One of the most cherished American heroes, at least when I was a youth, was Christopher Columbus. One of history's most cherished legends, at least when I was a youth, was that all of Europe was gobsmacked, as a result of Columbus's initial voyage, to learn that the world might be round. In reality, it was common knowledge for around two hundred years prior to 1492 that the earth was not flat, that intrepid sailors did not risk sailing off of the edge, and that Columbus's daring plan to sail around the world was daring only because no one exactly knew how large the world was and, as a corollary, whether or not he had enough provisions for the voyage. The source of the misconception (i.e. lie) was the book The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus authored by Washington Irving in 1828.
Another such misconception was the common belief that Columbus was the first European to discover America. That honor instead probably goes to Leif Erikkson, who apparently set foot in Canada around the year 1000.
One final facet of Columbus history which was not really discussed when I was in school was his enthusiastic practice of genocide and torture with respect to Native Americans. Adolf Eichmann could have picked up quite a few pointers from this guy. Natives under the benign rule of Columbus could look forward to having their hands cut off if they did not produce enough gold, as well as evisceration, crushing by horses, being buried alive, and watching their babies roasted on spits and hacked into pieces for use as dog food.
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