GREAT JOB!!!   July 4, 1776 was the date that the Second Continental Congress ADOPTED the Declaration of Independence.  TWO DAYS EARLIER Congress voted to accept a motion made on June 7th by Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee that "these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States".  That night John Adams wrote to his wife saying, "The second day of July, 1776 will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America.   I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival."