LEWISTON — Happy birthday, United States! The Fourth of July is about fireworks and cookouts, but also celebrating our history. Today the nation celebrates our country’s birth, when the Declaration of Independence was adopted, declaring our independence from England.

Erica Beaule, 30, who teaches U.S. history at Lewiston High School, gave the Sun Journal a Fourth of July pop quiz to get you thinking.

As we celebrate, it’s important to reflect on the history of the holiday, Beaule said. The signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 “was a huge accomplishment.” People continue to celebrate, but some lose touch with why, she said. When people remember why, celebrations become more meaningful.

History holds lessons for the future. “We want to learn from the mistakes of our past, grow as a country … but also continue to celebrate our accomplishments.”

When the Declaration of Independence was released by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, “it was chaos,” Beaule said.

According to James Heintze of American University in Washington, D.C., bells rang all day in Philadelphia. As the declaration made its way across the 13 states, it was read aloud in cities and towns, often accompanied by loud shouts, firings of muskets and the tearing down of British emblems, the start of our Fourth of July celebrations.

Beaule asks her students to consider, “If this never happened, where would we be? What would this world look like?”

She shared a bit of her own history, producing a copy of the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence from her desk. It was given to her by her grandfather, the late Frank Kelly, a former Lewiston city councilor.

He got the copy when he visited Washington, D.C., in 1995. He signed it, “To Erica, Love Pepere.”

Beaule smiled. “He loved history.”

And you thought school was out! School is out, of course, but Lewiston High School U.S. history teacher Erica Beaule is giving us a pop quiz on the Fourth of July history. Unlike high school, you get to grade yourself. Answers are on the page.

Pop quiz

1) What year was the Declaration of Independence signed, establishing our country?

2) Who was the first person to sign the Declaration of Independence?

3) What country did we fight for our independence?

4) How many colonies did the United States have in 1776?

5) Who was said to have sewed the first American flag?

6) In what U.S. city was the first Independence Day celebrated?

7) In what year was the Fourth of July declared a federal legal holiday?

8) How many cities in the United States have “independence” in their name?

9) Which two “signers” of the Declaration of Independence died on July 4, 1826?

10) John Adams and Thomas Jefferson wanted the bald eagle to be our national animal. They out-voted Benjamin Franklin. What animal did Franklin want to be our national animal?

**Bonus questions**

B1) How many years ago did Lewiston-Auburn begin the Liberty Festival?

B2) How many Americans lived in the United States in 1776?

B3) Who was the main writer of the Declaration of Independence?

B4) How many men signed the Declaration of Independence?

For more:

http://www1.american.edu/heintze/declar.htm

http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Independence_Day.shtml

Answers

1) 1776

2) John Hancock

3) Great Britain

4) 13

5) Betsy Ross

6) Philadelphia on July 8, 1776

7) 1941

8) Eleven, the most populous being Independence, Missouri

9) Thomas Jefferson and John Adams

10) Turkey

Bonus answers:

B1)  15 years ago

B2)  2.5 million, compared to today’s population of more than 310 million

B3)  Thomas Jefferson

B4) There were 56 signers