Thirteen British American colonies were represented by the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
These colonies stretched along the Atlantic coast from New Hampshire in the north to Georgia in the south. Their delegates formed the Second Continental Congress and approved the Declaration, announcing that the colonies were separating from Great Britain.
The number thirteen later became a lasting national symbol. The original United States flag had thirteen stars and thirteen stripes, and the number remains visible in symbols, military traditions, and commemorative designs. The first flag’s stars and stripes represented the same thirteen colonies that declared independence.
The colonies were not identical: they had different economies, religious traditions, settlement histories, and relationships with Indigenous nations and enslaved people. They nevertheless acted together in 1776. The phrase “thirteen colonies” should not be confused with the later number of states; the United States expanded to 50 states over the next two centuries.