Politics & Government
Fun Fourth of July Facts You Might Be Surprised By
One of the most popular holidays of the year, the Fourth of July is a major celebration for many Americans. Here are some holiday facts.
Before you take a bite out of your third hot dog or drop another scoop of potato salad onto your plate, take a look at some other things associated with the Fourth of July.
We all know that on this day in 1776, the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress, setting the 13 colonies on the road to freedom as a sovereign nation.
But here are some other facts:
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1. The estimated number of people living in the newly independent nation was 2.5 million people in July 1776. Source: Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970.
2. The nation's estimated population on this Fourth of July is 311.7 million
Source: Population clock.
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3. Annual dollar value of shipments of fabricated flags, banners and similar emblems by the nation's manufacturers, according to the latest published economic census data, $302.7 million. Source: 2007 Economic Census, Series EC0731SP1, Products and Services Code.
4. Patriotic-sounding place names: Thirty-one places have “liberty” in their names. The most populous one as of April 1, 2010, was Liberty, MO. (29,149) IA, with four, has more of these places than any other state: Libertyville, New Liberty, North Liberty and West Liberty.
Thirty-five places have “eagle” in their names. The most populous one is Eagle Pass, TX (26,248).
Eleven places have “independence” in their names. The most populous one is Independence, MO. (116,830).
Nine places have “freedom” in their names. The most populous one is New Freedom, PA. (4,464).
One place with “patriot” in the name. Patriot, IN. (209).
Five places have “America” in their names. The most populous is American Fork, UT (26,263).
5. OK, so we do need to throw this in: The hot dogs and/or pork sausage you are consuming most likely originated in Iowa. The Hawkeye State was home to 19.0 million hogs and pigs March 1. This estimate represents more than one-fourth of the nation's estimated total. North Carolina (8.6 million) and Minnesota (7.6 million) were also homes to large numbers of pigs. Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service.
