Arawak and Carib groups lived in coastal areas of present-day Suriname and along the Marowijne River from at least 3000 BC. The forested interior was home to other Amerindians including the Acurio, Trio and Warau. Christopher Columbus explored the coast in 1498, followed by Amerigo Vespucci and Alonso de Ojeda the next year. Spanish and Dutch seafarers attempted to establish settlements, but the first documented community was at Marshall’s Creek, founded by British Puritans in 1630.