The United States will likely be awash in pride and patriotism this time next year, as America celebrates its 250th birthday on July 4, 2026.
Anyone old enough to recall the July Fourth bicentennial celebrations in 1976 will remember a year’s worth of commemorations, special offers and celebrations leading up to a massive nationwide party that summer.
President Donald Trump has said Americans can expect much of the same through 2026, with Trump predicting that the celebration under his watch will reach “extraordinary” levels.
Trump is scheduled to visit Iowa this month to kick off the celebration of America’s 250th birthday, marking his first visit to the first-in-the-nation GOP caucus state since his return to the White House.
When is America 250?
America will celebrate its semiquincentennial throughout 2026, culminating on Independence Day.
Some celebrations leading up the Fourth of July in 2026 have already started, according to the America 250 calendar of events.
Ohio, Kentucky events part of America 250 buildup to July 4, 2026
Cincinnati, Newport and Covington will be part of the year-long celebration.
The America’s River Roots Festival, held on the waterfronts in all three cities, is scheduled for Oct. 8–12, 2025, and includes live music, food and riverboat cruises with boats from seven cities.
Ohio group working to mark Revolutionary War gravestones ahead of July 4, 2026
America 250-Ohio, a commission planning the state’s celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary, is behind an effort to enter all of Ohio’s Revolutionary War dead into one database, the Columbus Dispatch reports. It may be the first public crowdsourced database of its kind in the country.
How old is the United States?
The U.S. Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence 249 years ago, on July 4, 1776.
What America 250 events are scheduled?
In January, Trump signed an executive order that created Task Force 250.
As outlined by the order and headed by Trump, Task Force 250 is responsible for planning and executing “an extraordinary celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence” on July 4, 2026. The task force is also responsible for the creation of the National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture garden first proposed by the president in 2020 that is scheduled to open in July 2026.
Who is behind America 250?
The United States Semiquincentennial, also known as America250, is a nonprofit dedicated to the celebration of the 250th anniversary across the country. The America250 site lists more than a dozen corporate partners, including Amazon, Coke and Walmart, and has information on events scheduled throughout the country.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Fourth of July 2026 includes big plans for America’s 250th. How Ohio, NKY are involved
Reporting by Jason Rossi and JJ Hensley, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
