1513 - Juan Ponce de Leon first sighted the Florida peninsula on this date, although he would not go ashore until April 2. The peninsula was sighted and mistaken for an island, which Ponce de Leon named “La Florida.” Ponce, who was most recently the Governor of Puerto Rico, set sail from that island on March 4^th with three ships and approximately 200 men heading north towards an unknown landmass referred to as Biminy.