1. It was originally called “Unanimous Declaration.”
The term Declaration of Independence is actually a rewording of the original “Unanimous Declaration” of the 13 colonies in North America when they declared themselves free from the rule of the English King. It is a lesser known fact that the United States are called “united” because they were one in proclaiming their being independent from Great Britain.
2. Only one of the 56 people who signed the Declaration of Independence did so on the 4th of July.
John Hancock was alone in signing the document on July 4. The others did so almost a month later on Aug. 2. Hancock used the thickest ink to sign, probably because he wasn’t aware of the size of his signature in relation to the paper size and the total number of signers.
3. The traditional 13-gun salute symbolizes the 13 colonies that rose up in rebellion against Great Britain.
A year after the official declaration of independence, in the year 1777, US citizens celebrated in a similar fashion as it is done nowadays: with parades and fireworks. The most important explosion is the 13-gun salute to symbolize the 13 colonies.
4. July 4, 1779, a Sunday moved to Monday.
Since then, government employees demanded that celebrations that fall on a weekend be moved a day before or after the actual date so they will always have an official day-off. By 1870, it was an unpaid holiday for government employees. By 1941, it was a paid public holiday.
5. Famous personalities born on the fourth of July.
Calvin Coolidge, 30th US president; Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter; sisters Abigail van Buren and Ann Landers of “Dear Abbey” fame; playwright Neil Simon; TV icon Geraldo Rivera; legendary Hollywood producer Louis B. Mayer; movie actress Eva Marie Saint ; cartoonist Rube Goldberg; and rock singer John Waite of The Babys.
6. Famous personalities who died on the fourth of July.
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the second and third presidents of the United States, respectively, died on the same day in 1826. Adams reportedly said on his deathbed: “And yet, Thomas Jefferson lives!” he was wrong, Jefferson died ahead of him on that day – America’s 50th anniversary as an independent nation. Eerily, James Monroe, the fifth US president, also died on the 4th of July in 1831.
7. The National Independence-Day parade starts at a specific time.
The parade begins at 11:45 a.m. on the fourth of July every year on Constitution Ave. starting from 7th St. going to 17th St. in Washington, D.C. Many invited national and foreign dignitaries are present. Giving the affair pomp of and music are drum corps and fife corps, military formations, floats, huge balloons, and equestrian teams. The parade attracts close to a million people to the streets. The National Park Service sponsors the parade.
8. The fireworks display is hands-down the favorite part of the 4th of July celebrations.
Wherever you go in the United States, the most awaited part is definitely the pyrotechnic exhibition at the end of the celebrations. There are those who believe that the pyrotechnics are a symbol of the Star Spangled Banner or national anthem lyrics which say: “the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air.” These lines are part of the lyrics from the poem “Defense of Fort McHenry” by Francis Scott Key. He wrote the poem in 1812 after seeing Fort McHenry bombarded by the British Royal Navy in Chesapeake Bay during the Battle of Baltimore.
9. Benjamin Franklin and John Adams were given an offer to write the Declaration of Independence but refused.
Franklin and Adams’ reason for turning the offer down was because they believed that Americans would be prejudiced if they learned that they were the ones who wrote it. But that did not stop Franklin from putting in a good number of corrections before the declaration’s final draft was done. One of these was inserting the line “and the pursuit of happiness” to substitute for the version Thomas Jefferson wrote that only had “property” on it.
10. A meal shared by militiamen and French officers was the first-ever authentic celebration of the fourth of July.
In 1781, a dinner set for militiamen from Rhode Island and military officers from France was the first genuine celebration of July 4. The town of Bristol in Rhode Island honors this event every year since the year 1785 during their own Independence-Day revelries.
The term Declaration of Independence is actually a rewording of the original “Unanimous Declaration” of the 13 colonies in North America when they declared themselves free from the rule of the English King. It is a lesser known fact that the United States are called “united” because they were one in proclaiming their being independent from Great Britain.
2. Only one of the 56 people who signed the Declaration of Independence did so on the 4th of July.
John Hancock was alone in signing the document on July 4. The others did so almost a month later on Aug. 2. Hancock used the thickest ink to sign, probably because he wasn’t aware of the size of his signature in relation to the paper size and the total number of signers.
3. The traditional 13-gun salute symbolizes the 13 colonies that rose up in rebellion against Great Britain.
A year after the official declaration of independence, in the year 1777, US citizens celebrated in a similar fashion as it is done nowadays: with parades and fireworks. The most important explosion is the 13-gun salute to symbolize the 13 colonies.
4. July 4, 1779, a Sunday moved to Monday.
Since then, government employees demanded that celebrations that fall on a weekend be moved a day before or after the actual date so they will always have an official day-off. By 1870, it was an unpaid holiday for government employees. By 1941, it was a paid public holiday.
5. Famous personalities born on the fourth of July.
Calvin Coolidge, 30th US president; Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter; sisters Abigail van Buren and Ann Landers of “Dear Abbey” fame; playwright Neil Simon; TV icon Geraldo Rivera; legendary Hollywood producer Louis B. Mayer; movie actress Eva Marie Saint ; cartoonist Rube Goldberg; and rock singer John Waite of The Babys.
6. Famous personalities who died on the fourth of July.
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the second and third presidents of the United States, respectively, died on the same day in 1826. Adams reportedly said on his deathbed: “And yet, Thomas Jefferson lives!” he was wrong, Jefferson died ahead of him on that day – America’s 50th anniversary as an independent nation. Eerily, James Monroe, the fifth US president, also died on the 4th of July in 1831.
7. The National Independence-Day parade starts at a specific time.
The parade begins at 11:45 a.m. on the fourth of July every year on Constitution Ave. starting from 7th St. going to 17th St. in Washington, D.C. Many invited national and foreign dignitaries are present. Giving the affair pomp of and music are drum corps and fife corps, military formations, floats, huge balloons, and equestrian teams. The parade attracts close to a million people to the streets. The National Park Service sponsors the parade.
8. The fireworks display is hands-down the favorite part of the 4th of July celebrations.
Wherever you go in the United States, the most awaited part is definitely the pyrotechnic exhibition at the end of the celebrations. There are those who believe that the pyrotechnics are a symbol of the Star Spangled Banner or national anthem lyrics which say: “the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air.” These lines are part of the lyrics from the poem “Defense of Fort McHenry” by Francis Scott Key. He wrote the poem in 1812 after seeing Fort McHenry bombarded by the British Royal Navy in Chesapeake Bay during the Battle of Baltimore.
9. Benjamin Franklin and John Adams were given an offer to write the Declaration of Independence but refused.
Franklin and Adams’ reason for turning the offer down was because they believed that Americans would be prejudiced if they learned that they were the ones who wrote it. But that did not stop Franklin from putting in a good number of corrections before the declaration’s final draft was done. One of these was inserting the line “and the pursuit of happiness” to substitute for the version Thomas Jefferson wrote that only had “property” on it.
10. A meal shared by militiamen and French officers was the first-ever authentic celebration of the fourth of July.
In 1781, a dinner set for militiamen from Rhode Island and military officers from France was the first genuine celebration of July 4. The town of Bristol in Rhode Island honors this event every year since the year 1785 during their own Independence-Day revelries.
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