Everyone knows that July 4^th is always a huge celebration in America, as it marks the passing of another year as an independent nation, free from the rule of Great Britain. In honor of 2016 being the 240^th anniversary of our freedom, we have compiled a few odd, surprising, and shocking facts about the process to freedom and the holiday itself that you may not know.

THE 4^TH OF JULY: THROUGH THE NUMBERS

1.     July 2^nd, 1776: the Declaration of Independence was voted on
2.     July 4^th, 1776: the Declaration was approved.
3.     56 signatures on the Declaration of Independence
4.     13 were 35 or younger and 7 were 60 or older
5.     1941: the year Congress declared Independence Day a federal holiday
6.     2 Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, died exactly 50 years after freedom was won- July 4^th, 1826.
7.     150 million hot dogs are eaten on each Independence Day across America
8.     As many as 1,000 firework shells are launched per second.

  Author: Janelle Homier, Marketing and Center Assistant at MathWizard, Inc.