Happy Independence Day to all my American readers!

It was on this date in 1776 that the original thirteen American colonies now regarded themselves as a new nation, the United States of America. The Continental Congress declared they were no longer part of the British Empire.

Here are four fascinating facts about the famous holiday:

• July 4 wasn't deemed a federal holiday until 1870, nearly 100 years after the nation was founded.
• Fireworks have been a major part of Fourth of July since the earliest celebrations. In 1884, miners blew up the post office in Swan, Colorado, because it wasn't supplied with fireworks.
• Americans consume around 155 million hot dogs on the Fourth of July each year. They also spend $92 million on chips, $167.5 million on watermelon, and $341.4 million on beer.
• Only two people actually signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4: John Hancock and Charles Thomson, secretary of Congress. Most of the others signed on August 2.