The History Of The Fourth Of July

Going to a fireworks display is a popular way to celebrate the Fourth of July, but why is that? And why do we use July 4 as the day to honor United States independence? These and many other questions about the history of the Fourth of July are answered for curious readers in this fun, patriotic volume. Historical images and full-color photographs correlate closely with the text, showing the Founding Fathers and modern July 4th events. Written especially for beginning readers, the main content provides just the right amount of historical context and supports early elementary social studies curricula.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

An accessible story of America’s birthday brings alive the history and spirit of the Fourth of July, with an introduction to the fight for independence and the events and people that shaped American tradition. What happened on the Fourth of July long before there were fireworks and parades? Alice Dalgliesh takes young readers back to revolutionary times, back to the colonists’ desire for freedom and the creation of the Declaration of Independence. Simple text captures the excitement of the era, telling how word of Independence traveled up and down the thirteen colonies, touching the lives of everyday people throughout the land. Like all of Alice Dalgliesh’s work, The Fourth of July Story remains an American classic.

"Classic and timeless." --New York Times "The book details Kovic's entering of the Vietnam War as a fierce, pro-war patriot before becoming an outspoken peace activist after an injury paralyzed him and he returned home to a cold reception." --Rolling Stone "Born on the Fourth of July tells the story of its author's transition from war hawk to protestor after being paralyzed in Vietnam, and coming home to a lukewarm reception. It's no coincidence that 'Born in The U.S.A.' tells very much the same tale." --Billboard "Kovic's book follows him from star high school wrestler to a patriotic American inspired by John F. Kennedy to join the marines to the traumatic 1968 wartime injury that left him paralyzed from the chest down to his emergence as an outspoken anti-war activist." --Hollywood Reporter "The 1976 book, which was made into an Oscar winning film starring Tom Cruise in 1989, details Kovic's period in the Vietnam War as a fierce, pro-war patriot before he became an outspoken peace activist after an injury paralysed him and he returned home to a cold reception." --NME "He was born in the U.S.A.--and on the 4th of July. Bruce Springsteen narrates a foreword he wrote in the new audiobook edition of Born on the Fourth of July, Ron Kovic's anti-Vietnam War memoir." --New York Daily News "There is no better time than Independence Day to listen [to] The Boss' iconic voice on the foreword and this great work of art." --Examiner "For the 40th anniversary of the book, which became a movie in the '80s starring Tom Cruise, a new print edition was issued with a foreword written by Bruce Springsteen, and the audiobook is the only place where you can hear Bruce read his foreword directly to you. That's right, the Boss sets the tone for this extremely powerful and moving memoir in a way that you won't want to miss." --Omnivoracious "Forty years ago the Vietnam vet from Massapequa--wounded in combat and in a wheelchair ever since--published his classic war memoir, later made into a film with Tom Cruise. The anniversary edition features a foreword by Bruce Springsteen. Kovic's new book, Hurricane Street, chronicles the 1970s activism of the American Veterans Movement." --Newsday "Born on the Fourth of July chronicles Kovic's transformation from a gung-ho soldier entering the Vietnam War to his return home as a paralyzed man. His experiences overseas, as well as the terrible way he was treated when he came back, made Kovic's book one of the antiwar movement's most celebrated works." --Ultimate Classic Rock "Kovic entered of the Vietnam War as a fierce, pro-war patriot before becoming an outspoken peace activist after an injury paralyzed him and he returned home to a cold reception as a veteran. His book tells his story." --Radio.com "Born on the Fourth of July tells the story of Kovic's enlistment and how he became disillusioned with the war over time and especially after he returned home to the States. Many of the book's themes are echoed in Springsteen's hit song, 'Born in the U.S.A.'" --Asbury Park Press With a new foreword by Bruce Springsteen. This New York Times best seller (more than one million copies sold), presented here in a special fortieth-anniversary edition with a brand-new foreword by Bruce Springsteen, details the author's life story (portrayed by Tom Cruise in the Oliver Stone film)--from a patriotic soldier in Vietnam, to his severe battlefield injury, to his role as the country's most outspoken anti–Vietnam War advocate, spreading his message from his wheelchair.

This is the first comprehensive reference work on America’s Independence Day. Bringing attention to persons, places, and events of historical significance, the book focuses on the Fourth of July as it has been commemorated over the span of more than two centuries, starting with the first celebrations: public readings of the Declaration of Independence that occurred within days of its signing. Biographical sketches feature presidents (and how each celebrated the Fourth) and other politicians, famous soldiers, educators, engineers, scientists, athletes, musicians, and literary figures. Other topics include parks, monuments and statues dedicated on the Fourth; famous speeches and the personalities behind their stories; and general subjects of interest including education, abolition, temperance, African Americans, Native Americans, wars, transportation and holiday catastrophes.

Optimize training, enhance recovery, and improve performance with "Performance Nutrition: Applying the Science of Nutrient Timing." Based on the most current research in nutrient timing, Performance Nutrition blends theory with applied content and real-life examples to help nutritionists, athletes, and coaches design nutrition plans based on each athlete's individual needs and the specific demands of the sport. While other texts may provide a brief discussion of nutrient timing as a tool for improving sport performance, "Performance Nutrition: Applying the Science of Nutrient Timing "focuses solely on this newly developing facet of sport nutrition. Distinguished authors Krista Austin (a physiologist and nutritionist) and Bob Seebohar (a sport dietitian and USA Triathlon elite coach) share their extensive practical experience with athletes at all levels from recreational through professional. They provide specific nutrient timing recommendations for a wide range of sport types, including endurance, strength and power, combative (weight classified), and team sports. In particular, you will learn information on using nutrient timing theory to counteract altitude, heat and humidity, cold exposure, and air pollution. A chapter devoted to competition-day guidelines will help you keep your athletes hydrated, energized, and ready to perform. Plus, nutritional timelines, highlighted in special callout boxes and placed at the edge of the page for quick reference, offer visual plans of what athletes should eat in the hours leading up to and during competition. Practical and user friendly, this text also includes "In Practice" application exercises, mini-case studies, and four extended case studies to assist in translating the information to your own practice. Incorporating nutrient ingestion timing into your athlete's training program can promote enhanced recovery, create positive training adaptations, improve body composition, support immunity, and ultimately enhance performance. With "Performance Nutrition: Applying the Science of Nutrient Timing," you will gain the foundational knowledge and practical techniques to develop individualized nutrition programs to improve training, performance, and recovery.

Pauline Maier shows us the Declaration as both the defining statement of our national identity and the moral standard by which we live as a nation. It is truly "American Scripture," and Maier tells us how it came to be -- from the Declaration's birth in the hard and tortuous struggle by which Americans arrived at Independence to the ways in which, in the nineteenth century, the document itself became sanctified. Maier describes the transformation of the Second Continental Congress into a national government, unlike anything that preceded or followed it, and with more authority than the colonists would ever have conceded to the British Parliament; the great difficulty in making the decision for Independence; the influence of Paine's []Common Sense[], which shifted the terms of debate; and the political maneuvers that allowed Congress to make the momentous decision. In Maier's hands, the Declaration of Independence is brought close to us. She lets us hear the voice of the people as revealed in the other "declarations" of 1776: the local resolutions -- most of which have gone unnoticed over the past two centuries -- that explained, advocated, and justified Independence and undergirded Congress's work. Detective-like, she discloses the origins of key ideas and phrases in the Declaration and unravels the complex story of its drafting and of the group-editing job which angered Thomas Jefferson. Maier also reveals what happened to the Declaration after the signing and celebration: how it was largely forgotten and then revived to buttress political arguments of the nineteenth century; and, most important, how Abraham Lincoln ensured its persistence as a living force in American society. Finally, she shows how by the very act of venerating the Declaration as we do -- by holding it as sacrosanct, akin to holy writ -- we may actually be betraying its purpose and its power.