which explorer traveled to the carolinas and oklahoma and found the mississippi river
Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (c. 1495 â€“ May 21, 1542) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who led the first European expedition deep into the territory of the modern-day United States (Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama and most likely Arkansas). He is the first European documented as having crossed the Mississippi River.[4]