Timeline Description: Amerigo Vespucci was an Italian explorer. America was named after him because he was the first person to say that the new world wasn't the West Indies, but a new country. This is a timeline of his life.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1454 | Amerigo Vespucci is born Amerigo was born in Florence, Italy. |
| 1478 | He travels to France with his uncle Amerigo traveled to France with his uncle, who trained and educated him. He was preparing for a career in business. |
| 1492 | Amerigo travels to Spain Amerigo went to Spain so he could help prepare ships to sail. He helped prepare Columbus' ships to sail toward the New World. |
| 1499 | He sails on a voyage to the New World After working for several years with the ships, Amerigo was able to go on his own journey. He sailed with 4 ships to South America, and it was a time when the sailors thought they were sailing to the West Indies off of Asia. |
| 1501 | A journey to Brazil and Argentina Amerigo returned to Spain, and then he went to work for Portugal. He sailed back to South America and explored Brazil and Argentina. |
| 1501 | Amerigo guesses the size of the world Amerigo began to suspect that this new land wasn't the West Indies like everyone else thought. He suggested the world was much bigger than everyone thought. |
| 1502 | Vespucci names the stars in the sky On his way home from the Americas, Amerigo studied the constellations and named a few. He named the Southern Cross, and others. |
| 1502 | The Americas are named in his honor When Amerigo returned to Portugal, he told every one of his beliefs. He said they had found a new continent between Europe and Asia, and so the new land was named after him-America. |
| 1503 | Amerigo's travels are published A pamphlet was put out describing Amerigo's travels in Brazil. |
| 1507 | False accounts almost damage Vespucci's name A forged letter began circulating that claimed Vespucci discovered the Americas in 1487, before Christopher Columbus. Today we know this letter was probably not true. |
| 1508 | Vespucci becomes chief navigator Spain created a new position for Amerigo. They made him the chief navigator for all of their future voyages. |
| 1512 | Amerigo Vespucci dies Amerigo died of malaria. He was a brave and intelligent explorer, and Americans everywhere owe him their name. |
| 1538 | The first world map is drawn A mapmaker in Germany had heard about Vespucci's discoveries. He made a world map that included North and South America. |
| 1931 | An Italian ship was built in his honor Italy built a ship called the Amerigo Vespucci in honor of the Italian explorer. They also built a ship in honor of Christopher Columbus. |
| 2012 | A coin is minted in his honor In 2012 a silver coin was minted in memorial of Amerigo Vespucci and his travels. |