I believe the 4th of July is one most important holidays the USA has! Let’s take a short trip back in history.
How did it all start?
On June 7th, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, a delegate of Virginia, proposed a resolution of independence, “that these united colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent states.”. But, voting was postponed while a few of the delegates worked to convince others to support independence. A committee of five men were assigned to draft a document of independence: John Adams (MA), Benjamin Franklin (PA), Thomas Jefferson (VA), Roger Sherman (CT), and Robert R. Livingston (NY). Jefferson did most of the work drafting the document in his lodgings at 7th and Market Street. Then, on July 2nd, 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted and approved the resolution for independence.
However, between the 2nd and 4th of July, Congress argued over every word in Jefferson’s draft and made numerous changes. On July 4, Congress ratified the wording of the Declaration of Independence. But, they didn’t actually sign the document that day. The Declaration was then sent to John Dunlap, the official printer to Congress, who worked through the night setting the Declaration in type and printing approximately 200 copies. The copies became known as the “Dunlap Broadsides” and were sent to various committees, assemblies, and commanders of the Continental troops. The Dunlap Broadsides weren’t signed, but John Hancock’s name appears in large type at the bottom. One of the copies crossed the Atlantic and reached King George III months later. The official British response scolded the “misguided Americans” and “their extravagant and inadmissible Claim of Independency”. [a] Today, only 26 copies of the Dunlap Broadsides remain

On July 8, 1776, Colonel John Nixon of Philadelphia read the Declaration of Independence to the public for the first time in what is now called Independence Square. Why was this public reading important? Because the people who gathered outside Independence Hall that day were the ones who drove the revolution in Pennsylvania. Led by radicals including Timothy Matlack, the “lower sort” forced Pennsylvania’s elite to accept independence. Thanks to the pressure they applied in their colony, Congress was able to adopt the Declaration of Independence unanimously. Nothing symbolizes this effort better than the public reading from the stairs of Independence Hall on July 4, 1776. The radicals went on to write an ultra-democratic constitution for Pennsylvania which was the beginning of the fight for equality in America. [b]

It wouldn’t be until August 2nd, 1776 that John Hancock, the President of the Congress, signed the engrossed copy with a bold signature. The other delegates, following custom, signed beginning at the right with the signatures arranged by states from New Hampshire to Georgia. However, not all delegates were present on August 2nd, 56 delegates eventually signed the document. Late signers were Elbridge Gerry, Oliver Wolcott, Lewis Morris, Thomas McKean, and Matthew Thornton, who was unable to place his signature with the other New Hampshire delegates due to a lack of space. Some delegates, including Robert R. Livingston of New York, a member of the drafting committee, never signed the Declaration. [c]

So when you go out and celebrate today, please remember, celebrate responsibly!
*this post may contain information which are not mine, no copyright infringement meant* Disclaimer
“It will be celebrated with pomp and parade, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other.” – John Adams