Four U.S. cities received special focus under the federal law planning America's 250th-anniversary events.
The United States Semiquincentennial Commission Act directed that anniversary events receive special focus in Boston, Philadelphia, Charleston, and New York. The legislation described these locations as historically significant places connected to the assertion of American liberty and the Revolutionary era.
The cities represent different parts of the colonial and revolutionary story. Boston was a major center of resistance, Philadelphia hosted the Continental Congress and Declaration debates, Charleston was an important southern revolutionary city, and New York became a crucial military and political center during the war.
The number four refers specifically to the cities named for special focus in the federal planning law. It is not the number of all cities hosting America250 programs, since anniversary events occurred nationwide and involved many additional communities.