The Lee Resolution formally approved American independence before the Declaration was adopted on July 4.
Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduced the resolution in the Second Continental Congress on June 7, 1776. It proposed that the United Colonies should be free and independent states, that political ties with Great Britain should be dissolved, and that a plan for foreign alliances and a confederation should be prepared.
Congress debated the proposal and adopted the independence portion on July 2, 1776. The vote created the legal and political decision to separate from Britain. Congress then turned to the Declaration of Independence, which explained and justified that decision and was approved on July 4.
This sequence causes a frequent historical mix-up. July 4 became the celebrated national holiday because it is the date on the Declaration, but John Adams believed July 2 should have been commemorated as the true independence anniversary. The 250th anniversary celebration follows the traditional July 4 observance while recognizing the earlier congressional vote.