1523 - New France & Acadia
--- Giovanni da Verrazzano claimed the New World on behalf of King François I of France and named the land 'Nova Gallia' ('New France'). Verrazzano also named Arcadie (Acadia). He also reported several close 'run-ins' with the Spanish who were sailing the northern waters.
1525
--- Spanish slave trader Estoban Gomez captured a number of Natives from Nova Scotia and Maine.
1534 - Jacques Cartier's 1st Voyage - Chief Donnacona
--- April 20 - Jacques Cartier's first voyage to the New World in search of a passage to Cathay (the Orient). He discovered and charted the Gulf of St. Lawrence. He met Iroquoian Chief Donnacona and kidnapped his sons in order to take them back to France as proof of the New World.
--- The name 'Canada' was born. The name ('Kanata') was first used in maps and journals by Jacques Cartier.
1535 - Jacques Cartier's 2nd Voyage - Stadacona & Hochelaga
--- May - Jacques Cartier returned to the New World with Dom Agaya and Taignoagny, the sons of Chief Donnacona whom Cartier had kidnapped in 1534. With Dom Agaya and Taignoagny as guides, Cartier sailed into the Gulf of St. Lawrence and discovered the St. Lawrence River, which would ultimately be Cartier's most significant discovery. He also discovered the Iroquoian villages of Stadacona (present-day Quebec) and Hochelaga (present-day Montreal)
1535-1536 - Jacques Cartier - Winter & Scurvy
--- Cartier was stranded in Canada over the winter and discovered a cure for scurvy. In May 1536, Cartier returned to France after having once again kidnapped Dom Agaya and Taignoagny, along with their father, Chief Donnacona.