Obama proclaims Leif Erikson Day WASHINGTON, Oct. 9 (UPI) -- President Obama proclaimed Tuesday as Leif Erikson Day, honoring the first large group of Norwegians to emigrate to the United States. Erikson and his shipmates are believed to have been the first Europeans to reach North America, creating a short-lived settlement in what is now Newfoundland, Canada. "More than 800 years after that first excursion, a ship called Restauration set sail in Erikson's wake with the eyes and hearts of its passengers set on American shores," Obama said, adding that the vessel's passengers disembarked in New York on Oct. 9, 1825. "On Leif Erikson Day, we commemorate their journey and celebrate the many contributions and accomplishments of their descendants," he said.