Wednesday, the Dow gained 42.21 points (0.18%) to finish at 22,872.89, the NASDAQ increased 16.30 points (0.25%) to 6,603.55, and the S&P 500 was up 4.60 points (0.18%) at 2,555.24. The Russell 2000 decreased by 1.08 (0.07%) to 1,506.92, and the Wilshire 5000 closed 40.77 points (0.15%) higher at 26,602.12.

ON THIS DATE: In 1492, Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer, sighted Watling Island in the Bahamas. He believed that he had found Asia while attempting to find a Western ocean route to India. The same day he claimed the land for Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain. In 1792, the first monument honoring Christopher Columbus was dedicated in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1920, construction of the Holland Tunnel began. The tunnel links Jersey City, New Jersey, and New York City. In 1933, the U.S. Department of Justice acquired Alcatraz Island from the U.S. Army. In 1945, Private First Class Desmond T. Doss was presented with the Congressional Medal of Honor for outstanding bravery as a medical corpsman. He was the first conscientious objector in American history to win the award. In 1989, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a statutory federal ban on the destruction of the American flag. In 1994, the Magellan space probe ended its four-year mission to Venus for the purpose of mapping. In 1998, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Online Copyright Bill. In 1999, Rob Reiner received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.