A Look at Columbus Day

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue and landed in the New World on October 12th. Of course, he still hoped that he'd made it to India for a new trade route, and he called the people he found "Indians." In the United States, we now celebrate this day on the second Monday in October. Ironically, this also marks National Native Americans' Day. But then, perhaps it's appropriate that we celebrate both on the same day.

Although Columbus hadn't found a new trade route to Asia, he did find more land for the Europeans to explore and settle, a mixed blessing depending on your ancestry and perspective. He certainly hadn't had an easy time getting here. First, he had a difficult time finding monarchs who would finance his venture. It took years of going between different courts before Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain agreed to furnish the ships and supplies (also see blog of April 30, 2015). And then, the voyage had been much longer and harder than he'd envisioned, and his crew was about ready to mutiny. They had sailed so far that many of them felt sure they were about to sail off the edge of the flat world and be gobbled up by the monsters there.

Christopher Columbus had been born in Genoa, Italy, in 1450 or 51. He became interested in sailing and navigation, as many Italians did. He made several trips to the New World, after his first one, but his later life was also plagued with controversy and adversity. He fell out of favor and developed an uncertain sickness that took its toll. He died on May 20, 1506. However, despite all the problems, he made a name for himself and is still in our history books today.

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