Aside from watching fireworks and having a cookout to celebrate the Fourth of July this year, consider visiting places that commemorate the historic events that led to America's independence in 1776. Tireless road-tripper Chris Epting, author of The Ruby Slippers, Madonna's Bra and Einstein's Brain: The Locations of America's Pop Culture Artifacts, speaks with Ayesha Court for USA TODAY about his favorite sites.
The Old North Bridge
Concord, Mass.
What Ralph Waldo Emerson described as the "shot heard 'round the world" rang out here on April 19, 1775, when Capt. John Parker and his militia farmers refused to hand over their weapons to government troops. It's "so peaceful and quiet, and it runs so counter to what that day would have been like — the bloodshed, the smell of gunpowder," Epting says. 978-369-6993; nps.gov/mima
The Old North Church
Boston
Paul Revere's midnight ride to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that the British were arriving by sea began here when the church's sexton hung two lanterns in its steeple — "One if by land ... two if by sea." "It's perfectly preserved," Epting says. "When you look up at that window, that's exactly where it happened." 617-523-6676; oldnorth.com
Fraunces Tavern
New York
Amid the more modern buildings, the yellow brick Fraunces Tavern — where Gen. George Washington bade his officers a final farewell on Dec. 4, 1783, after the last British soldiers had left American soil — still stands looking much as it did then. "I love this place," Epting says. "In addition to the wonderful food and an excellent museum," the Long Room, "where Washington bid farewell, is exactly as it was then." 212-968-1776; frauncestavern.com
Old South Meeting House
Boston
When more than 5,000 angry colonists met here on Dec. 16, 1773, there was little of the usual political debate about the quotidian issues generally argued here. "No tax on tea" was the rallying cry, and so began the Boston Tea Party. "It's not musty," Epting explains. "You can see re-enactments and it gives you a sense of the drama in a non-hokey way." 617-482-6439, oldsouthmeetinghouse.org
Independence Hall
Philadelphia
In this park, "you're sharing a space with our forefathers" who created the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution here. "We take so many freedoms for granted — but this place puts into perspective what was at stake," Epting says. "They were writing our future." Home also to the Liberty Bell — "the most important artifact related to our freedom." 215-965-2305; nps.gov/inde
The National Archives
Washington
Of the National Archives hall housing the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, Epting says, the room housing the Declaration of Independence "is one of the most humbling places in the world to be in." Viewers can see the original, handwritten documents, though under tight security and archival glass to preserve the delicate parchment. "It will never cease to amaze me that human hands wrote that — the writing is so royal." 866-272-6272; archives.gov
Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine
Baltimore
During a British attack on this star-shaped fort in 1814, Francis Scott Key penned our national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, here. Not only is it "an impressive fort," but because the song was written during the battle, "it depicts exactly what was happening during that War of 1812 battle," Epting says. Visitors can see and talk to the Fort McHenry Guard, period-costumed volunteers re-creating life as it was in 19th-century Baltimore. 410-962-4290; nps.gov/fomc
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