Who discovered America? There is considerable evidence that Columbus was actually a lost, "Johnny come lately". It has become documented with much archeological evidence that the Vikings visited North America in their early explorations. And the legend about the Mandan Indians and Prince Madoc of Wales is repeated in several sources and partially inspired President Jefferson to commission the Lewis and Clark Expedition. There is even the more recent Solutrean hypothesis that speculates an European migration across the frozen North Atlantic during the end of the last ice age.
But I guess Columbus is kind of like Santa Claus in that we have so much invested in the myth that we can't abandom it. After all there are numerous cities, a country and I even had a great uncle "Lum" named after him, so can one little national holiday be all that bad?
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