In early 1562 French explorer Jean Ribault was sent to explore the American coast to locate a site for a colony to serve as a place of refuge for French Protestants (Huguenots). In May he found himself at the mouth of the St. John’s River, made contact with local Timucuan tribe, and erected a stone column to serve as France’s claim to the American coastline. The first European colony in America was starting to take shape.
The French colony’s existence was brief. After a few tumultuous years the inevitable run-in with the Spanish took place and Ribault was executed along with many other French colonists. The Spanish would start their own colony at Saint Augustine and the rest, as they say, is history.
Both the Huguenots and Spanish lay claim to European colonization several years earlier than Plymouth, Mass. A replica of Ribault’s column stands at the Fort Caroline National Memorial.