With a torch raised to the sky
And all who see her know she stands for
Liberty for you and me
I’m so proud to be called an American
To be named with the brave and the free
I will honor our flag and our trust in God
And the Statue of Liberty”
Larnelle
We go to NewYork City every few years and I always watch for this girl when landing and taking off, and make my way to Battery Park to try to catch a ride over to visit in person. I think she’s beautiful. She’s French. She was an amazing actress in Ghost Busters. She’s reliable and steadfast. She’s cool. She was a gift from France on July 4, 1886.
July 4
July 4 has had an uncanny way of marking history. We all know the biggie… when Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. (Read up on this to get the details, it wasn’t as simple as you might think). But do you know about these other happenings on July 4?
1) Iroquois nation cedes lands to British colonies in the Treaty of Lancaster (July 4, 1744).
2) British soldier George Washington surrenders to French Captain Louis Coulon de during the French and Indian War, ceding Fort Necessity in Fayette County, Pennsylvania (July 4, 1754).
3) Continental Congress Signs the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776).
4) West Point Military Academy founded (July 4, 1802).
5) Thomas Jefferson (3rd U.S. president) dies (July 4, 1826).
6) John Adams (2nd U.S. president) dies, on exactly the same day as Thomas Jefferson. Both men had served as president and attended the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
7) James Monroe, (5th U.S. President), dies (July 4, 1831).
8) Slavery abolished in New York State, exacerbating tensions over the slave trade in the South (July 4, 1827).
9) Confederate Army of Northern Virginia retreats from Gettysburg marking the end of the invasion of the North (July 4, 1863).
10) The Philippines gain independence from the U.S. (July 4, 1946).
11) Lyndon B. Johnson signs Freedom of Information Act, marking a new era of transparency in government (July 4, 1966).
