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Word of the Week explore — to transverse or range over a region
Newspaper Knowledge What is Columbus Day all about? Celebrated the second Monday of October, Columbus Day is day set aside to commemorate Christopher Columbus's discovery of the Americas on October 12, 1492. It is also a day to celebrate the role Italian immigrants have played in making the United States great. Columbus Day is a legal holiday in the United States. Schools, government offices, post offices, and banks are closed. Some businesses are also closed. Others stay open. Virtually all stores are open on Columbus Day, and many hold special sales. Countries in North and South America remember Columbus's discovery in different ways. October 12 is celebrated as "Discovery Day" in the Bahamas. It is celebrated as Día de la Raza (Day of the Race) in many parts of Latin America. It is celebrated as Día de la Resistencia Indígena (Day of the Indigenous Resistance) in Venezuela.
The Bookshelf
Christopher Columbus
Who was Christopher Columbus? Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, in 1451. He was born into what most would consider a middle class family. But like most children of the era, he was expected to begin preparing for a career at an early age. In his later writings, Columbus claimed he first went to sea at the age of 10. In 1470, following a shipwreck off the coast of Portugal, Columbus took up residence in that country. From there, he continued to sail, following established routes and making voyages as far as Iceland. But Columbus wanted to do more. Columbus wanted to find a shorter route to the lands described by Marco Polo some 200 years before – China, Japan, India, and the East Indies. What's more, Columbus believed the secret to finding a shorter route lay in sailing west. With plans in hand, Columbus approached King John II of Portugal in 1485. He asked for three sturdy ships and enough money to fund a year's voyage of discovery. King John II referred the matter to his advisers. The advisers reviewed Columbus's plans. Columbus believed he could reach land in just five weeks, but the king's advisers thought the proposed voyage would take much longer. Ultimately, the advisers said the voyage would be a poor investment, and the king rejected Columbus's request. Columbus appealed to the court again three years later. By that time, though, Bartholomew Diaz had successfully sailed around the tip of Africa, and Portugal had lost all interest in western exploration. So Columbus took his plans on to King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I of Spain. Again, plans were referred to committee. Again, the committee believed Columbus had grossly underestimated the length of such a journey, and funding was refused. But the king and queen of Spain did not want Columbus to take his proposal elsewhere, so they provided him with an annual salary.They also issued a decree
15 Interesting Facts About Christopher Columbus 1. Christopher Columbus is believed to have been born between Aug. 25 and Oct. 31, 1451. 2. Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, and his given name was Cristoforo Colombo.
Columbus Day author: Jimmie Durham First Voyage to America: From the Log of the ‘Santa Maria’ author: Christopher Columbus Follow The Dream: The Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus author: Peter Sis
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3. Christopher Columbus began a career as a seafarer at the age of 14 and later supported himself by selling maps and charts. 4. Christopher Columbus believed that Asia would be 2,400 miles west. In fact, 10,000 nautical miles lay between Europe and Asia.
stating that he was to be given free food and lodging throughout the country. Still, Columbus wanted more. He found private investors to underwrite roughly half the anticipated cost of his expedition and kept asking the crown for the rest of the money – along with certain other provisions. If Columbus discovered new land, he was to be named "Admiral of the Ocean Sea." He was to be appointed governor of any newly-found lands. He also requested 10 percent of all revenues produced through new lands. At last, Columbus succeeded in persuading Ferdinand to underwrite the venture, and on Aug. 3, 1492, Columbus set sail with 90 crewmen and three ships, the Nina, the
5. Christopher Columbus first went to King John of Portugal with his idea to find a westward sea passage to Asia but after months of waiting, the answer was no thank you. 6. Queen Isabella's response to Columbus's idea was that his price was to high and that he wanted too many ships. 7. If he in fact reached the Indies, Christopher Columbus was asking for a title, a coat or arms and one tenth of all profits for Spain. 8. It took Queen Isabella six years to agree. Christopher Columbus, having given up, was 4 miles out of town when the Queen's courier caught up with him and shared the news.
Pinta and the Santa Maria. It was a dangerous voyage. No one had ever attempted to sail so far or so long without seeing land. After two months at sea, many of Columbus's crew wanted to turn back. They had already traveled much longer than originally planned, with no land in sight. Columbus insisted, however, that they press on. And on Oct. 12, 1492, land was spotted -- land Columbus would call "San Salvador." Columbus believed he had reached an island off the coast of the East Indies and dubbed the native inhabitants "Indians" as a result. Columbus was wrong. He had, in fact, stumbled onto the Americas.
9. It wasn't easy to get the money or the ships, but it was even harder to find a crew. Many people still believed that the Earth was flat and that at some point a ship would hit a waterfall and fall off of the side of the Earth. 10. A royal decree on April 30, 1492, ordered the suspension of judicial proceedings against criminals that agreed to sail with Christopher Columbus. Even so, only four prisoners took advantage of this offer. 11. Christopher Columbus's first voyage with the Nina, Pinta and the Santa Maria began on Aug. 3, 1492. On Oct. 12, 1492, a sailor on the Pinta shouted "Tierra!" or "Land!"
crew were actually seeing the island of San Salvador, 375 miles off of the coast of Florida. 13. Columbus "discovered" (for the Europeans) many of the Caribbean Islands, South America and Central America. 14. On Christmas Eve, Christopher Columbus allowed an experienced boy to steer the Santa Maria and later that night the ship crashed onto a reef near Hispaniola. Only the Nina and Pinta would return to Spain. 15. Even though he made three return trips west, Christopher Columbus never actually stepped foot on the mainland of North America.
12. Christopher Columbus and his
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