1500s
1500–1599The first Africans reach the land that becomes the United States — and the first acts of resistance.
Zoom in — decades
Key events
- August 1526· debatedFirst enslaved Africans in what is now the US
Spanish colonists bring enslaved Africans to San Miguel de Gualdape on the present-day Carolina/Georgia coast — decades before 1619.
- November 1526· debatedThe first slave rebellion on US soil
The enslaved Africans at Gualdape revolt and flee to nearby Indigenous communities; the Spanish settlement collapses.
- September 8, 1565Africans among the founders of St. Augustine
Free and enslaved Africans are part of the Spanish expedition that founds St. Augustine — the oldest continuous European settlement in what is now the US.