The 4th of July 1776 was a special day in the history of the world. It was on this day, that the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, which ultimately led to the birth of the United States of America.

Here are some very interesting facts about this federal holiday. 

1. For 68 years, from 1878 to 1938, Congress marked the 4th of July as an unpaid holiday for federal employees. 
2. Of the 56 signatories from the 13 colonies on the Declaration of Independence, only one man, John Hancock actually signed it on that day. 
3. Thomas Jefferson, who was the main author of the declaration, was aged 33 at the time. Benjamin Franklin, at 70, was the oldest signatory. The youngest signatory was Thomas Lynch Jr. was aged 27.
4. Philadelphia holds the honor of hosting the first Independence Day celebrations. On July 8, 1776, the declaration was read out to the public for the first time. The crowd was gathered by ringing the historic Liberty Bell. 
5. “Liberty” is a very popular name for a place in the U.S. There are 59 places in America that have “liberty” in their name. 
6. America imports millions of dollars of fireworks from around the world. The bulk of it comes from China. Most of the flags that we wave on the 4th of July are also made in China. Two of the most traditional things associated with Independence Day, fireworks and flags, are from outside the United States. 
7. New England has a very interesting tradition of eating salmon on the 4th of July. Green peas are the chosen side dish with salmon on this day. 
8. It is interesting to know that though a federal holiday today, Independence Day was first declared a holiday by the state of Massachusetts.