July 4 is universally recognized to be the day in which the United States gained independence from Great Britain in 1776 and is celebrated as Independence Day. It is one of eleven federal holidays and one of the most widely observed holidays in the country. It has been celebrated since at least 1777, making it one of the longest continually celebrated holidays in the country.
The celebration of the Fourth of July commemorates the day on which the Continental Congress officially declared independence from Great Britain, formally establishing the country now known as the United States of America. It is, therefore, also the day on which the Declaration of Independence was officially adopted.
However, the Continental Congress had actually voted to declare independence two days earlier on July 2 (though this was only officially declared on July 4). The Declaration of Independence in its current form, written in fancy lettering on parchment, was actually only written up on July 19, and it was only signed by the congressmen on August 2! This has led to controversy over which day Independence Day really should fall on.
In fact, John Adams, who would later become the second president of the United States, had declared that July 2 would be Independence Day instead, as we saw in the following text Adams wrote to his wife Abigail on July 3, 1776:
The second day of July 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.
John Adams, second president of the United States, July 3, 1776
Now, Adams was off by two days in his prediction, but he certainly wasn’t wrong about the celebrations that have now since taken place. The Fourth of July is now commonly celebrated with firework displays, large parades, gun salutes, large barbecues, baseball games, and family gatherings.
The fireworks display in New York City over the East River on the Fourth is the largest fireworks display in the U.S. and one of the largest in the world. In 2009, over 22 tons of fireworks were consumed.
Because the Fourth of July is a federal holiday that is almost universally recognized and celebrated across the U.S., many are able to take paid time off on the day (unlike some other holidays like the newly-established Juneteenth or Columbus Day). However, despite it being nearly ubiquitous today, Congress only officially made Independence Day an unpaid holiday for federal employees in 1870, and it was only made a fully paid federal holiday in 1938.
In fact, because Canada’s national day, Canada Day, falls on July 1, the two holidays have together made the first week of July one of the busiest travel periods in North America. This year, with the Fourth falling over the weekend, giving most people a long weekend, despite COVID-19’s lingering presence, Friday has been one of the busiest days for air travel since the pandemic started. In fact, the Transportation Security Authority already screened more passengers on Friday than on the same day in 2019 pre-pandemic.
Today, on the Fourth of July, twenty states have reached President Joe Biden’s goal to vaccinate 70 percent of their population. However, vaccinations have fallen short of the administration’s goal to vaccinate 70 percent of the U.S. population by July 4, with vaccine hesitancy resulting in fewer vaccinations than expected. With the Delta variant being detected in all 50 states, officials are anxious to get as many people vaccinated as possible. Considering the pandemic has now taken the lives of more than 604,000 Americans so far, it seems like the best show of patriotism this Fourth of July is to get vaccinated.