Congress passed the Lee Resolution declaring the American colonies independent on July 2, 1776.
Introduced by Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee, the resolution stated that the United Colonies should be free and independent states and that political connection with Great Britain should be dissolved. Congress approved that political decision two days before it approved the Declaration’s final wording.
July 4 became the celebrated date because Congress adopted and published the Declaration of Independence on that day. The Declaration explained and justified the independence decision, while the Lee Resolution supplied the formal political action behind it.
The distinction between July 2 and July 4 is one of the most important date details surrounding America250. John Adams even predicted that July 2 would be remembered as the great anniversary, but public tradition ultimately centered on July 4.