Since school isn't in session when the annual fireworks extravaganza rolls around, kids might not hear remember why Americans celebrate a holiday called Independence Day and 4th of July. Even teenagers might need a refresher on what happened between the colonies and Great Britain back in the 1770s.
In the 1760s and 1770s, Great Britain wanted the colonists follow more rules and pay higher taxes. People who lived in the American colonies no longer wanted Great Britain to be able to tell them what to do, so they decided they would separate from Great Britain and form an independent country.
Each of the 13 colonies elected people to a group they called a Congress. They met in Philadelphia and appointed a committee to write a formal document that would declare America's independence from Great Britain.
Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of a long document that explained what America was going to do to become a separate country, By the end of June in 1776, the document had been reviewed by other members of Congress and the Congress declared independence on July 2, 1776. They officially adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.
The Declaration of Independence describes the goals that the new Americans thought were most important for our new country; goals like "life, liberty and pursuit of happiness".
It was dangerous to declare Independence, because the King of England could declare the new Americans to be traitors. They could be tried for treason and all their goods and homes taken away. But to the newly independent Americans, it was worth the risk in order to be free from the control of the laws of Great Britain.
When we celebrate Independence Day on this 4th of July we should talk about what makes America a great country and how important it is to remember our history.
Fireworks tonight in the Fox Vallley will be held at about 9:30 at Pottawatomie Park in St Charles and at Engstrom Park In Batavia.
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