Here's what the date is all about....
The Declaration of Independence
We celebrate American Independence Day on the Fourth of July every year, thinking of that as the day that represents the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the United States of America as an independent nation.
But, July 4, 1776 wasn't the day that the Continental Congress decided to declare independence. They did that on July 2, 1776 with the revolution itself starting back in April of 1775.
Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft in June of ‘76. It was delivered to Great Britain, November of 1776. And last but not least, it was signed on August 2nd, 1776.
So what did happen on July 4, 1776? That's when Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration of Independence, something they’d been working on for a couple of days after the draft was submitted on July 2nd and finally agreed on. It was also the date that was included on the document and the fancy handwritten copy that was signed in August. This is the copy now displayed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. But what may have cemented the 4th as "the" date is because both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on the date in 1826.
The Declaration of Independence
We celebrate American Independence Day on the Fourth of July every year, thinking of that as the day that represents the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the United States of America as an independent nation.
But, July 4, 1776 wasn't the day that the Continental Congress decided to declare independence. They did that on July 2, 1776 with the revolution itself starting back in April of 1775.
Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft in June of ‘76. It was delivered to Great Britain, November of 1776. And last but not least, it was signed on August 2nd, 1776.
So what did happen on July 4, 1776? That's when Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration of Independence, something they’d been working on for a couple of days after the draft was submitted on July 2nd and finally agreed on. It was also the date that was included on the document and the fancy handwritten copy that was signed in August. This is the copy now displayed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. But what may have cemented the 4th as "the" date is because both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on the date in 1826.
