Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa. He completed four Spanish-based voyages across the Atlantic Ocean sponsored by the Catholic Monarchs, opening the way for the widespread European exploration and European colonization of the Americas. Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, between August 26 and October 31, 1451. His father was a wool weaver who worked in Genoa and Savona and owned a cheese stand at which young Christopher worked. His mother was Susanna Fontanarossa. Despite the controversies surrounding his mistreatment of the Indigenous populations he encountered in the “New World,” Italian-Americans have laid claim to Columbus.