Front:
Explorer of
California
29
DIEGO
I542
SEP
28
1992
92199
Juan Rodríguez
CABRILLO
CA
SAN
Back:
JUAN RODRIGUEZ CABRILLO
First Day of Issue: September 28, 1992
First Issue Location: San Diego, California
Little is known of Juan Cabrillo's early life. It is believed
he was born in Portugal, and as a young man may have
participated in Panfilo de Narvaez's failed disciplinary
expedition against Hernan Cortes, conqueror of the Az-
tecs of Mexico. Some sources speculate that Cabrillo later
joined Pedro de Alvarado and helped to conquer the
region now occupied by Guatemala, El Salvador and
Nicaragua. Hoping to find cities filled with gold and a
water passage between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans,
Cabrillo set sail in 1542 from New Spain — present day
Mexico — to explore the Pacific coast of North America.
The first European to set eyes on the California coastline,
Cabrillo sailed to San Diego and San Pedro harbors, Santa
Catalina island, the islands of the Santa Barbara Channel
and Monterey Bay. He sailed as far north as Point Reyes,
but missed the San Francisco bay area. Cabrillo moved
south to winter on San Miguel Island, and died in early
1543 from injuries suffered in a fall.
No. 92-120
First Day of Issue Postcard Collection
©1992 Fleetwood® Cheyenne, WY 82008-0001
Original painting for the First Day of Issue Postcard by Dennis Lyall
Heetwood
