\nEarly Traditions and Celebrations<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
Early Traditions and Celebrations<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\nEarly Independence Day celebrations often included mock funerals for King George III as a way to symbolize the end of the British monarchy’s rule.\u00a0<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n- Fireworks:<\/strong> The tradition of using fireworks started on July 4, 1777, during spontaneous celebrations in Philadelphia and Boston. It featured a 13-gun salute in honor of the original colonies and a grand exhibition of rockets.<\/span><\/li>\n
- National Holiday:<\/strong> July 4th was not immediately a paid federal holiday. It was first recognized as a holiday by Congress in 1870 for federal employees in Washington, D.C., and was expanded into a paid federal holiday for all federal workers in 1938.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
A Day of Reflection<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\nOver the centuries, the Fourth of July has also been a focal point for social change. On July 4, 1854, prominent abolitionists like Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, and Henry David Thoreau gathered for a rally where they protested the institution of slavery and burned copies of the Fugitive Slave Act and the U.S. Constitution as a protest against the compromises of the era.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\nToday, the day is celebrated across the United States with parades, community concerts, backyard barbecues, and large-scale public fireworks displays.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nAlthough independence was declared 250 years ago, the Revolutionary War didn’t officially end until September 4, 1782,<\/span>\u00a0when the United States and Great Britain signed the Treaty of Paris<\/a><\/span>. This formally concluded the conflict and recognized the independence of the Thirteen Colonies<\/a><\/span>.<\/div>\n
Early Independence Day celebrations often included mock funerals for King George III as a way to symbolize the end of the British monarchy’s rule.\u00a0<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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- Fireworks:<\/strong> The tradition of using fireworks started on July 4, 1777, during spontaneous celebrations in Philadelphia and Boston. It featured a 13-gun salute in honor of the original colonies and a grand exhibition of rockets.<\/span><\/li>\n
- National Holiday:<\/strong> July 4th was not immediately a paid federal holiday. It was first recognized as a holiday by Congress in 1870 for federal employees in Washington, D.C., and was expanded into a paid federal holiday for all federal workers in 1938.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\nA Day of Reflection<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
\nOver the centuries, the Fourth of July has also been a focal point for social change. On July 4, 1854, prominent abolitionists like Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, and Henry David Thoreau gathered for a rally where they protested the institution of slavery and burned copies of the Fugitive Slave Act and the U.S. Constitution as a protest against the compromises of the era.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\nToday, the day is celebrated across the United States with parades, community concerts, backyard barbecues, and large-scale public fireworks displays.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nAlthough independence was declared 250 years ago, the Revolutionary War didn’t officially end until September 4, 1782,<\/span>\u00a0when the United States and Great Britain signed the Treaty of Paris<\/a><\/span>. This formally concluded the conflict and recognized the independence of the Thirteen Colonies<\/a><\/span>.<\/div>\n - National Holiday:<\/strong> July 4th was not immediately a paid federal holiday. It was first recognized as a holiday by Congress in 1870 for federal employees in Washington, D.C., and was expanded into a paid federal holiday for all federal workers in 1938.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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