[A Navy Vet]

"upcoming centennial of U.S. independence (1876),"

I get so tired of reading the incorrect birth date of the United States of America. It was NOT July 4, 1776 when the individual Colonies declared their independence from Britain. The United States became a sovereign Nation once all the Colonies (some called States) signed the Constitution in 1787, through long drawn out debates.

[A Navy Vet]

"The United States became a sovereign Nation once all the Colonies (some called States) signed the Constitution in 1787, through long drawn out debates" I forgot about a few State hold-outs who would not ratify the Constitution without certain guarantees regarding Amendments. For the Constitution to become the law of the land, it needed 9 of 13 States (colonies) to ratify.

June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the document, and it was subsequently agreed that government under the U.S. Constitution would begin on March 4, 1789.