PUNTA GORDA — Five hundred years after Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon first set foot on the shores of Charlotte Harbor, an event to commemorate that anniversary finally may put this area on the map.

That’s because the Ponce de Leon Festival set for March 23-24, at Laishley Park will be aimed at spreading awareness of that history, and that could lead to more events and tourist attractions in the decades to come, said Jack Gray, festival coordinator.