The Declaration of Independence was adopted in 1776, establishing the anniversary counted by America250.
The Second Continental Congress approved the document on July 4, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War. The declaration formally explained why the colonies were separating from Great Britain and asserted that they had become free and independent states.
The year 1776 is often treated as the founding year of the United States, although independence developed through several connected events. Congress passed the Lee Resolution on July 2, adopted the Declaration on July 4, and later ordered the approved text engrossed on parchment. Most delegates signed that parchment on August 2.
The United States Constitution belongs to 1787, and the Articles of Confederation took effect in 1781. Those dates are important to the nation’s development, but America250 calculates its milestone from the 1776 declaration.