July 4th Origins

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Independence Day July 4th is celebrated to commemorate the birthday of the United States of America. Since the Declaration of Independence was adopted by congress on July 4 of 1776 it is that day we celebrate.

Richard Lee of Virginia started the Declaration of Independence as a resolution on June 7, 1776. The resolution called for the Continental Congress to declare the United States free from British Rule. A committee led by Thomas Jefferson was appointed to prepare a document to detail the resolution. Jefferson was chosen because he was considered to be the most eloquent writer in the committee. Other famous members of the committee included Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Rodger Sherman, and Robert Livingston. The completed declaration was officially adopted by the Congressional Congress on July 4th of 1776. The first newspaper to print a copy of the declaration of independence was the July 6th edition of the Pennsylvania Evening Post.

On the first anniversary of the signing of the Constitution in 1775 a celebration was held. People celebrated with friends and families by starting bonfires and then setting off fireworks. Eventually the celebration spread throughout the new nation and began to include parades, processions, games, picnics, and fireworks. In 1941 the congress of the United States declared July 4th as a legal federal holiday. Most businesses and federal offices are closed on July 4th in observance of the holiday. Today over 200 years later people still continue to celebrate with family and friends with picnics, parades, bar-b-ques and fireworks.

July 4th