Father Kino - Early Southwestern Explorer 238/365

A Jesuit missionary, Father Eusebio Francisco Kino was one of the early Spanish explorers of the deserts of the American Southwest. He was born in 1645 in Italy and was assigned as a missionary to Spain’s colony in Mexico in 1678. He is recognized as a major explorer of the New World and also distinguished himself in the study of mathematics, cartography, and astronomy.


Arriving in Mexico City in the spring of 1681 he began his longtime mission to the Pima Indians in Pimeria Alta, a district comprising present-day Southern Arizona and the northern portion of the state of Sonora in Mexico.

In 1691, Father Kino made the first of about 40 expeditions into Arizona. In 1694, he was the first European to visit the Hohokam ruins of Casa Grande (now a national monument). He is also said to have explored the sources of the Rio Grande, the Colorado and Gila rivers. His explorations of the area around the mouth of the Colorado River in 1701 convinced him that Baja California was a peninsula, not an island. His 1705 map was the standard reference for the Southwestern desert region for more than a century. Among the many missions founded by Father Kino is the beautiful San Xavier del Bac near Tucson in 1700. He was frequently referred to as the Cowboy Priest since he rode horseback on his many explorations.

Father Kino died in 1711 and is buried at Mission Magdalena in Sonora.

This statue is on the grounds of the Arizona State Capitol.