Chicora

Chicora was the name given by Spanish explorers to a country on the Atlantic coast of the Carolinas, near the Santee River and Winyah Bay. The river mouths, marshes and forested lowlands were home to Indigenous communities. Accounts of their land reached Europe through the words of a captive and grew into a legend of riches that attracted would-be colonists.

In 1521 the Spanish slavers Pedro de Quexo and Francisco Gordillo explored the coast and seized about sixty people, carrying them toward Hispaniola. One captive became known as Francisco de Chicora and served Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón after learning Spanish. Ayllón sought permission to settle the country, promoting exaggerated accounts of its wealth. Stories of Chicora influenced Spanish and French colonial ambitions for decades.