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Richard Dreyfuss plays shark expert Hooper in Steven Spielberg’s classic 1975 film, “Jaws.”

The Stories Hollywood Tells About America

How three movies set on the Fourth of July reproduce popular myth, but reveal even more through what they leave unsaid.
by Emily Tamkin via New Lines Magazine on July 4, 2024

The Fourth of July Has Always Been Political

The question is which vision of America it’s being used to advance.
by David Waldstreicher via The Atlantic on July 4, 2019

What Could Go Wrong for Trump on July 4th? In 1970, Protests and Tear Gas Marred the Day.

"Honor America Day" was designed to showcase support for President Nixon at a time of bitter division.
by Ronald G. Shafer via Retropolis on July 2, 2019

The Sounds of Independence

How was the Fourth of July celebrated during the Revolutionary War?
by Emily Sneff via Uncommon Sense on July 2, 2019
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The Ominous History Surrounding President Trump’s Fourth of July Rally

White nationalists have long used the holiday to advance their dreams of a white country.
by Christopher F. Petrella via Made By History on February 28, 2019

When the Fourth of July Was a Black Holiday

After the Civil War, African Americans in the South transformed Independence Day into a celebration of their newly won freedom.
by Ethan J. Kytle, Blain Roberts via The Atlantic on July 3, 2018
Fourth of July fireworks over the Brooklyn Bridge.
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Partisans Often Try To Claim July 4 As Their Own. It Usually Backfires.

Independence Day has always been a political battlefield.
by Kevin M. Kruse via Made By History on July 3, 2017
Frederick Douglass.
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"What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?"

Frederick Douglass’ 1852 speech is widely known as one of the greatest abolitionist speeches ever.
via BackStory on July 7, 2014
Painting of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin while writing the Declaration of Independence.

How the Complete Meaning of July Fourth Is Slipping Away

John Adams would not be happy to see what Independence Day has become.
by Gordon S. Wood via The New Republic on July 4, 2011
People posing with a large stack of wooden barrels

The Night Before the Fourth

The great bonfires of Gallows Hill—and what they tell us about America.
by Yoni Appelbaum via The Atlantic on July 1, 2011
A drawing of the exhumation of President Monroe's coffin.

Which States Have the Most Dead Presidents?

The answer reveals grave robbing problems for America’s deceased leaders.
by Frank Jacobs via Atlas Obscura on October 20, 2023
Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass and the Trouble with Critical Race Theory

A favorite icon of critical race theory proponents doesn’t say what they want him to say.
by Robert S. Levine via Los Angeles Review of Books on August 2, 2021
President Duterte saluting at monument
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July Fourth is Independence Day for Two Countries. But for One It is Hollow.

For the Philippines, independence from the United States came with strings attached.
by Christopher Capozzola via Made By History on July 4, 2021

Dreams of a Revolution Deferred

How African-Americans in Early America celebrated the Declaration of Independence's ideals, even as basic freedoms were denied to them.
by Derrick R. Spires via Uncommon Sense on June 30, 2020

What’s Next?

Expanding the radical promise of the American Revolution.
by Holly Jackson via Lapham’s Quarterly on October 10, 2019

What to an American Is the Fourth of July?

Power comes before freedom, not the other way around.
by Ibram X. Kendi via The Atlantic on July 4, 2019

It Isn’t Independence Day For Everyone

If the British had won the Revolutionary War, things might be very different for Native Americans.
by Steve Teare via The Nib on July 4, 2019

An Ives Fourth

Nostalgia or nightmare?
by Sudip Bose via The American Scholar on July 4, 2019

The Declaration Heard Around the World

The declaration's words and sentiments have inspired nations and movements around the world.
by Louis Menand via The New Yorker on July 4, 2019

Convulsions Within: When Printing the Declaration of Independence Turns Partisan

Even America's founding document isn't immune to the powers of polarization.
by Emily Sneff via Age of Revolutions on July 4, 2018

The History of Military Parades in the U.S.

The Trump Administration has clamored for a military parade. What are the origins of tank-led celebrations?
by Marissa Fessenden via Smithsonian on February 7, 2018

Was the Declaration of Independence Signed on July 4?

How memory plays tricks with history.
by Ray Raphael via Journal of the American Revolution on October 10, 2017
Political cartoon depicting American colonies celebrating July 4th.

American Consumer Empire in Puerto Rico

Puerto Ricans were forced to become “Porto Ricans” – adopting Anglo customs while subsidizing American profits.
by William Horne via The Activist History Review on July 14, 2017

How Charleston Celebrated Its Last July 4 Before the Civil War

As the South Carolina city prepared to break from the Union, its people swung between nostalgia and rebellion.
by Paul Starobin via What It Means to Be American on June 29, 2017

What if the Fourth of July Were Dry?

In 1855, prohibitionists set their sights on the wettest day of the year.
by Kyle G. Volk via OUPblog on July 4, 2014
Firecracker box with "Santa Claus" theme

Kaboom! 10 Facts About Firecrackers That Will Blow You Away

Firecrackers are essentially un-American, even though we associate them with our most deeply patriotic celebration, the Fourth of July.
by Lisa Hix via Collectors Weekly on July 3, 2014
Lithograph of George Washington on his land with people he enslaved.

What, to the American, Is Revolutionary?

The colonial rebellion we celebrate every July 4th doesn’t fit the definition.
by Kellie Carter Jackson via The Emancipator on July 2, 2024
Lithograph of a a band playing and upper-class people dancing in a park.

The Scandalous Roots of the Amusement Park

The "Pleasure Gardens" of the 18th Century captivated the public with a heady mix of fantasy and vice.
by Cath Pound via BBC News on August 21, 2022

Break the History Addiction

July 4 and the perils of celebrating America’s past.
by David Armitage via New York Daily News on July 3, 2022
A collection of flags, games, and printed matter from the Civil War

Patriotism and Consumerism in the Civil War

For a burgeoning consumer society, store-bought flags and bonnets offered proof that commercialism could go hand in hand with heartfelt emotion.
by Livia Gershon, Joanna Cohen via JSTOR Daily on July 3, 2022
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