July/Aug 2026 (Volume 18, Issue 4)

 

By Michael Swanger

 

The American Revolution and America’s 250th anniversary have been top of mind since last summer when I began planning this year’s editorial content for Iowa History Journal, including stories about our state’s surprising connections to the American Revolutionary War. After reading books written by David McCullough and Rick Atkinson, watching “The American Revolution” film series by Ken Burns, and revisiting the Iowa Revolutionary War Memorial for a story in this issue of IHJ, I have not been so consumed by the American Revolution since I was in elementary school 50 years ago.

 

As excitement builds for this year’s Fourth of July—the pinnacle of our nation’s semiquincentennial celebration—I also find myself reminiscing about the year-long 1976 U.S. Bicentennial celebration. Though I was one month shy of my eighth birthday when the calendar turned to July 4, 1976, I remember it fairly well, especially the overall sense of patriotism that permeated our popular culture … or seemingly so from the perspective of a young boy. The memories come to mind like flourishes of fireworks. 

 

To begin with, during my advancement from second to third grade that year, I recall learning a few fundamentals about the American Revolution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Founding Fathers in school. This was when students routinely pledged allegiance to the United States flag at school and a drawing of George Washington hung in every classroom. 

 

My lessons learned in school about the American Revolution were augmented by educational, animated cartoons that aired on television every Saturday morning courtesy of “Schoolhouse Rock!” Fellow members of Generation X might recall the sub-series of “America Rock” short music videos with catchy hooks and memorable lyrics about American history like “I’m Just a Bill” and “The Preamble” that debuted in 1975. 

 

 

In 1976 it seemed like reminders of the bicentennial were everywhere. They included t-shirts with bold graphics featuring “The Spirit of 76,” collectible 1776-1976 coins, commemorative glassware and stamps featuring the ubiquitous bicentennial logo, and political buttons with patriotic graphics promoting that year’s presidential candidates—incumbent President Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. The American Freedom Train even made a stop in my neighborhood of Historic Valley Junction. 

 

That Fourth of July my family gathered at my grandmother’s house for our traditional cookout, games of croquet and badminton, and some age-appropriate fireworks. It was an all-day, outdoor event for myself and my cousins while the adults conversed and played cards inside grandma’s screened patio between meals and the aforementioned games. 

 

The bicentennial year culminated with a trip to Maryland where my family visited my aunt and uncle and their infant son. It was my first plane ride and my first time visiting our nation’s capitol. Seeing the iconic Washington Monument and Thomas Jefferson Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was awe-inspiring, even with snow on the ground. So, too, was seeing the chilly Potomac River, which has played an important role in our nation’s history, as well as the U.S. Capitol and White House. It brought to life my lessons in school about the American Revolution and made me feel connected to our nation and its history. 

 

A couple of years later we returned during the summer to see our relatives again and to visit more sites related to the American Revolution such as Mount Vernon, Constitution Gardens and Colonial Williamsburg. The latter gave me a feel for that pivotal period in U.S. history. 

 

Decades later, I visited Washington, D.C., with my wife and son for a summer vacation to take in some of those sites again, as well as several new ones. All three trips to our nation’s capital stand out in my mind and reinforce the importance and intrigue of learning history.

 

This year, not unlike 1976 during the aftermath of Watergate and the end of the Vietnam War, our nation is divided on many social and political issues. My hope is that the U.S. Semiquincentennial, like the bicentennial, might help unite us in some small way even for a day… especially for the sake of children.  

 

As Ford wrote in his memoir “A Time to Heal” about the 1976 celebration, it provided “an opportunity to pause and reflect upon the qualities that had made America great.”

 

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