Which document’s adoption in 1776 is the central historical event commemorated by America250?

America250 commemorates the adoption of the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776.

The Declaration was approved by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. It announced that the thirteen American colonies regarded themselves as free and independent states rather than colonies subject to Great Britain.

The document was drafted primarily by Thomas Jefferson with assistance from a five-member committee. Its arguments about rights, government, and political legitimacy made it influential far beyond the immediate Revolutionary conflict.

The Declaration is distinct from the U.S. Constitution, which established the federal government in 1787, and the Bill of Rights, ratified in 1791. The Articles of Confederation formed an earlier national framework, but they were not the document whose 250th anniversary America250 marks.