July 4th, a time to remember

July 4, 12:16 PMBirmingham Community ExaminerLuann Dawkins

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We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.  (United States Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776)

 Have a safe and happy 4^th of July!               

The much requested studio recording of The Cactus Cuties singing our National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, is now available for downloading from Cdbaby and Itunes. The Cactus Cuties, http://thecactuscuties.com, range in age from 8 to 13. The group is named for the Cactus Theater in Lubbock, Texas and they are coached by Cami Caldwell

 Independence Day Trivia

 On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress, looking to promote national pride and unity, adopted the national flag. "Resolved: that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation."

The first public Fourth of July event at the White House occurred in 1804.

The first Independence Day celebration west of the Mississippi occurred at Independence Creek and was celebrated by Lewis and Clark in 1805

Independence Day was first celebrated in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776.

The Liberty Bell sounded from the tower of Independence Hall on July 8, 1776, summoning citizens to gather for the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence by Colonel John Nixon.

 In 1941, Congress declared July 4 a federal legal holiday.

The 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence did not sign at the same time, nor did they sign on July 4, 1776. The official event occurred on August 2, 1776, when 50 men signed it. Later that year, five more signed separately and one added his name in a later year. Thomas McKean was the last to sign in January, 1777.

The origin of Uncle Sam is believed to have begun in 1812, when Samuel Wilson was a meat packer who provided meat to the US Army. The meat shipments were stamped with the initials, U.S. Someone joked that the initials stood for "Uncle Sam." This joke eventually led to the idea of Uncle Sam symbolizing the United States government.

Betsy Ross, according to legend, sewed the first American flag in May or June 1776, as commissioned by the Congressional Committee.

 Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, died on Independence Day, July 4, 1826.