Juan de Padilla

Padilla and three other Franciscans, together with more than 300 Spanish soldiers and workers, accompanied Coronado on his quest for the Seven Cities of Gold, a mythical land of great wealth.

One year later, the missionary priest returned to Kansas to preach to the Wichita, and establish the first Christian mission in the present-day United States.

[5] cf In 1950, the Knights of Columbus erected a commemorative cross dedicated to Padilla near Lyons, Kansas.

The symbol on the Cross is inscribed, Jesus Christ, Victor, and expresses the victory of faith and sacrifice.

Erected 1950.In the 1976 album Leftoverture by the American rock group Kansas, the first movement of Magnum Opus is entitled "Father Padilla Meets the Perfect Gnat".