The Second Continental Congress passed the Lee Resolution on July 2, 1776.
Introduced by Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee, the resolution declared that the United Colonies should be free and independent states. Congress approved it in Philadelphia, creating the formal political decision for independence two days before the Declaration was proclaimed.
July 4 is the date celebrated as Independence Day because Congress adopted and publicly announced the Declaration of Independence on that date. The Lee Resolution and the Declaration are therefore related but not identical: one was the legal-political resolution for independence, while the other stated the reasons and principles behind the break with Britain.
John Adams considered July 2 the true anniversary of independence, but July 4 became the enduring national holiday. America250 centers on the 1776 independence milestone while recognizing both stages of the process.