Columbus Day closures, a little bit of history, and a push for change
Monday, Oct. 9, is Columbus Day, and many local governments, schools, banks, and businesses across the Highland Lakes will be closed. The federal holiday always falls on the second Monday in October, but how it is observed and celebrated is up to individual states and organizations.
Government offices for Llano and Burnet counties and the cities of Granite Shoals, Burnet, Llano, and Sunrise Beach Village as well as Marble Falls and Burnet school district campuses, banks, and post offices will be closed.
Remaining open are the Llano Independent School District and the city offices of Marble Falls, Bertram, and Horseshoe Bay.
HOLIDAY HISTORY
Texas has not recognized Columbus Day as a state holiday since 1991, but the second Monday in October is still widely observed across the state. It commemorates 15th century Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, who landed in the Bahamas on Oct. 12, 1492.
The first official celebration of Columbus Day was on Oct. 12, 1792, when the Society of St. Tammany acknowledged the 300th anniversary of Columbus’ landing. Columbus Day became a federal holiday in 1937, originally on Oct. 12 but changed to the second Monday of the month in 1971. It is one of only 11 federally recognized holidays.
Sixteen states officially recognize Columbus Day, but South Dakota, Maine, Vermont, New Mexico, and Washington, D.C., all changed the holiday to Native Americans’ Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day. The other 30 states do not officially recognize either holiday.
The celebration of Columbus has become a contentious topic in recent years, with Native American groups and advocates shining a light on the explorer’s arrival in the Americas as a dark time for indigenous people across the northern and southern continents.
“European contact resulted in devastating loss of life, disruption of tradition, and enormous loss of lands for Indigenous Peoples in the Americas,” reads a report from the National Museum of the American Indian. “It is estimated that in the 130 years following first contact, Native America lost 95 percent of its population.”
The Indigenous Peoples’ Day Act was introduced in the U.S. Congress on Oct. 2 of this year in an effort to officially change the second Monday to Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
Texas celebrated Indigenous Peoples’ Week in October 2022, which included the second Monday. President Joe Biden also declared the day as Indigenous Peoples’ Day in 2021 and 2022.