Remembering the Bicentennial
By: Julie A. Jacob
I have vivid memories of America’s Bicentennial celebration in 1976. I was in junior high school at the time, and the entire year felt like a giddy, goofy party as the country shook off the discord and discontent of the late 1960s and early 70s to mark the country’s 200th birthday.
The anniversary was celebrated in ways big and small. On a national level, President Gerald Ford visited Boston in April 1975 to mark the anniversary of Paul Revere’s famous ride. The U.S. Treasury minted special Bicentennial quarters featuring a picture of a drummer in a tricorn hat. The Bicentennial Wagon Train traced the journey of pioneers traveling across the continent in search of a better life. On television, the Bicentennial Minutes public service announcements provided bite-sized lessons in American history. Store shelves were filled with Bicentennial memorabilia, such as drinkware, plates, and ornaments, and people were eagerly reading the first three books in the Kent Family Chronicles by John Jakes, a sprawling story about a family during the Revolutionary War and the years afterward. But it wasn’t all a rosy depiction of the country’s past. For instance, a disabled veterans organization raised awareness of environmental issues by tossing mock oil drums into the Boston Harbor and protesters camped out by the North Bridge in Concord to highlight economic concerns.
Wisconsin received grant money from the American Revolution Bicentennial Commission, which was distributed to Old World Wisconsin, Heritage Hill State Park, and other organizations. Grant funds were also used for state improvement projects such as creating new hiking paths along the Ice Age Trail and mapping the state’s bike trails.
On a personal level, I remember the fire hydrants in town painted red, white and blue; a local high school’s performance of the musical 1776; the scenes on television of ships gliding through New York’s harbor; and the big Bicentennial party that my parents hosted in our backyard. My mom dressed as Betsy Ross and my aunt as Uncle Sam, and the celebration culminated with guests marching down the street waving sparklers and singing.
As the nation prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, the country is in a very different place than it was fifty years ago. In 1976, America was healing from a decade of strife and discord; for this semiquincentennial anniversary, we’re still in the thick of bitter polarization, distrust, and anger. Hopefully, America’s 250th anniversary will remind us all of the radical-at-the-time ideas of democracy and liberty on which the country was founded and will also be, as July Fourth has always been, a time for families and friends to gather, laugh, play, and celebrate together.
Julie A. Jacob is the author of Bicentennial Eve: A Wisconsin Novella.