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25. America’s First Christmas
     was celebrated in Spanish

By Miguel Pérez

​Before we welcome Santa every year, we Hispanic Americans celebrate Nochebuena. And even after Santa is gone, many of us also welcome the Three Wise Men. But in our annual struggle to preserve our own Hispanic holiday traditions, a little history is appropriate here. After all, it was our Spanish ancestors who celebrated America's first Christmas — 482 years ago!


Many historians still fail to recognize it and many books and websites simply skip that part of our history. But now there is significant evidence to show that Hernando de Soto, a dozen Catholic priests and some 600 Spanish explorers celebrated America's first Christmas in 1539, in Anhaica, a Native American village now known as Tallahassee, the capital of Florida.

They sailed from Cuba a few months earlier, disembarked in the Tampa Bay area and endured a 300-mile trek to North Florida. But they were only in the beginning of what was to become the first — and most impressive — European overland exploration of North America. From Florida, de Soto and his men went on to explore the territory that later became Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana. Their four-year, 4,000-mile hike finally lost its drive when de Soto died of fever at the banks of the Mississippi River, where he was buried in 1542.

But not before celebrating that first American Christmas in Anhaica. It was one of the principle villages of the Apalachee natives, which the Spanish occupied in the fall of 1539 and where they set up their winter encampment until March of 1540.

For many years, Florida historians had assumed that the Anhaica the Spanish explorers described in their diaries was in the vicinity of Talahassee's Lake Jackson, where they even erected a sign commemorating de Soto's encampment and the first American Christmas.

But the exact location had not been identified, no physical evidence had been found and archeologists feared that de Soto's winter encampment had been lost beneath the concrete and steel of the capital city.

However, in 1987, as bulldozers cleared the earth for a Tallahassee office complex, Florida state archaeologist B. Calvin Jones discovered artifacts from the de Soto expedition. Amazingly, only 32 years ago, he found Anhaica in downtown Tallahassee — only a short distance from the Florida state Capitol!

Jones then led a team excavation that recovered more than 40,000 artifacts, including teeth and jawbone fragments from pigs (first brought to North America by de Soto's expedition) and a Spanish coin minted about 1517.

Although the four-acre site was slated for construction when the relics were found, the lot was purchased by the non-profit Trust for Public Land, designated as a "Florida Heritage Landmark" and turned into a small state park. And while most of the artifacts that were found there now are in museums, the park still features a marker and interpretive panel describing those findings.


"The evidence includes links of chain mail armor, copper coins, the iron tip of a crossbow bolt, Spanish olive jar shards and glass trade beads," the sign states. "These finds provided the physical evidence of the 1539-40 winter encampment, the first confirmed de Soto site in North America. From this location, the de Soto expedition traveled northward and westward, making the first European contact with many native societies."

Although no hard evidence exists to prove that de Soto and his men celebrated that first Christmas in Tallahassee, historians say it's hard to imagine the priests who traveled with de Soto not saying mass on Christmas Day.


It's also hard to conceive that they had no special feast on the 12th day after Christmas, when Catholics commemorate the Epiphany: The manifestation of Christ to the gentiles on the day Jesus was visited by the three wise men (Matthew 2:1-12).

Considering the fact that the Spanish camp was under constant attack from Apalachee, who wanted their village back, prominent Florida historians and archaeologists believe that Christmas season celebrations might have been strained and brief. But few doubt that they happened.

In fact, the doubts and negativity about America's first Christmas usually comes from those who say the Spanish were simply too violent; yes, those who judge 16th century explorers by 21st century moral standards. No one denies that de Soto and his army raided villages and killed many Native Americans. But they also were subject to constant ambush attacks, suffered hundreds of casualties and endured amazing hardships in their quest to explore North America.

Their critics tell us that the Spanish explorers didn't come to build, but only to seek gold and glory. Yet the settlements they established from Florida to California demonstrate the contrary. And surely they were not alone in seeking gold and killing Native Americans. Somehow, other European settlers don't get their adequate share of the blame for the Native American holocaust.

But let's face it: De Soto and his men were going where no European man had gone before — traveling through the wilderness, encountering hostile opposition along the way and fighting the same Apalachee who had nearly wiped out another Spanish expedition, led by Panfilo Narvaez, 11 years earlier. Of the 300 Spanish soldiers in the 1528 Narvaez expedition, only five had survived.

In those days, explorers had to do what the times dictated. Violence and cruelty was the norm but not just for Spanish explorers. Those who reject Spanish accomplishments based on the cruelty of the 16th century still are promoting the Black Legend — that centuries old campaign to demonize the Spanish conquistadors and minimize the accomplishments of Hispanics.

Nowadays, there are many websites pretending to tell the history of Christmas in America. Yet like all other historical research influenced by the bias of the Black Legend, many of these sites begin telling our Christmas story in 17th century British America and in complete denial of the Spanish presence in North America, which started in 1513.

They tell you that Christmas wasn't always celebrated in this country; that it was actually banned in New England between 1659 and 1681 because the Puritan pilgrims considered it a heathen holiday. They tell you that Christmas Day again fell out of favor after the American Revolution because it was considered one of many "English customs" the American people wanted to repel.

As if all prior Christmases didn't really count, they tell you that the first Christmas — under the Declaration of Independence — was in 1776; that the first one under America's new constitution was in 1789; and that Christmas wasn't declared a federal holiday until 1870. Yet the real first American Christmas rarely gets mentioned!

Some sites actually affirm that, "Christmas was not a holiday in early America."

Yet after that first 1539 Christmas in Tallahassee and before the anti-Christmas pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock in 1620, there are records to show that the birth of Christ was celebrated by Spanish explorers for decades in North America, starting in 1565 in St. Augustine, Florida, and in 1598 in New Mexico.

What could lead to such distortion of history? Could it be because some people find it difficult to recognize that the first American Christmas celebrations were all in Spanish?

The websites tell you all about the first Christmas tree, the first Christmas card, the first Nativity scene and the first Christmas store, but the first American city where Christmas was celebrated, well, that's a little harder to find.

Unfortunately, the Black Legend is alive and well in the 21st century. American's hidden Hispanic heritage still is well-hidden.

And so, to fill the void in cyberspace and set the record straight, when people Google "America's first Christmas" from now on, they'll be reading this column.

Besides, this is my way of wishing you "Feliz Navidad," just the way it was expressed on that first American Christmas.

COPYRIGHT 2011 CREATORS.COM


Originally published by Creators.com as America’s First Christmas - on December 27, 2011.
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Also see/Tambien vea:
​17. A Hispanic Christmas

    Una Navidad Hispana

22. Happy Three Kings Day!
    Feliz Día de Reyes!

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En español
La Primera Navidad en América
​fue celebrada en español 

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Photo: Florida Park Service Collection
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Please join our dialogue on Facebook / Por favor únete a nuestro diálogo en Facebook
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                   CHAPTERS/CAPITULOS

1. Our Pre-Mayflower Thanksgivings
Nuestros Días de Acción de Gracias Pre-Mayflower
               
2. A Tale of Two Cities
                 
3. Our Pre-Hispanic Heritage
              

4. The Black Legend Returns

4. La Leyenda Negra Regresa
                
5. Even on HBO, The Black Legend Lives
                   
6. Our Spanish Heritage
                     
7. Exalted or Offended?
                    
8. We are all 'Americanos'
                  
9. Latinos are Failing
                  
10. Hispanic, Columbus or Indigenous Day?
10. 
™Dia Hispano, De Colon o Indigena?
                   
11. Two Good Places to Rest
11. Dos buenos lugares para descansar
                  
12. Whitman's Prophetic Letter
12. La Carta Profética de Whitman
                  
13. America’s Cradle
13. La Cuna de America
                 
14. Our Quincentennial is Coming!

14. ´Nuestro Quinto Centenario Se Avecina!
                   
15. 
This chapter was merged with Chapter 29
                
16. A Time To Welcome the Spirits
                  
17. A Hispanic Christmas
17. Una Navidad Hispana
                  
18. JOSE MARTI:
     His Legacy Lives Here
     Su Legado Vive Aquí 
                
19. Hyphenated and Proud!
                   
20. Politicizing Education

21. Speak Any Spanish Lately?
              
22. Happy Three Kings Day!
22. ​
´Feliz Día de Reyes!
               
23. 
This chapter was merged with Chapter 29

24. A Long-Overdue Museum
                 
25. America's First Christmas was celebrated in Spanish
25. La Primera Navidad Americana fue celebrada en español

26. The Grand Canyon
and the Bucket List
 Of Hispanic Heritage
26. El Gran Canyon
y la Lista de Lugares de la Herencia Hispana

                  
27. Now That Fiesta Month Is Here,
Can We Talk About Heritage?

27. Ahora que el mes de fiesta hispana esta aquí,

​™Podemos hablar de nuestra herencia?
                  
28. Our Hispanic Heritage: On Exhibit and Yet Hidden
28. Nuestra Herencia Hispana: En Exhibición y Sin Embargo Oculta

29. Florida's Birthday Should Be a National Holiday

             
30. A Local Celebration that Should be National               

31. 
This chapter was merged with Chapter 30               
​

32. The Conveniently 'Forgotten War'
32. La Guerra Convenientemente Olvidada

33. Guantanamo Has a History  June 4, 2013

34. Exposing the Social Media Bigots  June 18, 2013
34. Exponiendo a los Intolerantes
     de los Medios Sociales June 18, 2013

35. Thinking of Cusi On the Fourth of July
35. Pensando en Cusi en el Cuatro de Julio

36. The Discovery of White Hispanics
36.  El Descubrimiento de los Hispanos Blancos

37. Let's Build a Timeline Of Hispanic-American History
37. Vamos a Construir una Cronología
     De la Historia Hispanoamericana

38. In the Name of Heritage
38. En el Nombre de la Herencia

39. Hispanics or Latinos?
39. ™Hispanos o Latinos?

40.  Hollywood's Hidden Hispanic Heritage
40. La Herencia Hispana Oculta en Hollywood

41. Obliviously Living in ‘The Land of Estevan Gomez’
41. Viviendo Inconscientemente
       En la ‘Tierra de Estevan Gómez’

42. Marking America's Birthplace
42. Marcando el Lugar de Nacimiento De Estados Unidos

43. Hispanics in Denial Should Be Infamous
43. Los Hispanos en Rechazo Deben Ser Infames

44. 
Gay Marriage's Hidden American History
      Started in Spanish
 CABEZA DE VACA'S JOURNEY
44. La Historia Oculta del Matrimonio Gay
      En América Comenzó en Español
        EL VIAJE DE CABEZA DE VACA​

45. Super Bowl Coke Commercial
       Draws Out Ugly Americans

45. Comercial de Coke en Super Bowl
     Hace Relucir a los Americanos Feos


46. 
The 'Discovery' of Self-Loathing Hispanics
46. El ‘Descubrimiento' de los
     Hispanos que se Auto Desprecian


THE GREAT HISPANIC AMERICAN HISTORY TOUR 
June 2014 - January 2015


47. My Pilgrimage to San Xavier
47. Mi Peregrinaje a San Xavier

48. The Great Hispanic American History Tour
48. La Gran Gira por la Historia Hispanoamericana

49. On the Trail of Conquistadors
49. En el Camino de los Conquistadores

50. Beyond St. Augustine
50. Más Allá de San Agustín

51. A Hidden Hispanic Role Model
51. Un Modelo Hispano Oculto

52. The Hispanic Flank of the American Revolution
52. El Flanco Hispano de la Revolucion Americana
​

53. New Orleans Has a Spanish ‘Ne Sais Quoi’
53. Nueva Orleans Tiene Un ‘Ne Sais Quoi’ Español

54. Galveston: Still the Isle of Misfortune?

55. Extracting Compacted History
     Unveils Hidden Hispanic Heritage

56. 'Remember The Alamo' Was a Spanish Mission

57. San Antonio: The Showcase Of Our Hispanic Heritage

58. There Was Compassion On the Spanish Mission Trail

59. A Hidden Latina Role Model

60. Time Portals on the Road

61. The First Thanksgiving
     In the (Southwest) United States

62. The World's Biggest Statue
of a Nameless Horseback Rider


63. A River Runs Through Our Hispanic Heritage

64. A Beacon of Hope On a Border Mountaintop

65. A Mexican-American Town
65. Un Pueblo Mexico-Americano

66. The Crossroads of Conquistadors

67. Hiking In Search of Coronado's Trail

68. The Real American Pioneers

69. Keeping My Pledge to San Xavier

70. If They Knew Arizona's History,
     They Wouldn't Be So Xenophobic

71. 'Tucson' is a Spanish Adaptation

72. Under a Utah Lake, Hispanic Heritage Lives

73. A Hilltop View Of Hispanic Heritage

74. Searching for Coronado's Quivira

75. The Spanish Savior of St. Louis

76. 
Jefferson's Spanish Library

WASHINGTON, D.C.
February-June 2015

77. When Galvez Came to Congress
77. Cuando Gálvez Vino al Congreso


78. A Tour of Our Extraordinarily Hispanic U.S. Capitol

79. Searching for Not-S0-Hidden
Hispanic Heritage in Washington, DC


80. Smithsonian Omits Hispanics In U.S. History Exhibit
80. Smithsonian Omite a los Hispanos
     en Exhibición de Historia de EE.UU.
MIAMI - August 2015
​
81. Finding Dad in a Museum
81. Encontre a Mi Padre en un Museo


​CALIFORNIA ROAD TRIP - 2018
82. International Friendship Park ​at U.S.-Mexico Border
​- A Jagged Corner of the World


83. Old Town San Diego State Historic Park
​
84. Cabrillo National Monument

85. ​It took more than 2 centuries

86. Presidio Park: The Birthplace
of the Spanish Colonization of California


87. Junípero Serra Museum Transcends the Story of a Great Man

88. Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá:
California's First Spanish Mission


89. Old Mission (Padre) Dam: California's First Aqueduct

90. Even at the beach in San Diego, you can't avoid Spanish history

91. Chicano Park: Mexican-American ​painted under highway ramps

92. Balboa Park: Candy for your eyes amid a painful controversy!

93. San Diego: An American Town
Named After the Saint from Alcalá

93. San Diego: Un Pueblo Americano
Lleva el Nombre del Santo de Alcalá


94. San Luis Rey de Francia: The King of the California Missions
94. San Luis Rey de Francia: ​El Rey de las Misiones de California

95. San Antonio de Pala:
A Sub-Mission to Reach
 the Natives of the Interior
95. San Antonio de Pala:
Una Asistencia para Alcanzar los Nativos del Interior

96. San Juan Capistrano:
The Home of the Mission Swallows
 from Argentina
96. San Juan Capistrano:
El Hogar de las Golondrinas Desaparecidas ​de Argentina

97. San Gabriel Arcángel: A Mission that Launched Cities
97. San Gabriel Arcángel: Una Misión Que Lanzó Ciudades

98. El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Ángeles:
Hispanics had to be imported

98. El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Ángeles:
Hispanos tuvieron que sen importados


99. La Plaza de Cultura y Artes:
A Walk through Mexican-American History

99. La Plaza de Cultura y Artes:
Un Paseo por la historia 
​mexicoamericana


100. Strolling the Hispanic Walk of Fame
​100. Caminando por el Paseo Hispano de la Fama

101. San Fernando Rey de España Teaches
California's Colonial History

101. ​​San Fernando Rey de España Enseña
la historia colonial de California


​102. Mission San Buenaventura Survived Earthquakes and Pirates
102. Misión San Buenaventura Sobrevivió Terremotos y Piratas

​103. Father Serra Cross: On a hill,
​overlooking ​the land he shepherded

​103. La Cruz del Padre Serra: En una colina,
​con vistas a la tierra que pastoreaba


104. The Birthplace of Santa Barbara
104. El Lugar de Nacimiento de Santa Barbara

105. The Queen of the Spanish Missions
105. La Reina de las Misiones Españolas

106. Mission Santa Ines: Built to relieve other overcrowded missions
106. Misión Santa Inés: Construida para aliviar otras misiones superpobladas

107. Mission La Purísima Concepcion:
​Going back in time ​to Spanish California

107. Mision La Purísima Concepción:
Retrocediendo en ​el tiempo a la California española


XXX. Saluting an exile: ​Father Félix Varela
XXX. The Meaning of 'Sotomayor'
SPECIAL SECTIONS
• Great (pro-Hispanic) Americans
​
• 16th Century in the Hispanic American History Timeline
• 17th Century in the Hispanic American History Timeline
• 18th Century in the Hispanic American History Timeline
​
• Spanish-American expeditions before Jamestown
• NYC ​Hispanic Landmarks
• NYC Hispanic Art
• Do You Know/Sabes?
• Garita Art
​
• Do You Speak Spanglish?
HISPANIC AMERICAN HISTORY TIMELINE
​1513 Ponce de Leon Discovers North America, Names Her 'Florida'

April 22, 1513 ​Alaminos discovers the Gulf Stream

1517 De Cordoba, wounded in Yucatan, stops in Florida

1518 Grijalva Reaches Galveston Island

1519 De Pineda confirms Florida ​is not an island​

1521 Ponce de Leon Returns to Florida, Falls Mortally Wounded

1524-25 Estevan Gomez Explores North America's East Coast

1526 Ayllón lands in S.C., settles in Georgia


1528 Narváez expedition succumbs to storms and natives

1528-36 Cabeza de Vaca treks across North America

1537-42 Cabeza de Vaca Returns to Spain, Writes 'La Relación'

1539 De Niza Searches for Golden Cities of Cibola
​

1539-42 De Soto celebrates first American Christmas

1540 Hernando de Alarcon Reaches California

1540-42 Coronado Explores the Southwest,
Cardenas Discovers ​the Grand Canyon


1542-43  ​Cabrillo explores California coast​

1559 De Luna Builds Santa Maria de Ochuse​


1565 Pedro Menendez de Avilés Establishes San Agustin

1566 Santa Elena Built in South Carolina

1598 ​Juan de Oñate Explores New Mexico

1602 Sebastian Vizcaino ​explores the West Coast

1610 Pedro de Peralta establishes Santa Fe

1610-26 The Birth of San Miguel, oldest church in the U.S.A.

1613 Juan Rodriguez becomes the first Manhattan immigrant

1633 Misión San Luis de Apalachee is born in Tallahassee

​1682 San Antonio de la Ysleta becomes first mission in Texas

1691 Father Eusebio Kino builds Tumacácori and Guevavi

1692 ​Father Kino builds San Xavier del Bac 

1692 Diego de Vargas leads ​'Bloodless Reconquest" of Santa Fe

1695 Castillo de San Marcos ​Completed in St. Augustine

1718 Mission San Antonio de Valero is born
​- long before it became The Alamo
​

1738 Runaway slaves establish Fort Mose,
​the first free African-American community​


​1738 Francisco Menendez Leads Fort Mose

1742 Spanish Soldiers ​Open Fort Matanzas

1752 Spanish Soldiers Build Presidio de Tubac

1763 Spanish Florida Goes to England

1765 Juan Antonio Maria de Rivera ​explores ​Colorado and Utah
​
1769 
Father Serra opens ​San Diego de Alcalá,
California's first ​Spanish mission


1771 Father Serra establishes San Gabriel Arcángel

1772 Good hunting determines site
​of ​Misión San Luis Obispo de Tolosa


1775 Captain Hugh O’Connor
​builds Presidio San Agustin del Tucson


​1776-83 Hispanics in the American Revolution

1776 The Birth of San Francisco

1781 Spanish troops defeat the British, capture Pensacola

1781 Pobladores of Los Angeles are imported

1791 ​Alessandro Malaspina Alaska Reaches Alaska

1797 Fermín Francisco de Lasuén
Establishes Misión San Fernando Rey de España


1797 The Birth of Villa de Branciforte

Herencia Hispana Oculta de America:
La Lista de Lugares, Ideas, y Evidencia Historica para Reconectár a los Americanos con sus Raíces Hispanas

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America's Hidden Hispanic Heritage:
The Bucket List of Places, Ideas and Historical Evidence to Reconnect Americans with their  Hispanic Roots
  • HOME
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  • MY STUDENTS
  • MIGUELPEREZ.COM
  • ABOUT/SOBRE MIGUEL
  • VIDEOS WE LIKE
  • CONTACT US/CONTÁCTENOS
  • TIMELINE/CRONOLOGIA
  • THE HISPANIC AMERICAN HISTORY MUSEUM
  • THE GREAT TOUR/LA GRAN GIRA
  • CALIFORNIA ROAD TRIP
  • NYC HISPANIC LANDMARKS
  • NYC HISPANIC ART
  • ON THE ROAD AGAIN
  • EN EL CAMINO OTRA VEZ
  • OUR MEDALLIONS SAGA