Proclamation 4231—Columbus Day, 1973

The pages of history teach us that it is the extraordinary man who has shaped our past and thus determined much of what we are today. Such a man was Christopher Columbus, son of Italy and explorer of the New World.

Columbus launched the great age of discovery in the Americas. For five centuries, the spirit of discovery has continued to flourish here. On this Columbus Day, we can usefully reflect on the many ways in which that spirit still lives on, not only in our efforts to expand our physical horizons but in everything we do which helps us broaden our understanding of our world and of ourselves.

In recognizing our debt to the great navigator, we are mindful that his most enduring legacies to us are those qualities of vision, faith, and boldness without which progress can never take place. His determination to seek the truth against great odds continues to inspire our efforts to achieve a better and more peaceful world.

In tribute to the achievement of Columbus, the Congress of the United States, by joint resolution approved April 30, 1934 (48 Stat. 657), as modified by the act of June 28, 1968 (82 Stat. 250), requested the President to proclaim the second Monday in October of each year as Columbus Day.

Now, Therefore, I, Richard Nixon, President of the United States of America, do hereby designate Monday, October 8, 1973, as Columbus Day. I invite the people of this Nation to observe that day in schools, churches, and other suitable places with appropriate ceremonies in honor of the great explorer. I also direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all public buildings on the appointed day in memory of Christopher Columbus.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fourteenth day of August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred seventy-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and ninety-eighth.

RICHARD NIXON