Its America’s Independence Day, it’s time to celebrate! So grab a hot dog, crack open a cold one with the boys, and lets shoot off some fireworks! Also here is a list of Fun Facts you should know about the 4th of July.

July 4th, 1776, 241 years ago today America was “Born” (Depending on who you ask)

It was on this day The Declaration of Independence was signed, which made The United States of America its own country.

But here is a list of some other facts you should know about the 4th of July:

• The colonies officially declared independence on July 2nd, 1776, not the 4th. The Second Continental Congress approved the motion for independence on the second, and Congress approved the actual Declaration on the 4th. But few, if any of the Declaration’s signatories actually signed the document on that day.

• Thomas Jefferson changed the wording of the Declaration of Independence from “the pursuit of property” to “the pursuit of happiness.”

• Only two men signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4th, 1776 — John Hancock and Charles Thompson.

• Congress declared July 4th as an official holiday in 1870 as part of a bill to officially recognize other holidays, Christmas being one of them.

• Three U.S. presidents have died on Independence Day. While it’s a time for celebration in our country, Thomas Jefferson (1826), John Adams (1826) and James Monroe (1831) all died on that day. Coincidentally, Jefferson and Adams died on the same day in 1826, the 50th anniversary of Independence Day.

• On the flip side, America’s 30th President, Calvin Coolidge, was born on July 4, 1872.

• Even though this is an American holiday, your fireworks and American flag were probably made in China. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Americans imported $4 million worth of American flags from other countries annually and nearly a quarter of a billion dollars worth of fireworks from China in 2014.

• Americans eat more than 150 million hot dogs every Fourth of July! July is considered “National Hot Dog Month.”

• The “Star Spangled Banner” was written by Francis Scott Key and was originally a poem stemming from his observations in 1814 concerning the British attack on Baltimore’s Fort McHenry during the War of 1812. It was later put to music, though not decreed the official national anthem until 1931.

• The average age of those who signed the Declaration of Independence was 45. The youngest at age 27, was Thomas Lynch, Jr of South Carolina. The oldest delegate was Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania at age 70. Thomas Jefferson was 33.

We hope you enjoyed these 4th of July fun facts. Did you learn something new? If so, feel free to share with others around the pool or while grilling hot dogs!

From all of us at Teenview Magazine we hope you have a FUN and SAFE 4th of July!