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Many celebrate Italian-American heritage on this day. Columbus Day has been observed on the second Monday of October since 1971. In 1937, the occasion was declared a national holiday by President Franklin D. It was organized by the Columbian Order (Society of St.
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The first celebration of Columbus’s landing in the New World took place in 1792. Communities with large Italian American populations may hold special Columbus Day festivities. The largest celebration of Columbus Day is in New York City, which hosts a huge parade. Most banks and courthouses are closed, and though some stores will mark the occasion with promotions like “Columbus Day Savings,” many other businesses don’t bother to call out the day. cities and states as early as the 18th century, but it was named an official federal holiday in 1937. Columbus Day CelebrationsĬolumbus Day first began to be celebrated in some U.S. Since 1971 due to The Uniform Monday Holiday Act, the holiday's date has been fixed to the second Monday in October. In 1970, Columbus Day was changed to the current observation on the second Monday in October.Ĭolumbus Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October, but up until 1970 it was celebrated on October 12 to commemorate Columbus' arrival in the Americas which occurred on October 12, 1492. These patriotic teachings were framed around themes of support for war, citizenship boundaries, the importance of loyalty to the nation and celebrating social progress. During the anniversary in 1892, teachers, preachers, poets and politicians used Columbus Day rituals to teach ideals of patriotism. President Benjamin Harrison called upon the people of the United States to join together in celebration of Columbus Day on the 400th anniversary of the event. In 1792, there were celebrations in New York City and other US cities, celebrating the 300th anniversary of his landing in the New World. There are many instances of people observing Columbus’ voyage since the colonial period. In 1937, Columbus Day became a federal holiday in the United States.
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More and more people and states began to recognize Columbus Day. Colorado first observed Columbus Day in 1906 as it became an official state holiday. On his third voyage in 1498, he realized that he had not reached Asia, but instead had accidentally found a continent whose existence had been erased from the collective memory of most of Europe. Over the next eight years, Columbus made three more Transatlantic expeditions. When he returned to Europe he brought spices, gold and “Indian” captives-it is reported that he kidnapped six West Indies natives the first day he made landfall and forced them to be his servants. Columbus also spotted Cuba, which he thought was China, and then in December, he and his crew arrived Hispaniola, an island in the Caribbean, and established Spain’s first colony in the Americas. This feat made him the first European to explore the Americas since the Vikings set up colonies in Greenland and Newfoundland during the 10th century. But instead, on October 12, he landed in the Bahamas-on the island the indigenous people called Guanahani (which he renamed San Salvador Island.). His goal: to chart a lucrative western sea route to China, India, and the rumored spice islands of Asia. Columbus Day BackgroundĬhristopher Columbus set sail from the port of Palos de la Frontera, Spain, in August 1492 with backing from the Spanish monarchs King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. In addition to a state level, in many cities, the day is now celebrated as Native Americans’ Day or Indigenous People’s Day. The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq remain open on this federal holiday. Most businesses remain open and retail stores may run special sales. It is a Federal Reserve Bank holiday, so while banks may open, some transactions will not be processed.
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legal federal holidays, it is not considered a major one. Though Columbus Day is one of the 10 U.S. It has been a federal holiday since 1937 and is always celebrated on the second Monday in October: New England's best month of the year. In the United States, Columbus Day is a fall holiday that commemorates Italian explorer Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World on October 12, 1492.
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