Spanish

History of Time Period

The Spanish history of this area of Florida goes back 447 years. Panfilo de Narvaez, Spanish explorer, led his party into the Tallahassee area in 1528. They camped on the Wakulla River near St. Marks, built crude ships, and set forth on a fateful trip to Mexico. The entire sea-going party was lost in a storm; however, others reached Mexico by land and recorded the events of history.

In 1539, Hernando DeSoto came through this area in his search for gold spending the winter here on the shores of Lake Jackson. During that next 100 years the Spanish explorers in St. Augustine became familiar with the Apalachee region and began trade with the agriculturally efficient Indians here.

In 1639 the Spanish established a chain of missions to both Christianize the Indians and to protect them from the more warlike tribes to the north. For this protection the Indians supplied food to the Spanish. This trade arrangement was highly successful until Col. James Moore came through here destroying the missions, burning the villages, killing the braves and taking women and children as slaves. Thus the Apalachee area was deserted for more than 100 years.

Spanish Krewe Chief- LeAnn Bunton

LeAnn Bunton has been a proud resident of Tallahassee, FL since 1996. She left her home state of Michigan at age 19 and never looked back after moving to Florida.  LeAnn has 2 children, a son, who is a successful mechanic and a daughter who is currently a junior at Florida State University, both reside in Tallahassee.

Professionally, LeAnn has been active as a licensed Realtor since 2005 and continues to pursue real estate leads.  LeAnn most recently began working with Senator Corey Simon as a Legislative Aide in the Florida Senate, after working with the House of Representatives last year.

Springtime Tallahassee holds a special place in LeAnn’s heart.  She has been a member since 2015 and currently serves as the Spanish Krewe Chief.  Springtime has provided LeAnn with a valuable platform for networking and growth by enriching her personal and professional life through the relationships she’s created with Springtime members.