 European exploration of the area began in the 16th century.In 1516 Diego Miruelo may have been the first European to sail into Pensacola Bay.Members of the expeditions of Pánfilo de Narváez in 1528 and Hernando de Soto in 1539 visited the bay, during the latter of which Francisco Maldonado recorded its name as the Bay of Ochuse, related to the Indian province.