Ronald Reagan

“ We Americans proudly set aside time as a Nation each October to pay tribute to Christopher Columbus, whose voyage to the Americas in 1492 inaugurated communication between worlds old and new. Today, nearly 500 years after his epochal discoveries, Columbus remains for us a giant of exploration and of the human spirit-a man whose faith, vision, courage, and perseverance have won him an imperishable place in the history of America and the world. ”

“ The qualities Columbus exhibited so well have always made him a kindred soul to pioneering and individualistic Americans, who to this day confidently set sail in their own way toward far horizons in every area of achievement. ”