In 1540, Francisco Vásquez de Coronado led a Spanish expedition into the American Southwest in search of the legendary Seven Cities of Gold. His journey took him through present-day Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and as far as Kansas and the Grand Canyon. Although Coronado did not find the riches he sought, his explorations significantly contributed to European knowledge of the geography and indigenous cultures of North America. This expedition marked a critical moment in the Spanish colonization of the Americas.

Francisco Vásquez de Coronado's exploration of the American Southwest in 1540 sparked a wealth of poetic imagination surrounding the mythical El Dorado. Poets like Walt Whitman later drew on these themes, celebrating the vast and sublime landscapes that defined the American frontier experience.