On July 4, 2026, our nation will commemorate and celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission has many initiatives and programs leading up to this anniversary. Check out America250.org for more information on ways you can participate!
Did you know?
Samuel Adams was an early and exceptionally influential leader of Bostonians from resistance to outright conflict with the British government in the 1760s and 1770s. Adams helped organize the Sons of Liberty, signed the Declaration of Independence, and was governor of Massachusetts. Adams received both bachelor's and master's degrees from Harvard, where he argued in a thesis the legality of resisting governments that abuse the rights of its citizens.
Historians have speculated that Adams was the driving force behind the protests that resulted in the Boston "Massacre" in March 1770, and the Boston Tea Party in December 1773, but there is little direct evidence of his involvement. He also was one of the main organizers of the first committees of correspondence in 1772, which connected the town meetings of Massachusetts to one another. Adams later served as lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, and governor until his retirement in 1797.