Some historians believe that the viking explorer Leif Ericson landed in North America 488 years before Columbus sailed into the New World. Members of the Leif Erikson Association chose October 9 to commemorate this event because the first Norwegian emigrants landed in America on October 9, 1825. In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson proclaimed this as Leif Erikson Day. States with large Norwegian-American populations often hold observances on this day, as do members of the Sons of Norway, the Leif Erikson Society, and other Norwegian-American organizations. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary