Happy Birthday USA

July 4th is considered the birthdate of our country because this is the day that the Continental Congress approved the document declaring our independence from England. This was not the beginning of our strife with England nor was it the first act of defiance or war that we committed. It was simply the first time that most of the colonies agreed on breaking away from England. Only New York abstained from voting.

John Hancock from Massachusetts (My home state) was probably the most well known signatory on the declaration. His signature was the largest and most recognizable on the document which is why we still refer to our signatures as our John Hancock. One common myth is that he wrote it big enough for the nearsighted King George III to recognize.