While visiting Corpus Christi, and taking a walk to view the yachts moored at the city’s T-heads we were surprised to see three old wooden ships moored among the sleek, moderns yachts.
A sign informed us that these were replicas of Christopher Columbus’s ships, and were were gifted to the city of Corpus Christi by Spain in commemoration of Spain's 500th anniversary of the discovery of the new world.
Imagining those tiny ships out on the ocean, mere specks in the that great expanse of water was awesome.
Later, one of his ships, la Nina, was housed at their museum, I believe the other two were returned to Spain.
While visiting again, we decided to take a close look at this little ship. Fortunately, there was a museum worker nearby who volunteered to take us on a deck tour that was very impressive.
The crew worked, slept, cooked and ate on this tiny deck, which was probably less than fifty feet long, and with no protection from the weather. Their food was stored in barrels below deck, and was mainly salted herring and hardtack.
After week after week of hardship and maggot infested food, the crews were at the point of mutiny when land was sighted and everything changed. It was October 12,1492, and everyone believed they has discovered a new continent.
That belief stood for centuries before research proved it wrong. The ships had made landfall in the Bahamas.
One would assume the ship would remain on display as an important part of the exploration and settlement of America-but no, wood does not last forever. It gets wood rot and is attacked by woodworms . The expense of its upkeep was thousands–more than the city could handle, so it was cut into pieces and destroyed.
But la Nina's history remains. On August 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail from Spain with three ships, la Nina, la Pinta and la Santa Maria. He hoped to find a western route to China and her spices.
The Nina and Pinta have been estimated as measuring about 50 feet long from bow to stern. They belonged to the Caravel type of sailing ships known for their speed, ability to sail into the wind and their mobility. Santa Maria was the flagship, It was little larger and had sleeping shelters for its crew, a luxury the other ships didn’t have.
The date was made a national holiday, falling on the second Monday in October. A number of states have changed Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day in honor of their contributions to our history.https:rottckingwithdannie.blogspot//adaytorememberhtp
As a long-ago student who was taught "Columbus discovered American on October 12 , 1492," the site of the landfall is no longer very important. The courage of those seafaring men and the hardships they endured on board those small ships, is. Their trip opened the door to exploring, colonization and eventually the settling of America.
Columbus Day --a date to remember!
