Stanford historian says…
Two Stanford historians discuss how the United States’ Declaration of Independence became one of the pillars of American civic life and other lesser-known historical facts about what happened on July 4, 1776.
Is there something that you found out through your research about the history of July 4 that the public might not know about?
Gienapp: One thing that is not well known is that it took quite some time for the Declaration of Independence to matter in American life. That might seem difficult to believe since it is regarded as the nation’s foundational text containing its governing creed. Yet, for well over a decade after it was written, it was largely forgotten and ignored…