Humboldt Park, Norwegians and Leif Erikson

Humboldt Park area of Chicago housed a large Norwegian population in the late 19th and early 20th century. My grandparents lived in this area. We attended Syttende Mai (seventeenth of May Norwegian Constitution Day) parades in Humboldt Park proudly waving Norwegian flags. In the 1960's my grandfather died and my grandmother returned to Norway. By that time Humboldt Park was changing. The Norwegian population was generally gone with the exception of a few older folks. A large Polish population had also moved into the area and were now also dispersing. The area became largely Puerto Rican and remains so today although there is an influx of Mexican, Dominican and other Latino groups.

The bronze statue is 9 1/2 feet tall,
the granite boulder Leif stands on is inscribed
"Leif Erikson Discoverer of America"

In 1901 Norwegian Americans raised $10,000 dollars to erect a statue of Leif Erikson in the park. Quite a sum in that time! Norwegian born sculptor Sigvald Asbjørnsen (1867-1954) created the monument that was dedicated  October 12, 1901 amidst scores of flag waving proud Norwegian-Americans.

**right click and save to your computer where you can enlarge and read "Hearst's Chicago Morning American"**

Leif Eriksson was first!

As a kid it sure was nice to have Columbus Day off but my Norwegian AND Swedish grandparents made sure to tell me each and every year... 

LEIF LANDED FIRST!

Archaeology and DNA have since proven that Leif Eriksson and the Scandinavians were indeed the first Europeans to set foot on North American shores. Native Americans did arrive thousands of years earlier and it must (and righteously) infuriate them to hear folks say that Columbus "discovered" North America. I acknowledge them as the rightful first inhabitants but I still get a little pleasure in reminding my Italian-American friends.......

click & check it out↓↓↓

Happy Leif Eriksson day, October 9th,

Leif Eriksson - The First European in North America

"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue".
He certainly did but he was about 500 years too late to "discover" the Americas.
We know Leif Eriksson was here first!

 to all my Scandinavian-American Family and Friends

Happy Leif Eriksson Day!

 

**click on the illustration to enjoy the short you-tube presentation**

Happy Lief Erikson Day!

Today we celebrate the first Norsemen to arrive in North America, led by Lief Erikson. Lief was one of three sons of Erik the Red, born shortly before 1000 A.D. in Greenland, which his father Erik had colonized. Lief traveled to Norway and was converted to Christianity under the guidance of King Olaf I Tryggvason who had brought Christianity to Norway.  The King sent him home to spread Christianity across Greenland. His ships went off course and he landed in North America, Nova Scotia most likely. He named this new land "Vinland". He had arrived nearly five hundred years before the explorer Christopher Columbus. Although the exact location of "Vinland" is unknown the ruins of a Viking village with  thousands of Viking artifacts was discovered in 1963 in northern Newfoundland.

October 9th was chosen, not because it had any relationship to Lief Erikson (or just before Columbus Day) but it is the date that the ship "Restauration" left Norway for America in 1825, beginning Norwegian immigration to the United States.

Happy Lief Erikson Day!

- Ranae