Proclamation 5755 -- Year
of New Sweden, 1988
December 23, 1987
By
the President of the United States of
America
A
Proclamation
The
year 1988 is the 350th anniversary of the arrival, in what is now Delaware, of two ships, the Kalmar Nyckel and the Fogel Grip, which were sent by the Kingdom of Sweden to establish New Sweden, the first permanent
settlement of Swedes in North America. Celebration of this
occasion gives every American the opportunity to pay tribute to those
courageous colonists and to all who have followed them from Sweden to America.
Swedish
Americans have won a place in the history and heritage of the United States, and they continue
their tradition of notable achievements today. Two Swedish Americans associated
prominently with the American Revolution were John Morton of Pennsylvania, a signer of the
Declaration of Independence, and John Hanson of Maryland, who presided over the
Continental Congress in 1781 and 1782. More than a million Swedes came to the United States between 1845 and 1910,
and more than four million Americans today have Swedish ancestry.
We
can all be truly proud of the contributions of Swedish Americans to our beloved
land, of the close ties between the United States and Sweden over the years, and of
the devotion to democracy that our peoples share.
The
Congress, by Public Law 99 - 304, has designated 1988 as the ``Year of New
Sweden'' and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation
in observance of this year.
Now,
Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan,
President of the United States of
America, do hereby proclaim 1988 as the Year of New
Sweden. I call upon the Governors of the several States, local officials, and
the people of the United States to observe this year
with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
In
Witness Whereof, I
have hereunto set my hand this twenty-third day of December, in the year of our
Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-seven, and of the Independence of the United States of
America the two hundred and twelfth.
Ronald
Reagan
[Filed with the Office
of the Federal Register, 9:27 a.m., December 24, 1987]