Route of the Hernando DeSoto expedition, 1539-1543
National Park Service. 1988. Route of the Hernando DeSoto expedition, 1539-1543. National Park Service, Department of the Interior
This is a preliminary report that describes the DeSoto National Trail Study and provides an analysis of alternatives for trail commemoration. The DeSoto National Trail Act of 1987 directed the National Park Service to conduct a feasibility study of the approximate route traveled by Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto and provide recommendations to Congress as to its suitability for designation as a national historic trail. This preliminary report prepared by the Southeast Regional Office of the National Park Service, assisted by the Southwest Regional Office, describes the study and provides an analysis of alternatives for trail commemoration. As a result of the DeSoto Trail Study, the National Park Service had determined that the route of the expedition fails to meet all of the criteria for national historic trail designation. Although the expedition is of national significance and had potential for historic interpretation, the route is lacking in the area of integrity and historic use. In view of these findings, several alternatives to national historic trail designation have been analyzed including completion of the highway marking effort initiated in 1985 by the state of Florida and the enactment of special Federal legislation to formally commemorate the expedition.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- National Park Service
- Date of Issue
- 1988-12
- Publisher
- National Park Service, Department of the Interior
- Units
- DESO , HIST
- Keywords
- Cultural Resources, DeSoto National Memorial, ehistory, Expedition Route, Hernando DeSoto, History, National Trails System Act, Trail Management, Trail Reconstruction