To the most esteemed Casa de Contratación de Indias

I am pleased to report that recent developments in the colony have propelled the settlement to grow well ahead schedule. The recent arrival of settlers and specialists from Sebastian de Ocampo’s voyage have allowed us to broaden our horizons. From a fortified village, the influx of settlers have allowed us to extend our perimeter. From a small village of wooden houses and palisades, now we can comfortably say we have graduated to become a town similar to that of our homeland. A piece of Castille hundreds of leagues from home. With more laborers to work with, I ordered up the construction of a kiln and furnace for brick production and a quarry a short distance away from the settlement to gather up stone in order to improve our construction.

However I must thank our friendship with the cacique Kiptopeke, for his hospitality was key for this settlement to thrive in the first place. Respecting his territory and his people allowed us to live in relative safety. Hence why I have been reeling my men in from disrespecting the cacique. I hope that in the near future, he may became a loyal vassal of Castille of which he will be rewarded wholeheartedly.

Nevertheless, the focus of this year will be ensuring we can gather a good harvest, extend our farms, cattle fields and plantations to gather up a good regular harvest where we can reliably supply ourselves and not requisition supplies from Santo Domingo or Seville for our survival, as well as develop a profitable enterprise for the colony to thrive and fulfill their duties to the Crown. This i believe the aforementioned Tobacco plant, a resource the locals have been obsessed with, I believe could be a lucrative cash crop which our colony can export in large quantities to Seville. Fortunately for us, our aforementioned settlers brought their slaves with them and thus I took it as Adelantado to commission Encomiendas across our currently occupied territory. I will encourage the production of this crop, and I soon hope for our first export of tobacco to Castille to arrive relatively soon.

In the meantime, as our food production expands, I request additional tools, construction materials, specialists and settlers and supplies to continue expanding the territory. With the rapid growth of the colony and it’s complexity I will request skilled clerks and bureaucrats for my town hall to better administer the settlement.

-Adelantado de Cabo de San Brendan Lucas Vázquez de Ayllon