A Short History of Corn A Short History of Corn Corn is a member of the grass family of plants.
Corn is a native grain of the American continents.
Fossils of corn pollen that are over 80,000 years old have been found in lake sediment beneath Mexico City. Indians more than 5,600 years ago. These three plants were important sources of food. By the time Christopher Columbus reached the New World in 1492, corn was being grown from what is now Southern Canada to the Andes Mountains in South America. When Columbus landed in the West Indies, he was given corn by the Native Americans, which he took back to Spain.