Post Announces 2020 Scholarship Winners

Croteau-Coutts Post 24 is proud to announce the winners of its 2020 Linwood Croteau Memorial Resident and Legacy Scholarships. All Scholarship awards this year were for $1,000.00.

Liam Heagney of Rockwall, Texas was the recipient of the Linwood Croteau Memorial Legacy Scholarship. Liam is the grandchild of Robert H. Ferranti Sr., a departed member of the Post. He is beginning his sophomore year at the University of Arkansas, majoring in Exercise Science. He successfully completed his freshman year with a 3.58 GPA.

Evelyn Proctor of Marlborough was the first of two Linwood Croteau Memorial Resident Scholarships recipients this year. Evelyn is beginning her sophomore year at the University of New Hampshire. She is majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular and Cellular Biology with a double major in Justice Studies, in order to become a Forensic Scientist. Evelyn finished her freshman year with a very impressive 3.73 GPA.

Abigail Mitchell of Marlborough was the second recipient of the Linwood Croteau Memorial Resident Scholarship this year. Abigail is beginning her sophomore year at the University of New Hampshire. She is currently enrolled in the nursing program working toward a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN) and will become a registered nurse. She obtained her LNA license in high school and plans to become a pediatric oncology nurse. Abigail finished her freshman year with an outstanding 3.95 GPA.

The officers of Croteau-Coutts Post 24 are taking the summer off and will meet next in September. July is the beginning of a new membership year and the Post would like to remind all veterans that requirements for membership in the American Legion have changed. In the past, prospective members needed to have been in the armed forces during certain time periods coinciding with a war. Recently membership was opened up to any veteran who served in the armed forces and received an honorable discharge. Scholarship awards are only one aspect of what we do for veterans and the community. The Post invites all veterans who wish to learn more to come to our next meeting.

Fourth of July – Independence Day

When the initial battles in the Revolutionary War broke out in April 1775, few colonists desired complete independence from Great Britain, and those who did were considered radical. By the middle of the following year, however, many more colonists had come to favor independence, thanks to growing hostility against Britain and the spread of revolutionary sentiments such as those expressed in the bestselling pamphlet “Common Sense,” published by Thomas Paine in early 1776.

On June 7, when the Continental Congress met at the Pennsylvania State House (later Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, the Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee introduced a motion calling for the colonies’ independence. Amid heated debate, Congress postponed the vote on Lee’s resolution, but appointed a five-man committee—including Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York—to draft a formal statement justifying the break with Great Britain.

On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of Lee’s resolution for independence in a near-unanimous vote (the New York delegation abstained, but later voted affirmatively). On that day, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail that July 2 “will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival” and that the celebration should include “Pomp and Parade…Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other.”

On July 4th, the Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, which had been written largely by Jefferson. Though the vote for actual independence took place on July 2nd, from then on the 4th became the day that was celebrated as the birth of American independence.

Early Fourth of July Celebrations

In the pre-Revolutionary years, colonists had held annual celebrations of the king’s birthday, which traditionally included the ringing of bells, bonfires, processions and speechmaking. By contrast, during the summer of 1776 some colonists celebrated the birth of independence by holding mock funerals for King George III as a way of symbolizing the end of the monarchy’s hold on America and the triumph of liberty. Festivities including concerts, bonfires, parades and the firing of cannons and muskets usually accompanied the first public readings of the Declaration of Independence, beginning immediately after its adoption. Philadelphia held the first annual commemoration of independence on July 4, 1777, while Congress was still occupied with the ongoing war.

George Washington issued double rations of rum to all his soldiers to mark the anniversary of independence in 1778, and in 1781, several months before the key American victory at the Battle of Yorktown, Massachusetts became the first state to make July 4th an official state holiday.

After the Revolutionary War, Americans continued to commemorate Independence Day every year, in celebrations that allowed the new nation’s emerging political leaders to address citizens and create a feeling of unity. By the last decade of the 18th century, the two major political parties—the Federalist Party and Democratic-Republicans—that had arisen began holding separate Fourth of July celebrations in many large cities.

Fourth of July Fireworks

The first fireworks were used as early as 200 BC. The tradition of setting off fireworks on the 4th of July began in Philadelphia on July 4, 1777, during the first organized celebration of Independence Day. Ship’s cannon fired a 13-gun salute in honor of the 13 colonies. The Pennsylvania Evening Post reported: “at night there was a grand exhibition of fireworks (which began and concluded with thirteen rockets) on the Commons, and the city was beautifully illuminated.” That same night, the Sons of Liberty set off fireworks over Boston Common.

Fourth of July Becomes a Federal Holiday

The tradition of patriotic celebration became even more widespread after the War of 1812, in which the United States again faced Great Britain. In 1870, the U.S. Congress made July 4th a federal holiday; in 1941, the provision was expanded to grant a paid holiday to all federal employees. Over the years, the political importance of the holiday would decline, but Independence Day remained an important national holiday and a symbol of patriotism. Falling in mid-summer, the Fourth of July has since the late 19th century become a major focus of leisure activities and a common occasion for family get-togethers, often involving fireworks and outdoor barbecues. (SOURCE: History.com Editors: https://www.history.com/topics/holiday/july-4th)

Last year, Croteau-Coutts Post 24 presented a reading of the Declaration of Independence at the old Meeting House site adjacent to the Meeting House Cemetery. We did this in order to remind the public of the meaning of this holiday. This year is very different than last year for a number of reasons. COVID19 still impacts our daily lives, many people are out of work while the state of New Hampshire struggles to reopen, and there are numerous protests across the country in which our citizenry is voicing their grievances and asking for change. The Declaration of Independence was in many ways a list of grievances that the colonists held toward King George III so this document should hold added relevance this year. Please join Post 24 members again this year as we gather at the old Meeting House site on Saturday, July 4^th, at 11AM to recognize the 244^th Birthday of the United States with a reading of our Declaration of Independence.