HAPPY 4th of JULY
I just happen to live in Philadelphia…where all this Hoopla originated.
Do you want to be the hit of your BBQ today? Have you ever wanted to be referred to as “Smarty Pants”? Well, today is your lucky day folks! I have provided you with some very interesting 4th of July facts that are guaranteed to get you avoided like the plague or envied by all…Choose your victims audience wisely. This is your time to shine…let your bells of freedom ring loud!
Now go make your cheat sheet…grab the Jell-O mold and hit that BBQ with a world of knowledge that is sure to stump your family and friends. Start with the crowd that is hovered around the alcohol, they won’t be able to run as quickly.
Did You Know …..
• The Fourth of July was not declared a national holiday until 1941.
• Malia Obama, George Steinbrenner, Neil Simon, Ron Kovic and Calvin Coolidge were all born on the Fourth of July.
• These events occurred on the Fourth of July: Henry David Thoreau moved into his shack on Walden Pond (1845); the U.S. air offensive against Nazi, Germany, began (1942); Beach Boys’ “I Get Around” reached No. 1 on the Billboard charts (1964); Lyndon Johnson signed the Freedom of Information Act (1966).
• The stars on the original American flag were in a circle so all the Colonies would appear equal.
• Benjamin Franklin proposed the turkey as the national bird but was overruled by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who wanted the bald eagle.
• The musical “1776” premiered on Broadway in 1969 and ran for 1,217 performances. The production won three Tony Awards, 
including one for best musical.
• The number of Americans who will spend the holiday at other people’s homes is approximately 41 million
• The first official Fourth of July party was held at the White House in 1801.
• Approximately 150 million hot dogs are consumed on this day.
• The town of Patriot, Ind., has a population of 202 people.
• Presidents John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe all died on the Fourth. Adams and Jefferson died on the same day within hours of each other in 1826.
• The percentage of American homes with an outdoor grill is 87 percent.
• The song “Yankee Doodle” was sung originally by British officers making fun of backwoods Americans.
• The amount of chicken purchased the week before the holiday is 700 million pounds.
• The Declaration of Independence was signed by 56 men from 13 colonies.
• In 1776, there were 2.5 million people living in the new nation. (Today there are 311 million.)
Enjoy your family…Enjoy your friends…and like always…Enjoy the Ride!
Life With The Top Down 
May the FOURTH be with you 😉
Happy Independence Day Lisa.
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Hahahahaha!
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I LOVE THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just Tweeted it. See, I’d be chasing you around to learn more. Love that you have the history gene. Not everyone does you know and there were things on your list I didn’t even know. Great Great!!!
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Thank you!
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Your writing gets better and better by the way. I don’t read just anyone, I haven’t time. I love what you put up there. For what it’s worth.
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((hugs)) It’s worth millions darling…millions!
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Awww, see I get that totally. When someone says something nice about my prose I beam. It’s better than telling me I look nice.
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You can now consider me a well informed Canadian! I need to find me a barbecue to hang out at. 😉
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Great post! I did know that Adams and Jefferson both died on the 4th, did not know Monroe did. I will be one of those 41 million who will spend today at someone else’s home where we will eat some of the 700 million pounds of chicken, I also knew that the turkey was considered before the eagle (would we have then eaten eagle on Thanksgiving?),. This is a delightful post, thanks for the info, I may just use some of it this afternoon, but not while I am out on the boat, I know they would not hesitate to throw me over… Have a joyous day filled with lots of memory making moments. Happy 4th! DAF
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Hahahahahaha! I am hysterical laughing at visions of someone being tossed overboard due to being quizzed on these facts…lol. Happy 4th!
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made it back from the boat, didn’t get thrown overboard, almost was bounced out of the boat, but that was just fun!
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I guess it was meant to be… this was the first message I saw when I opened my email this morning. A ride down history lane. I’ll start off with the Beach Boys…
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Wow, fantastic bits of information. I LOVE trivia, and yes, I’m that guy who bores people with useless, I mean useful, information!
So many great nuggets in this post. I’m with Ted on the Beach Boys. And three presidents died on the Fourth?? Fascinating.
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That was weird about the dead presidents…never heard that one. I love useless information…so much more interesting.
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Happy Independence Day! 🙂
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Quite a few useful facts!!! My pup was happy to hear about the chicken and hot dogs! 🙂 Thanks for the giggle and the education! Happy 4th!
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Well had to work today so no celebrations for me but I can go to work tomorrow and dazzle my co-workers with my “4th Facts”
Hope you had a great day!!
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I love that you got a little sentimental with your July 4th post too. It’s a day that really does get you thinking.
I also love that you got that Benjamin Franklin quote in there. One of the best quotes ever, in my opinion.
Fun fact: John Adams’ last words were “Thomas Jefferson lives”, even though Jefferson had died earlier that day.
Another fun fact: Thomas Jefferson was a really weird dude – 6’1 or 6’2 (very tall for the time), with an extremely erect posture, and dressed like a dandy. He had a high pitched voice and a lisp, and probably for that reason, he feared public speaking, and would also get really hot-headed when people disagreed with his ideas. However, he also had a habit of singing all the time – it was one of his most notable characteristics. Unfortunately, Jefferson wasn’t a great military commander either, so John Adams enlisted him to write the Declaration of Independence (thinking it would be a minor document in a larger strategic battle), because he was useless in the military and in the newly-formed continental congress. It ended up being Jefferson’s greatest accomplishment, and for the rest of Adams’ life, Adams rued the day that he let Jefferson write that document.
Can you tell I’m a bit of a U.S. History buff?
Happy belated 4th!
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Just a tad Dave! You are a walking, talking Google search engine. Thank goodness for people like you!!
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Great post! You shoulda told that guy in the check out lane that even though you’re not wearing red, white, and blue your post is. Of course, a person like that has likely not heard of the internet…
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I think I might have know about the date the Freedom of Information Act was signed, actually. TOTALLY kidding! I had NO clue! About nearly all of these, in fact – fascinating! The only one I MIGHT have heard before was the Franklin turkey fact (seems like something that lost me a puzzle piece in Trivial Pursuit at some point)… so bizarre! And interesting!
🙂
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Reblogged this on Maya Moulton Summary.
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Reblogged this on Samantha Fountain Pages.
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Thanks for stopping by and re-blogging!
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