Congress passed the Lee Resolution on July 2, 1776, before America’s 250th anniversary.
Introduced by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia, the resolution declared that the United Colonies were free and independent states and that political ties with Great Britain should be dissolved. Its passage was the formal congressional decision for independence.
The Declaration of Independence followed two days later, on July 4. The Declaration explained the reasons for the break and presented the decision in a public statement. This distinction is why some historians describe July 2 as the legal or political independence date, while July 4 became the celebrated national holiday.
The two dates are frequently confused because both belong to the same congressional action in 1776. July 4 commemorates adoption of the Declaration’s final text; July 2 marks passage of the resolution that declared independence.