Since I can remember, the recognition of Columbus Day has been been a contentious topic.  It's certainly had it's fair share of debate in Washington State.  Before we dive into some of the controversy let's look back at the history of celebrating the explorer who did, then didn't, discover America.

The first recorded celebration of Christopher Columbus in the United States occurred three years after the ratification of our Constitution in October of 1792. The New York Society of Tammany (also known as the Columbian Order) held the first recorded "Columbus Day" to observe the 300th Anniversary of Columbus' discovery of the New World.