The Lee Resolution declared the American colonies independent on July 2, 1776, two days before the date printed on the Declaration of Independence.
Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduced the resolution in the Second Continental Congress. Its central statement said that the colonies were free and independent states and that political ties with Great Britain should be dissolved.
Congress approved the independence resolution on July 2. It then debated and edited the Declaration of Independence, which was adopted on July 4. John Adams believed July 2 might become the celebrated anniversary, but July 4 ultimately became the date used for Independence Day.
This distinction explains why historical accounts sometimes refer to July 2 as the legal or political decision for independence, while America250 and the national holiday focus on July 4. The two dates describe connected but separate steps in 1776.