{"id":6444,"date":"2026-07-04T09:03:43","date_gmt":"2026-07-04T09:03:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=6444"},"modified":"2026-07-04T09:03:43","modified_gmt":"2026-07-04T09:03:43","slug":"today-in-history-july-4-declaration-of-independence-adopted-by-second-continental-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=6444","title":{"rendered":"Today in History: July 4, Declaration of Independence adopted by Second Continental Congress"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Today is Saturday, July 4, the 185th day of 2026. There are 180 days left in the year. This is U.S. Independence Day.<\/p>\n

Read more Egypt defender Mohamed Hany becomes first player with two own-goals in the same World Cup<\/a><\/p>\n

Today in history:<\/h4>\n

On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was adopted by delegates to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n

Also on this date:<\/h4>\n

In 1802, the United States Military Academy officially opened at West Point, New York.<\/p>\n

In 1817, construction of the Erie Canal began in Rome, New York.<\/p>\n

In 1826, 50 years to the day after the Declaration of Independence was adopted, former Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died.<\/p>\n

In 1831, the fifth president of the United States, James Monroe, died in New York City at age 73.<\/p>\n

In 1855, the first edition of Walt Whitman\u2019s \u201cLeaves of Grass\u201d was published.<\/p>\n

In 1863, the Civil War Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi, ended as a Confederate garrison surrendered to Union forces.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In 1910, in what was billed as \u201cThe Fight of the Century,\u201d Black world heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson defeated white former champ \u201cGentleman\u201d Jim Jeffries in Reno, Nevada; race riots across the country following the fight killed more than 20 people.<\/p>\n

In 1912, the 48-star American flag, recognizing New Mexico and Arizona statehood, was adopted.<\/p>\n

In 1939, Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees delivered his famous farewell speech in which he called himself \u201cthe luckiest man on the face of the earth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Messi and Argentina beat Cape Verde 3-2 in extra time thriller, advancing to World Cup Round of 16<\/a><\/p>\n

In 1946, the United States and the Philippines signed the Treaty of Manila, recognizing Philippine independence from the U.S.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In 1960, the current 50-star version of the U.S. flag was adopted.<\/p>\n

In 1976, America celebrated its bicentennial with daylong festivities; President Gerald R. Ford made stops in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, Independence Hall in Philadelphia and New York, where more than 200 ships paraded up the Hudson River in Operation Sail.<\/p>\n

In 1987, Klaus Barbie, the former Gestapo chief known as the \u201cButcher of Lyon,\u201d was convicted by a French court of crimes against humanity and sentenced to life in prison (he died in September 1991).<\/p>\n

In 1995, the space shuttle Atlantis and the Russian space station Mir parted after spending five days in orbit docked together.<\/p>\n

In 2012, scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva cheered the apparent end of a decades-long quest for a new subatomic particle called the Higgs boson, or \u201cGod particle.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2013, the Statue of Liberty reopened on the Fourth of July, eight months after Superstorm Sandy shuttered the national symbol of freedom, damaging its docks.<\/p>\n

In 2022, a gunman opened fire on an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, Illinois, killing seven people and wounding 48 others in the Chicago suburb. Robert E. Crimo III was subsequently convicted in the mass shooting and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.<\/p>\n

In 2025, flash floods killed more than 100 people in Texas over the U.S. independence holiday weekend, including 27 girls at a summer camp whose cabins were engulfed by the raging Guadalupe River before dawn.<\/p>\n

Read more Magical World Cup ride of Vozinha and Cape Verde ends after pushing Messi and Argentina to the brink<\/a><\/p>\n

Today\u2019s Birthdays:<\/h4>\n
    \n
  • Actor Eva Marie Saint is 102.<\/li>\n
  • Queen Sonja of Norway is 89.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Karolyn Grimes (\u201cIt\u2019s a Wonderful Life\u201d) is 86.<\/li>\n
  • Broadcast journalist Geraldo Rivera is 83.<\/li>\n
  • Funk\/jazz trombonist Fred Wesley is 83.<\/li>\n
  • Vietnam War veteran and peace activist Ron Kovic is 80.<\/li>\n
  • Singer John Waite is 74.<\/li>\n
  • International Tennis Hall of Famer Pam Shriver is 64.<\/li>\n
  • Christian rock singer Michael Sweet (Stryper) is 62.<\/li>\n
  • Actor-playwright-screenwriter Tracy Letts is 61.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Becki Newton is 48.<\/li>\n
  • TV personality Mike \u201cThe Situation\u201d Sorrentino is 44.<\/li>\n
  • R&B singer Melanie Fiona is 43.<\/li>\n
  • Rapper Post Malone is 31.<\/li>\n
  • Malia Obama is 28.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Sophie Fergi is 19.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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