University Notes: Exhaustive Guide to Pre-Columbian Exploration and Historical Mythology

Introduction to American History and the Problem of Portraits

• The Course Scope: The class covers United States history from prehistory up to the year $1877$. The instructor is Dr. Cody H. Smith.

• The Columbus Mystery: Students are often asked to identify famous explorers. Portraits of Christopher Columbus are frequently used as examples, yet three common portraits look entirely different from one another.

  • One resembles actor Javier Bardem.

  • One resembles singers Michael Bolton or Sting.

  • One resembles actor Dean Norris.

• Identity Conclusion: There are no recorded descriptions or evidence of what Christopher Columbus actually looked like. Every statue and portrait—including those used by the History Channel or the Columbus brand of deli meats—is simply an artist's best guess. While cities like Columbus, Ohio, and Columbus, South Carolina, honor him with statues, the likenesses are purely speculative.

• Columbus Day Changes: While it has long been a dedicated holiday, as of $2017$, the state of Utah has replaced Columbus Day with Native Americans Day.

Debunking the Flat Earth Myth and Washington Irving

• The Myth: Schoolchildren are taught via rhyme (“In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue”) that Columbus intended to prove the world was round and find a trade route to India.

• The Reality of Roundness: In $1492$, scholars and royals already knew the Earth was round.

  • Aristotle had proven the curvature of the Earth approximately $1,800$ years prior to Columbus's voyage.

  • Evidence: The first known globe, produced by Germans in $1492$, exists today as proof that the spherical shape of the Earth was common knowledge (though it lacked the Americas).

  • If Columbus had proposed proving the Earth's shape to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, he would have been laughed out of court.

• The Source of Misinformation: Washington Irving ($1783–1859$), a famous American author, is responsible for this widespread myth.

  • Literary Context: In the $1800s$, books and theater were the primary forms of entertainment. Irving was the most popular entertainer of his day.

  • Irving's Famous Works: The Knickerbocker Tales (which inspired the name of the New York Knicks NBA team), Rip Van Winkle, and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

  • The Columbus Biography: Irving wrote a four-volume autobiography titled A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus. In it, he took “artistic license,” creating the narrative that Columbus fought a battle against peers who believed the Earth was flat. Because Irving was highly respected, teachers and the general public accepted his fiction as historical fact.

The Liberty Valance Effect and Legacies

• The Concept: Named after the $1962$ John Ford film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, starring James Stewart and John Wayne.

• The Core Quote: “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”

• Meaning: People often prefer a compelling story (the legend) over the truth once the legend has been repeated enough to be ingrained in society.

• Legacy Shaping: Public figures (athletes, politicians, musicians) often try to manage their “legacy.” Dr. Smith argues that a legacy is ultimately decided by others based on a person's actions, and individual attempts to shape it are often self-serving.

• Modern Case Study: Barry Bonds ($2005$):

  • Barry Bonds is the MLB home run record holder but is tainted by steroid accusations (though federal convictions were thrown out).

  • Dr. Smith observed a press conference where Bonds remained calm and collected for $58$ minutes while answering repetitive, antagonistic media questions.

  • In the final $2$ minutes, Bonds grew angry and cursed at the media.

  • ESPN/SportsCenter only aired those final $2$ minutes, effectively shaping his legacy as “an asshole” while ignoring the nearly hour-long composure he maintained. This illustrates how media and history can manipulate truth to fit a preferred narrative.

Pre-Columbian Presence and Geography

• Oceans as Highways: While modern people see oceans as barriers requiring flights or cruises, prehistoric people viewed water as a highway to the unknown. Curiosity is a constant of human nature.

• The Blue People of Appalachia: An example of isolation found in Kentucky and West Virginia. Due to extreme geographic isolation in the mountains, certain families engaged in inbreeding and were exposed to specific chemicals/mutations, resulting in the “Blue People.” They possess pale blue skin and represent the opposite of the mobile seafaring cultures.

• The Bering Strait Land Bridge Theory: This remains the most prominent academic theory. Driven by the last Ice Age ($14,000–16,000$ years ago), ocean levels dropped $450$ to $500$ feet, exposing land between Asia and North America. Humans followed mammoth and deer herds across this bridge.

The Columbian Exchange

• Definition: The massive global exchange of plants, animals, culture, and diseases between the Eastern and Western hemispheres following Columbus's arrival.

• American Contributions (Sent to Europe/Asia):

  • Tomatoes (staple of Italian food that did not exist in Italy before Columbus).

  • Potatoes (became a staple for Ireland).

  • Chilies (essential for Thai and Indian food today, but previously unavailable).

  • Chocolate/Cacao (Switzerland had no chocolate before Columbus).

  • Animals: Turkeys, llamas, and hamsters.

  • The Hamster Story: Dr. Smith recounts a childhood story of a psychopathic friend who microwaved his pet hamsters to demonstrate they would “liquefy” and explode, highlighting the importance of choosing friends wisely.

• European/Eastern Contributions (Sent to Americas):

  • Wheat (the US Midwest became a “breadbasket” for a crop not native to the land).

  • Sugar cane (Hawaii and the Caribbean).

  • Oranges (Florida).

  • Animals: Cattle, pigs, and horses. Horses changed Native American history so deeply that many tribes claim they always had them, an example of the Liberty Valance effect in oral tradition.

• Disease Impact: Pre-Columbian Native American population is estimated at $80–100$ million. They had advanced trade networks and civilizations. Between Columbus ($1492$) and the founding of Jamestown ($1607$), approximately $98\%$ of the population perished.

  • Diseases brought by Europeans: Smallpox, flu, typhus, and measles.

  • Disease sent back to Europe: Syphilis.

The Chinese Theory: Zheng He ($1421$)

• The Emperor: Zhu Di (“Judy”), Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

• The Admiral: Zheng He (“Zhang Ha”), a Muslim eunuch and former general.

  • Eunuchs: Traditionally used to guard queens and princesses to ensure no dilution of royal bloodlines.

  • Zheng He's name roughly means “victory at Junk.”

• The Fleet: Massive ships called “Chinese Junks.”

  • Dimensions: Some were $400\text{ feet}$ long with watertight bulkheads and could house $500$ men/$1,500$ tons of cargo.

  • Comparison: Columbus’s largest ship was tiny compared to a standard Junk. Zheng He commanded hundreds or thousands of them.

• Distance Evidence: Zheng He's journal entries mention traversing $100,000\text{ Li}$ ($30,000\text{ miles}$), the distance from China to Florida and back.

• Geographic Evidence:

  • Bimini Islands: Off the coast of the Bahamas, there is a stone formation in a fishhook shape. A $400\text{-foot}$ ship fits snugly into it; believers argue it was a dry-dock “boat slip.”

  • 1776 Map: Discovered in a library in $2010$. The mapmaker claims it is a direct copy of a world map created by Zheng He in $1418$. It shows accurate outlines of the Americas and indicates the Chinese may have navigated the Arctic.

The Welsh Theory: Prince Madoc ($1170\text{ AD}$)

• History: Prince Madoc (or Matic) reportedly left North Wales to find his own kingdom across the sea.

• Political Use: Queen Elizabeth I of England promoted this story in the $1500s$ to challenge Spanish claims to the Americas by asserting the English (via the Welsh) were there first.

• Vessel: A Saxon-style clinker-built boat (watertight, overlapping wood panels).

• Alabama Connection: A plaque (since removed) was once placed in Mobile Bay, Alabama, by the Daughters of the American Revolution to honor Madoc's landing.

• The Welsh Caves: Located in DeSoto Falls on the Alabama/Georgia border. Local legend says Madoc built a fortress there to match his castle in Wales.

• The Mandan Connection:

  • The Cherokee tell of “blond-haired, moon-eyed people” who built fortifications at Fort Mountain, Georgia.

  • In $1833$, an artist painted the Mandan Indians and was shocked by their European/Welsh features (skin tone, blue eyes).

  • The Mandan word for house is “ti,” identical to the Welsh word “ti.”

  • The Mandan were wiped out by smallpox in $1837$ before modern DNA testing could verify these claims.

The Polynesian Theory ($1000\text{ AD}$)

• Seafaring Dominance: The Polynesians settled $7\text{ million square miles}$ of the Pacific (an area larger than Russia).

• Vessel: The Tepukei (double-hulled, $60\text{ feet}$ long, crab-claw sails, and $1,500\text{ feet}$ of coconut-fiber rope).

• The Chicken Debate:

  • Polynesians introduced chickens to the Americas.

  • DNA testing of chicken bones found in South America (dated to $1300–1400\text{ AD}$) identifies them as Polynesian, not European.

• The Sweet Potato Connection:

  • The Polynesian word for sweet potato is Kumara.

  • This is not a Polynesian word; it is the word used by the Quechua-speaking people of Ecuador.

  • A fringe theory suggests sweet potatoes floated across the ocean with “curses” carved into them, but most believe direct contact/trade back and forth across the Pacific occurred.

• Skeletal Evidence ($2010$): An earthquake off Chile unearthed skulls with “rocker jaws” and pentagonal dome shapes—unique Polynesian traits—dated to $1100\text{ AD}$.

• Thor Heyerdahl: Attempted to prove the reverse (that South Americans settled Polynesia) with the Kon-Tiki raft. While he proved the voyage was possible, archeological evidence primarily supports the Polynesians visiting America.

The Scandinavian Theory ($1000\text{ AD}$)

• Explorers: Leif Erikson, son of Erik the Red. Erik the Red founded settlements in Iceland (green) and Greenland (full of ice).

• Viking Horns Myth: Vikings did not wear horns on their helmets. This was a Liberty Valance effect caused by the $19\text{th-century}$ German opera Flight of the Valkyries.

• Vessel: The Knarr ($50–60\text{ feet}$, carried $20\text{ tons}$ of cargo).

• Evidence in North America:

  • L'Anse aux Meadows: A confirmed Norse settlement in Newfoundland, Canada (“New Found Land”).

  • Butternut Walnuts: Found at L'Anse aux Meadows, but they only grow near the US/Canada border, proving the Norse traveled further south.

  • Maine Penny: A Norwegian coin from $1050\text{ AD}$ found in Brooklyn, Maine.

• Kensington Runestone ($1362\text{ AD}$): Found in Minnesota in $1898$ by Olof Ohman.

  • The stone describes a party of $8\text{ Goths}$ (Germanic) and $22\text{ Norwegians}$ on an expedition far west of Vinland.

  • Ohman was accused of forgery, but modern microscopic weathering tests on the etchings and root-stain analysis suggest the stone was buried for at least $200–300\text{ years}$ before he found it.

The Irish Theory: St. Brendan ($530\text{ AD}$)

• St. Brendan the Navigator: A Catholic priest believed to have reached Greenland and possibly Florida/Connecticut while spreading Christianity.

• Vessel: The Currach (a skin-boat made of leather/cowhide stretched over a wood frame, waterproofed with butter).

• Evidence in New England:

  • Gungywamp, Connecticut: Stone structures featuring a small hole to illuminate the room during the equinox, a design specific to certain Irish churches from the $400\text{s–500s AD}$.

  • Chi-Rho Symbol: Found etched in rocks near these structures; the Chi-Rho is the first two letters of Christ in Latin and was popularized by Emperor Constantine.

  • Ogham Writing: A type of dashed Irish “code” writing has been found in caves. Critics claim it is Algonquin writing, but scholars of both languages find different meanings in the same marks.

Miscellaneous Exploration Theories

• Hui Shen ($455\text{ AD}$): A Buddhist monk who sailed from China to “foo song” (believed to be Mexico). He traveled roughly $20,000\text{ Li}$ using the clockwise North Pacific current ($270\text{ day}$ trip).

  • Evidence: Potential Chinese stone anchors found in California (though sea urchins or later Chinese settlers could have created them).

  • Vessel: May have used an Arab Dhow, which features lateen sails and could be operated by one person.

• The Lost Tribe of Israel ($600–700\text{ BC}$): Postulates an Israelite tribe escaped the Babylonian or Assyrian captivity using Roman-style ships (sturdy, square-sailed, slow).

  • The Central Band of Cherokee: Claims Jewish ancestry.

  • DNA Evidence: Testing of nearly $100$ members showed they had $0\%$ Asian (Native American) DNA and were $94\%$ European. They showed only $3\%$ Jewish markers, which is below the threshold for concluding Semitic descent according to Dr. Smith.

• The Solutrean Theory ($22,000\text{ BC}$): Proposes that European hunters from France and Spain crossed the Atlantic ice shelf during the last Ice Age.

  • Evidence: A Smithsonian-led dig in Virginia found a Mastodon skeleton with a spearhead dating to $22,000\text{ BC}$.

  • Technology: The spearhead uses “fluting” or a “blood gutter.” This technology is found in European Solutrean sites but is absent in Asian/Siberian technology trees from that era.

  • This suggests that European and Asian populations may have met at Clovis, New Mexico, to create a hybridized “new” American race.