for Spain.

Juan Ponce de Leon’s exploration route

Henry Hudson

• Was an English explorer who

sailed farther than any other explorer.

• He was sent to find a shorter water route to Asia.

• He explored what is now know as the Hudson River.

Henry Hudson’s exploration route

Vasco Nunez de Balboa

• Was a Spanish explorer and

a conquistador.

• He was known as a friendly explorer because he did not fight with the Native Americans.

• He sailed to present-day Panama where he crossed the mountains and jungles and discovered the Pacific Ocean.

Vasco Nunez de Balboa’s exploration route

Jacques Cartier

• Was a French navigator in search of a shorter water passage to Asia.

• He was the first European to explore the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the St. Lawrence River.

Jacques Cartier’s exploration route

John Cabot

• Was an Italian explorer.

• He claimed North America for England.

• He explored parts of present-day Canada.

• He did not find any people, silks, or spices but he did find a rich fishing area off the coast of Canada.

John Cabot’s exploration route

Meriwether Lewis and William Clark

• Explorers of the uncharted west.

• Hired by President Jefferson to explore the new land he had purchased in the Louisiana Purchase.

• Discovered that they could travel across the United States and reach the Pacific Ocean by crossing the Rocky Mountains.

George Washington

• Known as the Father of our Country.

• He was our nation’s 1st President.

• He fought in the French and Indian War

• He was the Commander of the American Continental Army during the Revolutionary War.

• He lead the Constitution Convention and oversaw the writing of the United States Constitution.

John Adams

• He was our nation’s second President.

• He was a lawyer. He served on the Declaration of Independence Committee.

• He and his family were the first to live in the White House!

Thomas Jefferson

• Known as the father of the Declaration of Independence.

• He was our nation’s 3rd President.

• During his Presidency he bought the land known as the Louisiana Purchase. This land purchase doubled the size of the country.

James Madison

• Known as the FATHER OF THE CONSTITUTION.

• He was our nation’s 4th President.

• His wife was Dolly Madison who is known for saving the famous portrait of George Washington when the British burned the White House.

Benjamin Franklin

• Published a newspaper called the Pennsylvania Gazette and a book called Poor Richard’s Almanac that contained clever sayings that made him popular.

• He discovered electricity.

• He traveled to France in 1776 to convince the French to help the American colonies in their war against England.

Patrick Henry

• He was known as the “voice of the Revolution”

• His arguments against the Constitution helped create the Bill of Rights.

Benedict Arnold

• He was known as a “Patriot turned Traitor”

• He helped the colonists in Boston fight against the British. He and his army captured Fort Ticonderoga in New York.

• He began giving information to the British when France joined the Americans in their fight. He soon switched sides and joined the British Army.

Harriet Tubman

• Harriet Tubman escaped from slavery. She returned to Maryland 19 times to lead other slaves to freedom on the Underground Railroad.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

She helped organize the Seneca Falls Convention and was a leader of the women’s rights movement for more than 50 years. Although she didn’t live to see it, her work helped women gain the right to vote.