Discover the Top 12 Fun Facts About the 4th of July: Unveiling America's Most Celebrated National Holiday

1. Hot Dogs Galore

Who let the dogs out? Well, on the Fourth of July, America's insatiable appetite for hot dogs steals the show: Joey Chestnut devoured an astounding 75 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes at the 2017 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, the largest hot dog-selling event in the U.S., while citizens grill up a whopping 150 million dogs in their backyards on Independence Day, contributing to a staggering 7 billion total retail hot dog purchases from May to July.
Source => thedonutwhole.com

2. The July 2nd vs. July 4th Debate

Move over, Fourth of July: there's another contender for America's favorite born-on date, and it seems one of the Founding Fathers was adamant about setting the record straight! John Adams, that lovable grump, believed that July 2nd was when the real party started, while the 4th was like a bandwagon that no one could resist jumping on: This historical showdown stems from July 2nd being the day when the Continental Congress voted for independence, whereas July 4th was the formal adoption of the Declaration — with Adams more dedicated to the cause than to the paperwork.
Source => history.com

Did you know that Abraham Lincoln played a key role in making Thanksgiving a national holiday? Discover how a determined editor's persuasion led to this cherished American tradition. 🦃🇺🇸

=> Fun Facts about Thanksgiving

3. Billions Spent on Fireworks

As fireworks enthusiasts took the phrase, "Go big or go home" to heart like their favorite reality TV stars: Americans spent a whopping $1 billion on fireworks for the Fourth of July in 2019, making it the most pyrotechnic and wallet-busting celebration yet.
Source => opploans.com

4. Founding Fathers' Drinking Habits

Call Ben Franklin the "founding bartender" as he and his contemporaries knew the real spirit of America: Colonial Americans guzzled down alcohol like it was the elixir of life, consuming around three times more than their modern-day counterparts. In times where clean water was scarce and disease ran rampant, alcohol emerged as a safer alternative, turning colonial taverns into hubs of social interaction and even political diplomacy. Yet, history remains silent about how boozy the first Independence Day festivities in 1777 actually were.
Source => smithsonianmag.com

5. Yankee Doodle's Musical Origins

What did the Medieval European minstrel say to the American colonist? "Your national anthem sounds a lot like my old Irish jig!" – The melody of "Yankee Doodle" actually originated from folk songs of Medieval Europe and an ancient Irish song, with its earliest lyrics found in a Middle Dutch harvest tune filled with gibberish lines. Ironically, the now patriotic tune was originally penned by a British Army surgeon during the French and Indian War to poke fun at the American colonists, but the joke was on them as the song became an icon of American defiance and pride.
Source => americansongwriter.com

6. The Declaration's Drafting Drama

Before Tom, John, and Ben got their quills in a twist: Thomas Jefferson penned the initial draft of the Declaration of Independence, which was then tweaked by John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. After the Lee Resolution was adopted by 12 of the 13 colonies on July 2, 1776, the official Declaration was given the thumbs up on July 4th. Contrary to popular belief, not all signatures were added on the same day, but most were inked on August 2, 1776, after copies had been sent out on July 5th, ensuring their rebellious penmanship didn't take months to complete.
Source => archives.gov

7. Presidential Deaths on July 4th

Talk about going out with a bang: On July 4, 1826, exactly 50 years after the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, former U.S. Presidents Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both passed away – Jefferson at his Monticello estate in Virginia, and Adams in Quincy, Massachusetts.
Source => blogs.loc.gov

8. The Colossal Star-Spangled Banner

Did you hear the one about the oversized flag that walked into a bar and ordered a drink? The bartender asked, "Why the long stars?": Well, it turns out this ginormous flag, known as the Star-Spangled Banner, proudly boasts 15 stars and 15 stripes to symbolize Vermont and Kentucky joining the Union. This colossal 30 by 34 feet beauty signaled American victory over the Brits after the Battle of Baltimore on September 14, 1814, and inspired Francis Scott Key to pen the poem that later became our national anthem. Today, you can find it at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., where it's probably too big to fit in any bar anyway!
Source => si.edu

9. The Cracked Liberty Bell

Bell, no whistles: The Liberty Bell, a symbol of American freedom had more cracks in it than a stand-up comedy routine. This legendary bell, deployed in service to celebrate the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence, not only cracked upon its first test strike but had to be recast twice! Despite efforts to repair it, the big ol' bell refused to ring true, and historians still scratch their heads over when it finally cracked for good. Now it resides in the Liberty Bell Center, with its famous fissure giving history buffs quite the grin.
Source => history.com

10. Coolidge Family Legacy

Before there were cool presidents 'chillin' in the White House, there were the OG Cool-idges fighting for freedom: Calvin Coolidge's ancestor, John Coolidge, not only served as a military officer in the Revolutionary War, but he was also one of the first selectmen of Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

11. Rhode Island's Historical Parade

You may have heard of the Boston Tea Party, but have you joined in on Rhode Island's patriotic match-making extravaganza?: In Bristol, Rhode Island, the oldest Independence Day celebration in the US has been marrying pomp and circumstance since 1785 with its annual Fourth of July parade, known as the Military, Civic and Firemen's Parade, which magnetizes over 100,000 attendees from near and far - except for a few times when it played hard to get and canceled.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

12. Founding Fathers' Mysterious Deaths

Talk about a Fourth of July plot twist: Three of the five Founding Father Presidents - Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and James Monroe - all kicked the patriotic bucket on July 4th, the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. While it might seem like fate's cheeky way of mingling history and irony, no concrete evidence exists to explain this mysterious triple-presidential expiration date.
Source => constitutioncenter.org