Chicora

Chicora was a legendary Native American kingdom or tribe sought by various European explorers in present-day South Carolina during the 16th century. The legend originated after Spanish slave traders captured an Indian they called Francisco de Chicora in 1521; afterward, they came to treat Francisco’s home country as a land of abundant wealth and natural resources. The “Chicora Legend” influenced both the Spanish and the French in their attempts to colonize North America for the next 60 years.

In 1521, Spanish slavers Pedro de Quexo and Francisco Gordillo embarked on an expedition from the Caribbean to the little-explored mainland of what is now the Southeastern United States. On June 24, they sighted what is thought to be the area around the mouth of the Santee River; they named their discovery the Land of St. John the Baptist. For the next 22 days they explored the river and nearby Winyah Bay and made contact with the locals, including, they claimed, a town or people called Chicora. Ultimately, the slavers compelled around 60 Indians to board their ships and then sailed off without warning, intending to sell the captives into slavery in Hispaniola. Among the captives was an Indian who the Spanish eventually named Francisco de Chicora.[1]