Christopher Columbus's Impact On American History

Improved Essays
Everyone know that Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492. He discovered Cuba, Hispaniola and many other islands. In Spain his voyage was to discover a trade route to Asia through the Atlantic Ocean in search for Gold, and other valuable resources. On his journey to Asia Columbus and his sailors discovered an island which would be later called Cuba and furthered his destination to other islands in the Caribbean from Barbados to the Dominican Republic . Christopher Columbus is the reason why the Caribbean is known as the West Indies because when he arrived he thought he was in India. Although all writers agree Christopher Columbus impacted American history, many of the writers like Benjamin Harrison, Franklin Roosevelt agrees that …show more content…
Roosevelt made a statement on Columbus Day elaborate on the impact Columbus had on America. " The voyage of Christopher Columbus... was only a prelude to a historical era... The promise which discovery gave to the world, or a new beginning in the march of human progress, has been in process of fulfillment for four centuries"(Document 3) Roosevelt has demonstrated his understanding of Christopher Columbus, but he 's bias in his speech by not acknowledge the pain and death that he caused to many Native - Americans. Roosevelt states "Created The America to which the Old World contributed so magnificently" As the President of the United States, President Roosevelt has the position to take both sides and compromise both feelings. Through this text he 's glorifying his discovery but not taking in the actions that his discovery led to. For example "The early movement of European people to America" which resulted in the Native Americans population decline dramatically. The reliability of his words wouldn 't be valuable since he 's a respected person in the country and he may have Christopher Columbus seem like a hero by using heroic diction to emphasize his importance to American history. On October 9, 2009, Barack Obama talked about Columbus impact. " Christopher Columbus sailed across the Atlantic Ocean in a bold attempt to expand human understanding of the known world. His voyage radically altered the course of history and changed our world forever... Today we reflect on the transformation of North America from a land of boundless opportunity to the modern communities of the 21st century... explorers of Italian descents have directly influenced the Growth of North America... From the boardroom to the classroom, they are prominent in every facet of American life" (Document 4) President Obama purpose for this speech is not to commend Christopher Columbus, but to acknowledge all Italian explorers for their impact in American lives. Barack Obama never said

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    When you first hear about Christopher Columbus, it's usually when your in about 2nd grade. You learn that he came over from Spain and came to America thinking it was infact India. Then, you seem to think that he is an extraordinary explorer and navigator, yet you don’t really go into the deep details about his voyage and what went on when he came to the New World. It seems as if the older you get, or the higher classes of US History you take, the more you learn about Christopher Columbus’s journey to the New World.…

    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Christopher Columbus’s voyages had a deep impact on the world. Columbus’s travels opened up new trade possibilities and created a true world economy. He found lands and native populations that were previously unknown to the people of Eurasia which allowed the flora and fauna in each region to mix in new ways. Biological and ecological impacts resulting from his voyages were profound. These voyages allowed cultures and societies to mix in ways that they had not before and change the course of world history.…

    • 1157 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    There is a lot that has happened in the past, good and bad. Some historical events bring us to where we are now today. Although, some events and historical figures get overlooked in History classes. However, one event or person that does not get overlooked during the discussion of the past is Christopher Columbus being accredited with finding America. We all know that Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492, trying to get to India for spices and he happened to “discover” America.…

    • 1144 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Jasmine Shrestha World Civilization Parag Jyoti Saikia 13th March 2018 Christopher Columbus: A Hero or a Villain? Christopher Columbus, a great Italian explorer, navigator and colonizer of all time was born in 31st October 1451 in Genoa, Italy. Columbus discovered America for the first time in 15th century, which had excelled the importance of all the other events that had ever occurred. He started navigation at the age of fourteen and he had made four voyages to America through the Atlantic. He had laid three ships named the Santa Maria, the Nina, and the Pinta.…

    • 1299 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Christopher Columbus is credited with the discovering and integration of the once isolated Americas into the global world. For this, Columbus was given a holiday on which he is celebrated annually. Many people today believe that Columbus does not deserve a holiday and should not be celebrated due to the many atrocities he committed, such as killing and enslaving an entire population, in order to achieve what he did. Although Christopher Columbus is responsible for the decimation of millions of Native Americans, he should not be judged for his actions according to today 's standards and thus should continue to be celebrated because he is also responsible for the contact of the Americas with the rest of the world and the impact of his voyages…

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Hook: Imagine discovering a completely new land. You would set a foot on soil that had never been marked with a human footprint. Your eyes would see sights that no one had seen before. You would be the first.…

    • 143 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer born in Genova, Italy around 1451, although being born into a poor family his father was able to send him to the University of Pavia where he studied navigation, Latin, geometry, geography and astronomy. Columbus spent much of his life in Portugal and Spain, after seeking funds for an expedition to locate the Land he believed to be Asia, it was here he met with Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand who obliged him. He was highly revered because of his religiosity, ideals, commitment and achievements, which were all traits of a hero. To support this hero image that he was associated with Columbus made many significant discoveries throughout his life and is accredited for his “discovery” of the Americas.…

    • 2229 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Christopher Columbus is a key historical figure in U.S. History and also world history today. His explorations throughout his life and his most famous lead to many inventions and new ways of life. We have named Columbus one of the greatest explorers of all time, not to mention one of the most famous as well. His life was anything but ordinary, even in his early childhood. His contributions to society were revolutionary and his ideas were new.…

    • 1824 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Columbus Day is an unnecessary holiday that, for some reason, we still honor today. The holiday is also an affront to the indigenous population. The false sense of patriotism is wrong to memorialize. The whole day is based off of a fabrication of the true events. When children are in elementary school, they are taught that Christopher Columbus was a hero, to shield the truth.…

    • 166 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    We shouldn't celebrate Columbus Day. Not just because he was a bad person. Yes, it is because spread so much disease, and I really don’t want to be celebrating someone who committed near genocide. But mainly, I don’t want to have a day where the Native Americans in our country feel hurt and betrayed as we celebrate the man who killed so many of their ancestors. The majority of people in America aren't Native American.…

    • 630 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Europeans wanted to colonize the Native Americans by converting them to Christianity and relocating them. Colonization is a settlement of a group of people who seek to take control of territories or countries. Usually involved a large amount of an immigration of people to a new location and the expansion of their civilization and culture into this area. They forced Natives on to a small portion of land known as reservations to keep them secluded from non-natives and in hopes of them dying off.…

    • 1096 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Before Columbus embarked on his trip to sail across the Atlantic Ocean, a Norse seaman, Leif Eriksson had the first glimpse of what life could be for Europeans that crossed the ocean and reached the New World. History has told us that European’s in the Middle Ages, weren’t necessarily known for being great adventurers. But as time went on, European’s had the greatest adventure of all; coming to the New World.…

    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In school, children are taught about the great adventurer Christopher Columbus and how he discovered the New World. People learned to lionize him as the hero who discovered the country of America, but what’s never mentioned is that Christopher Columbus is not what Americans are lead to believe. The facts that are missing from history books is that he was a slave owner, a murderer, cruel, and greedy. If he possessed all of these terrible traits, then why is there a day dedicated to him? No good person would celebrate Hitler, so why should Christopher Columbus be celebrated?…

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Should We Celebrate Columbus Day? Here’s what i think .. No, I disagree that we shouldn’t celebrate Columbus Day.. Why? Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492 and discovered America, there is more to the story of the explorer we celebrate with a federal holiday on the secind Monday of every October.…

    • 593 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Was Columbus A Hero?

    • 336 Words
    • 2 Pages

    While many have depicted Columbus as a benevolent explorer who discovered the New World, he wasn't particularly kind, and some think he didn't discover the New World. We now have evidence of many explorers that had reached the Americas before him. Also, he only visited islands near North America. Therefore he never made it to North America. When Columbus landed in 1492, it is estimated there were between 10 and 15 million indigenous people in the area that now constitutes the United States.…

    • 336 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays