For America's 250th anniversary in 2026, the date marking Congress's adoption of the Declaration of Independence is July 4, 1776.
The Second Continental Congress approved the Declaration in Philadelphia after debating the question of independence from Great Britain. The document announced that the Thirteen Colonies regarded themselves as free and independent states. July 4 became the anniversary celebrated as Independence Day.
The date can cause confusion because the Declaration's final engrossed copy was signed by many delegates later, primarily on August 2, 1776. Adoption, signing, publication, and the political resolution for independence were related but distinct events. Congress passed the Lee Resolution on July 2, while it adopted the Declaration's explanatory text on July 4.
The Declaration was drafted chiefly by Thomas Jefferson, working with a Committee of Five that included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Its opening ideas about equality and natural rights made it one of the most influential founding documents in modern history.