October 12
Columbus Day
Cristoforo Colombo or Crostóbal Colón discovered America when he was seeking a westward route to India. To his dying day, the master mariner and navigator believed he had achieved his quest, and denied discovering a new continent. While Columbus was not the first European to encounter America, he did achieve what no known previous explorer had: he sailed directly across the uncharted sea, without staying in sight of land, navigating by the stars.
It would be a decade before Europeans realized that the lands Columbus had reached were not part of Asia but an entirely different continent. This was due to astronomical observations made by Amerigo Vespucci off the coast of South America.
In light of Vespucci's calculations, Columbus' own denials, and the earlier voyage of Leif Ericsson, the achievement of the 1492 expedition is sometimes erroneously dismissed as insignificant. But it is important to remember that without the voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vespucci would have had no opportunity to conclude a "new continent" had been discovered, and the Americas would not have been opened to European incursion -- for good or for ill -- at that time in history. The development of American civilization, and perhaps even world civilization, could therefore have proceeded along entirely different lines.
Cristoforo Colombo or Crostóbal Colón discovered America when he was seeking a westward route to India. To his dying day, the master mariner and navigator believed he had achieved his quest, and denied discovering a new continent. While Columbus was not the first European to encounter America, he did achieve what no known previous explorer had: he sailed directly across the uncharted sea, without staying in sight of land, navigating by the stars.
It would be a decade before Europeans realized that the lands Columbus had reached were not part of Asia but an entirely different continent. This was due to astronomical observations made by Amerigo Vespucci off the coast of South America.
In light of Vespucci's calculations, Columbus' own denials, and the earlier voyage of Leif Ericsson, the achievement of the 1492 expedition is sometimes erroneously dismissed as insignificant. But it is important to remember that without the voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vespucci would have had no opportunity to conclude a "new continent" had been discovered, and the Americas would not have been opened to European incursion -- for good or for ill -- at that time in history. The development of American civilization, and perhaps even world civilization, could therefore have proceeded along entirely different lines.
The first recorded celebration honoring the discovery of America by Europeans took place on October 12, 1792 in New York City. The event, which celebrated the 300th anniversary of Columbus' landing in the New World, was organized by The Society of St. Tammany (also known as the Columbian Order).
San Francisco's Italian community held their first Columbus Day celebration in 1869. In 1892, President Benjamin Harrison urged citizens to participate in the the 400th anniversary celebration of Columbus' first voyage. It was during this event that the Pledge of Allegiance, written by Francis Bellamy, was recited publically for the first time.
Colorado was the first state to observe the holiday in 1905.
In 1937, President Roosevelt proclaimed October 12 as "Columbus Day" and in 1971, President Nixon declared the second Monday of October a national holiday.
See more information http://www.memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/oct12.html
www.loc.gov/exhibits/1492/columbus.html
www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/columbus
www.usemb.se/Holidays/celebrate/Columbus.html
San Francisco's Italian community held their first Columbus Day celebration in 1869. In 1892, President Benjamin Harrison urged citizens to participate in the the 400th anniversary celebration of Columbus' first voyage. It was during this event that the Pledge of Allegiance, written by Francis Bellamy, was recited publically for the first time.
Colorado was the first state to observe the holiday in 1905.
In 1937, President Roosevelt proclaimed October 12 as "Columbus Day" and in 1971, President Nixon declared the second Monday of October a national holiday.
See more information http://www.memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/oct12.html
www.loc.gov/exhibits/1492/columbus.html
www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/columbus
www.usemb.se/Holidays/celebrate/Columbus.html
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