 'In
fourteen hundred and ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.'
If we remember nothing else about Columbus we still can hear
our entire third grade classroom repeating that line. While
Columbus may have proven that the Earth was round and definitely
larger than everyone first thought, even he underestimated its
actual size. He assumed that by traveling west he would end
up in the East Indies, the islands off Southeast Asia. Once
he landed, Columbus intended to bring the highly desirable Asian
spices and silks back to Europe.
Columbus
Day commemorates Italian navigator Christopher Columbus' landing
in the New World on October 12, 1492. Most nations of the
Americas observe this holiday on October 12, but in the United
States, annual observances take place on the second Monday
in October. The major celebration of the day takes place in
New York City, which holds a huge parade each year.
One of the first known celebrations marking the discovery
of the "New World" by Christopher Columbus was in
1792, when a ceremony organized by the Colombian Order was
held in New York City honoring Christopher Columbus and the
300th anniversary of his landing in the Bahamas. Then, on
October 12, 1866 the Italian population of New York organized
the first celebration of the discovery of America. Three years
later, in 1869 Italians in San Francisco celebrated October
12 calling it C-Day.
To mark the 400th anniversary of Columbus' voyage, in 1892,
President Benjamin Harrison made a commemorative proclamation.
But it was Colorado, in 1905 that became the first state to
observe a Columbus Day. Since 1920 the day has been celebrated
annually, and in 1937 President Franklin Roosevelt proclaimed
every October 12 as Columbus Day. That's where it remained
until 1971 when Congress declared it a federal public holiday
on the second Monday in October.
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