Near Lyons in Rice County, Kansas — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Coronado and Quivira
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., February 20, 2012
1. Coronado and Quivira Marker
Eighty years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, Spanish explorers visited Kansas. Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, seeking gold in New Mexico, was told of Quivira by an Indian called the Turk. Here were "trees hung with golden bells and people whose pots and pans were beaten gold." With 30 picked horsemen and a Franciscan friar named Juan de Padilla, Coronado marched "north by the needle" from a point in Texas until he reached Kansas. Here he found no gold, but a country he described as "the best I have ever seen for producing all the products of Spain." The Turk confessed he had deceived the Spaniards and one night was strangled. For 25 days in the summer of 1541 Coronado remained among the grass-hut villages of the Quivaran Indians, then returned to New Mexico. Padilla went with him, but the following year came back to Quivira as a missionary. Later he was killed by the Indians, the first Christian martyr in the present United States. Near this marker is the site of one of the largest villages of the "Kingdom of Quivira."
Erected by Kansas Historical Society and State HIghway Commission. (Marker Number 68.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Indigenous Peoples and Communities
this page online
Location. Marker has been permanently removed. It was located near 38° 20.852′ N, 98° 16.57′ W. Marker was near Lyons, Kansas, in Rice County. It was at the intersection of Avenue M (U.S. 56) and 12th Road, on the left when traveling west on Avenue M. The marker is at a roadside rest area about three miles west of Lyons. Touch for map. Marker was in this post office area: Lyons KS 67554, United States of America.
We have been informed that this marker is no longer there and will not be replaced. This page is an archival view of what was.
Regionally, this marker was in Central Kansas. It was also in the American Midwest, in the Corn Belt, on the prairies, on the Southern Plains, and on the Santa Fe Trail Corridor. Globally, it was in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it found itself in what was once the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 8 miles of this location, measured as the crow flies: The Land of Quivira (here, next to this marker); Cow Creek Station (here, next to this marker); Fray Juan de Padilla (within shouting distance of this marker); Rice County Historical Mural (approx. 3.9 miles away); Civil War and Veterans Memorial (approx. 3.9 miles away); Workman Park (approx. 4.1 miles away); Santa Fe Trail
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., February 20, 2012
2. Coronado and Quivira Marker
At far left distance of photo.
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. To better understand the relationship, study each marker in the order shown.
Also see . . .
1. The Kingdom of Quivira. (Submitted on March 8, 2012, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
2. The Journey of Coronado, 1540-1542. (Submitted on March 8, 2012, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
Credits. This page was last revised on May 1, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 8, 2012, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 1,442 times since then and 71 times this year. Last updated on April 26, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 8, 2012, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
