Luis de Torres - Jewish Explorer/Interpreter
Crew member on Christopher Columbus’s 1492 voyage to the New World and also the first Jew to step foot in the Americas
Columbus also had some Jewish ancestors. Likely several other crew were Jewish as well
“Likely several other crew were Jewish as well”
Very likely, in that sailing was a Jewish profession of the time -— could not own land, but could own a ship.
There’s a great book “Jewish Pirates of the Carabbean” — being many Jewish sailors fleeing the Inquisition became pirates.