Happy Independence Day, America: Fun Fourth (of July) Facts
Well, America’s 235th Independence Day is upon us, so get out your barbecues, fireworks, suntan lotion, and
beverages and (1) gather with your families to commemorate the birth of America and the approval of the
Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. In celebrating the event, Britannica has
put together some unusual facts surrounding the holiday (broadly speaking).
* Unfortunate irony: (2) Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on July 4, 1826—the 50th anniversary of the
adoption of the Declaration of Independence. The fifth U.S. president, James Monroe, also died on July 4, but in
1831. Yes, that makes three of our 39 presidents who are deceased who died on the country’s Independence Day.
What are the odds of that?
* During Paul Revere’s famous ride on April 18, 1775, warning of the forthcoming British soldiers, (3) he was
especially looking for just two people—John Hancock and Samuel Adams, since it was thought that the British
would be coming to arrest them (Hancock was president of the Massachusetts legislature and Adams a leading
revolutionary).
* All it’s cracked up to be: (4) The Liberty Bell was rung not on July 4, 1776, but on July 8, 1776, to celebrate the
first public reading of the Declaration of Independence. When it was rung in honor of George Washington’s
birthday in 1846, it cracked irreparably. Did you know that when British forces entered Philadelphia in 1777, the
Liberty Bell was hidden in an Allentown, Pennsylvania, church for safe keeping.
* A toast! The melody for (5) “The Star-Spangled Banner” (click here for instrumental version) was taken from “To
Anacreon in Heaven,” a drinking song of a London society. Did you also know that the song, written during the
British attack on Fort McHenry, was originally titled “Defence of Fort M’henry”?
*“Ooh, ahh!” (6) Fireworks are believed to have developed out of military rockets. In the European Middle Ages,
the military pressed fireworks experts into service to conduct celebrations of victory and peace.
* Hold the mustard: The English word (7) “barbecue” came from the Arawak Indians of the Caribbean. The
barbacoa was a grating of green wood upon which strips of meat were placed to cook or to dry over a slow fire.
* A star in the making: Upon her husband’s death in 1776, Betsy Ross took over the family upholstering business. It
was there, according to legend, George Washington asked Ross to design and make a flag for the new nation.
Speaking of flags, (8) the first unofficial flag of the United States was hoisted at Prospect Hill in Charlestown in
Massachusetts on January 1, 1776, and was called the Continental Colours (or, incorrectly, as the Grand Union
Flag).
* The tablet held by in the Statue of Liberty’s left hand bears the date July 4, 1776, but (9) the statue itself was
presented to the U.S. by France on July 4, 1884. It was dedicated two years later, on October 28, 1886, by President
Grover Cleveland.
1.
What
do
you
already
know
about
America’s
Independence
Day?
Make
notes
below:
v
v
v
v
v
v
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.
What
do
the
numbers
below
mean
in
the
text?
Underline the
numbers
and
write
down
your
answers:
1st _____________________________________________
1st _____________________________________________
1st _____________________________________________
2
_____________________________________________
2
_____________________________________________
3
______________________________________________
5th _____________________________________________
18
_____________________________________________
1846
___________________________________________
1884
___________________________________________
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.
Are
these
facts
true
or
false?
Correct
the
false
sentences.
1.
Independence
Day
is
a
time
for
celebrating
with
friends.
2. Thomas
Jefferson,
John
Adams
and
George
Washington
all
died
on
the
same
day.
3. John
Hancock
was
looking
for
Paul
Revere.
4. The
Liberty
Bell
was
first
rung
on
Independence
Day
in
1776.
5.
‘The
Star-Spangled
Banner’
was
adapted
from
a
song
originally
from
England.
6.
Fireworks
were
not
an
American
invention.
7.
The
word
‘barbecue’
comes
from
an
American
Indian
tribe.
8.
The
first
flag
of
America
was
seen
in
Washington
DC.
9.
France
gave
the
United
States
the
Statue
of
Liberty
in
the
19th century.