Mississippi Valley Educational Programs

www.mvep.org          Phone – 870-588-4830/1406

 

Arkansas– Hernado de Soto in Arkansas circa 1541-1543

 

General Sources:

 

**The De Soto Chronicles: The Expedition of Hernando de Soto to North America in 1539-1543.  Volumes 1 & 2.  Edited by Clayton, Knight, and Moore.  Tuscaloosa, AL:  The University of Alabama Press, 1993.  This set includes all four original accounts, plus other documents and an exhaustive bibliography of de Soto research up to 1993.

 

*First Encounters: Native Americans and Europeans in the Mississippi Valley.  CD-ROM (Windows 95/98/NT/2000) issued by the Arkansas Archeological Society in 2000.  Edited by George Sabo.  Available from the Society.   This CD is a self-teaching tool with over 2,500 information and activity screens with an extensive collection of historical texts, maps, art works, and artifact images.  This also covers the French expeditions of the 17th and 18th Centuries. 

 

**“De Soto and the Law” by Samuel Dorris Dickerson as published in The Arkansas Historical Quarterly Volume XLIX No. 4 Winter 1990.   An interesting survey of 16th Century Spanish law and customs of war that applied to the expedition.  By the standards of the time, Soto was very scrupulous in following the law according to this article.

 

Hernando de Soto and the Kingdoms of the Sun by Charles Hudson.  Dr. Hudson is one of the pre-eminient Soto scholars, and his redrawn route is generally accepted today.

 

Archeology/Native Americans prior to 1539

 

*The Arkansas Archeological Society prints a number of short papers on the de Soto expedition, the Mississippians, Quapaw, and Caddo tribes that are useful background.  Contact the Society for copies or pick them up at any Arkansas Archeological Research Station.

 

“Arkansas Spanish Halberds” by Sam Dickinson as published in The Arkansas Archeologist Vol. 25, 26 (1987)

 

**“Investigations of the Possible Remains of De Soto’s Cross at Parkin” by Jeffrey Mitchem as published in The Arkansas Archeologist, Vol. 35 (1996)  This is a must have source for the basics of de Soto in Arkansas information.

 

**Paths of our Children: Historic Indians of Arkansas by George Sabo III.  Arkansas Archeological Survey Popular Series 3, 1992.

 

Costume, Dress, and Material Culture

 

Hispanic Costume 1480-1530 by Ruth Matilda Anderson.  New York:  The Hispanic Society of America, 1979.  This work describes not only the costume, but the complex culture, society, and manners of the 15th to 16th Century Spain and is an invaluable resource for understanding the unique contributions of Spain during this period.

 

Authentic Everyday Dress of the Renaissance:  All 154 plates from the Trachtenbuch by Christoph Weiditz.  New York: Dover Publications, Inc. 1994.  A reprint of a 1529-1531 costume book by one of the leading engravers and illustrators of the day, it covers Spanish soldiers, peasants, slaves, nobles, and priests in great detail.

 

 

 

** items marked with the double star are highly recommended as read ahead materials for instructors and teachers on the Soto expedition.

 

* items are highly recommended for students.