Esteban: Sixteenth-Century African Explorer of North America

The documents in this collection introduce the story of Esteban, one of the first people of African descent to visit what today is the United States. Students will engage with a wide range of primary sources, constructing an argument based on the central question: What do descriptions of Esteban's explorations tell us about slavery, race, and first encounters in sixteenth-century North America? Given the limited nature of these sources, what can we never know? Students are guided in their analyses of the documents by a learning objective, central question, historical background, source headnotes, source questions, project questions and suggestions for further research. Through their work with these sources, they will gain a deeper awareness of the diversity of the American experience, a more complete understanding of the present in an historically-based context, an enhanced ability to read, interpret, assess, and contextualize primary sources, and practice explaining historical change over time.