"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue."

We all remember that jingle from school - at least I do. On October 12, 1492, Columbus first saw the islands of the new world, landing in the Bahamas. Then in 1792, one of the first known celebrations marking the discovery of the New World took place in New York. Other celebrations followed that. Then 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. (http://wilstar.com/holidays/columbus.htm) I hope everyone has a Happy Columbus Day!