Juan Ponce de León {1460-1521} began his career of exploration in 1493 as a member of Christopher Columbus's second expedition to the Americas. In 1508 he explored and settled Puerto Rico, founding the island's oldest European settlement, Caparra, near what is now San Juan. Ponce de León served as the first governor of the island, where he remained until 1513. That year he sailed from Puerto Rico to discover Florida.