The Fourth of July is today and the nation is celebrating with food, drink and fireworks. But, Independence Day is really about the history of our country. Think you know everything about the founding of our country? You might be surprised to learn about these four myths!

  • 1

    July 4th is the day we declared independence

    Nope. Congress declared independence on July second, not on July fourth.  As a matter of fact, Benjamin Franklin wrote to his wife on July third and predicted that Americans would celebrate the second of July for years to come. He was definitely wrong.

  • 2

    The Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4th

    Again, this would be a big, fat no.  Most of the delegates signed the Declaration on August 2nd. And no matter what you might remember learning in school, there wasn't one single day when all the men lined up to sign the document.

  • 3

    Betsy Ross sewed the first flag

    This one is obviously true, right? Wrong! A guy named Frances Hopkinson designed the first flag, but no one knows who actually sewed it. Betsy Ross was a seamstress in the 1700's, and she may have made flags for the government, but according History News Network, Betsy's family pretty much made up the rest of the story in the 19th century.

  • 4

    The Liberty Bell rang in our independence

    This is sort of true. The bell did ring to symbolize our independence, but it didn't happen on July 4, 1776. The bell rang on July 8th, the day that the Declaration was read in Philadelphia and the day Americans first celebrated their independence.

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