That Hot Summer in Philadelphia

The events of July 4, 1776 may not have been the most dramatic. Their impact, however is profound and immeasurable.

The Second Day of July 1776 will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by Solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be Solemnized with Pomp and Parade with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.

Such were the words of John Adams, discovered in one of the nearly 1,200 letters exchanged between the future 2^nd President of the United States and his wife Abigail predicting how the previous day’s vote by the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia to break off all ties with the almighty British Empire would be honored for centuries to come. Adams, the abrasive yet morally upright Boston lawyer demonstrated a tremendous, almost clairvoyant foresight regarding how Americans, two centuries after his death, would commemorate this historic moment. Except for one thing.

Instead of July 2^nd, somehow, we got stuck with July 4^th. What the heck happened?

Let me explain. The answer as to why boils down to one of the driest processes in human existence: parliamentary procedure. Unless you were a debater in school, earned a law degree, or have been elected to public office, odds are you have probably never encountered parliamentary procedure. According to Cornell University, parliamentary procedure “refers to the procedures for debate and general conduct of business of the Assemblies during meetings and other operations.” The purpose of such measures is to ensure an orderly and expeditious process to adopt decisions on the principle of majority rule without entirely marginalizing the minority.

As 25 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were lawyers, Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee’s mere resolution dissolving the relationship between the 13 Colonies and Great Britain, passed on July 2, 1776, was insufficient. For the next two days, the congress debated amendments to the formal document drafted by a five-man committee, a committee that included Adams and his lifelong political rival and primary author of the declaration, Thomas Jefferson. Finally, on July 4, the delegations of 12 of the 13 Colonies (New York eventually followed 5 days later) approved the document before another Massachusetts delegate, wealthy businessman John Hancock (yes, the John Hancock) ordered Philadelphia printer John Dunlap to print hundreds of broadside documents to spread the word of the treasonous declaration.

On the very top of these Dunlap Broadsides spread across the colonies: the words IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776. With these words, a new holiday was born.

Yes, it is true that other nations around the world have picked far more dramatic events honor their national day. Mexicans enjoy feasts of Pambazos and drinks of Cerveza to commemorate Padre Miguel Hidalgo’s ringing of the bells of Dolores and rallying cry for independence. France blasts off more fireworks and parties well past midnight every July 14 to celebrate the famed storming of the Bastille prison in 1789. And Russia holds a massive parade (until this year) in Moscow’s Red Square every May 9 to celebrate the 1945 surrender of Nazi Germany and capture of Berlin by the Red Army. Yet for Americans, mere parliamentary procedure suits us just fine.

The founders’ attention to detail perhaps conveys a greater meaning. Rather than a rash, emotional, sudden, or violent act, the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence made sure that such a consequential document would leave no ambiguity, cross every T, and dot every I, for their determination to their cause. Indeed, 250 years of American history has been an exercise in exactly that. Through the elimination of slavery, groundbreaking invention after groundbreaking invention, and the ascent to a global great power status stronger than modern Britain and France combined, our entire existence has been a quest to achieve a more perfect union. And it all began on that hot summer in Philadelphia.

Since that fateful Thursday 250 years ago, the original document, scribed by Timothy Matlack, has survived war, mishandling, sunlight, and even a heist by Nicolas Cage. Yet the profound significance of the document, word by word, persists to this day.