America will celebrate its 250th anniversary on July 4, 2026. It’s all because the Declaration of Independence that represented the 13 American colonies was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776.

At that time, American colonists were fighting for their freedom from British rule during the Revolutionary War. Also known as the American Revolution, the War officially began on April 19, 1775, when the first shots were fired at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts.

What ensued was over eight years of battles, with over an estimated 230,000 Americans serving in the Continental Army for independence. On September 3, 1783, the signing of the Treaty of Paris officially ended the Revolutionary War.

At that time, photography had not been invented yet. (The first permanent photograph was taken in 1826.) But in 1864, a pair of brothers would capture six Revolutionary War veterans to preserve an important part of American........

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