Proclamation 5755

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]