America’s 250th Birthday Party Begins
And now it begins.
With 2025’s Fourth of July celebrations now over, next up on the American party list is a considerably awesome one.
That would be, of course, the celebration of America’s 250th birthday on July 4, 2026.
And a small one it promises not to be. If you thought the June 14/Flag Day/Trump birthday parade of 2025 was a big deal, buckle in for 2026.
250 years ago next July 4th marks America’s Semiquincentennial. The latter term is already emblazoned in Wikipedia and notes that it is
also called the Bisesquicentennial, the Sestercentennial, America250 or the Quarter Millennium, (and) will be the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence. Festivities will mark various events leading up to the Declaration’s anniversary on Independence Day, July 4, 2026.
Official planning for the celebrations began in 2016 with the congressional, non-partisan United States Semiquincentennial Commission. In 2025, Donald Trump created the White House Task Force on Celebrating America’s 250th Birthday to also promote and plan the events.
The Wikipedia entry goes on to add:
The United States Semiquincentennial Commission Act of 2016 directs the United States Government to issue commemorative coins and postage stamps, and commission appropriately named naval vessels, in advance of the semiquincentennial. In addition, specific activities — both officially organized and independently created — are being planned. The legislation specifically directs the organization of events “in locations of historical significance to the United States” going on to list Boston, Charleston, New York City, and Philadelphia as “leading cities.”
The Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020 allows the United States Mint to redesign any coins in 2026. It calls for a series of five designs for the quarter, including one depicting women’s contributions to independence.
Plans for the casting of a new public bell are being coordinated by the National Bell Festival. The bell will honor 250 years of women’s contributions to the American story, and will lead nationwide ringing tributes during the celebrations.
The “Leading Cities” officially listed as participating in the 250th are, as of now, Boston, Philadelphia, New York, and Charleston. Each of those cities were leaders in the fight for America’s independence.
From the legendary Boston Tea Party to the memorializing of Evacuation Day (the day British troops evacuated Boston, under a siege led by the new commanding colonial General George Washington), Boston will have much to remember and celebrate.
So too with Philadelphia, the home of what then was known as the Pennsylvania State House and has now long been renamed as Independence Hall. It is there that the idea of American independence was debated, with the results written down as composed by, among others, a young delegate from Virginia named Thomas Jefferson. The document’s title: The Declaration of Independence.
And not to be forgotten is the city of Charleston, South Carolina. As written up here, South Carolina already has a site loaded with historical background on the state’s role in the Revolution. Among other things, it says:
There were more than 400 battles, skirmishes and events across South Carolina — including the war’s bloodiest battle. There are dozens of historical markers, museums and homes dedicated to the revolutionary-era. Come experience the landmarks, events and unforgettable stories you haven’t heard yet and learn why the Revolutionary War was won here.
In short, considering the celebrations from this last week — and earlier with the Trump Flag Day events — it is safe, very safe(!!) to predict Big Things for America’s 250th birthday party.
For those who may not have been around, it is worth recalling the 1976 American Bicentennial. That had been in the planning for years, beginning in 1966 — a full decade earlier.
As events turned out, the 1976 celebrations came a mere year after the collapse of Saigon, the evacuation of American troops, and the end of the disastrous Vietnam War. All of which launched the then-incumbent administration of President Gerald Ford to make a point of emphasizing “the themes of renewal and rebirth based on a restoration of traditional values, giving a nostalgic and exclusive reading of the American past.”
All of which is to say, Americans can be certain that despite the fact there is not a presidential election until 2028, with Congress, governors, and state legislators up for election in 2026 there will be a lot of politics swirling around the 250th, with various celebrations in fact having a political tint to them.
In other words?
The 249th Fourth of July is over.
The celebration — make that massive celebration — of America’s 250th birthday has just begun.
Buckle in!
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