My degree is in American history. I was particularly fascinated by the Civil War era as well as how immigrants/emigrants shaped the country.
However, learning lesser known historical facts is always fun for me, no matter the era. Admittedly, my recall abilities aren't very strong. So I'm not necessarily an asset on trivia night. But I love the learning!
As America celebrates its 250th birthday, I thought it would be fun to test your knowledge. Answers are below my byline.
No cheating!!
- 1
True or False. Michigan was a state at the time of the Revolutionary War.
- 2The land that would become Michigan was part of what Canadian territory at the time of the Revolutionary War?
- 3Who was on the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence?
- 4What occurred on July 2, 1776?
- 5True or False. The Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776.
- 6How many delegates to the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence?
- 7Did George Washington sign the Declaration of Independence?
- 8What came first? The start of the American Revolutionary War or the Declaration of Independence?
- 9What was the final battle of the Revolutionary War?
- 10What year was the Treaty of Paris signed, ending the American Revolutionary War?
- 11What European country provided supplies, ammunition and funds to the Continental Army?
- 12What infection did General Washington inoculate the Continental Army against?
- 13What was the daily whiskey ration for the Continental soldiers?
- 14An early copy of the Declaration of Independence was found in a flea market picture frame in 1989. How much was it sold for?
Sources
https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/10-fascinating-facts-about-the-declaration-of-independence
https://www.rochester.edu/newscenter/three-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-american-revolution/
https://www.americanrevolution.org/fun-facts/
https://azpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/American-Revolution-Trivia-Questions.pdf

Answers
- 1
False
- 2Quebec
- 3Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman and Robert Livingston
- 4The Second Continental Congress officially declared independence from Great Britain. While the Declaration had been written, delegates debated edits for two more days, adopting it on July 4th.?
- 5False. It wasn’t fully signed until August 2, 1776.
- 656
- 7No. He was away commanding the Continental Army. Neither did other founding fathers such as Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Patrick Henry, Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson.
- 8The exchange of gunfire at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts (“the shot heard round the world”) on April 19, 1775 is considered the beginning of the American Revolution, more than a year before the Declaration.
- 9Battle at Yorktown
- 101783
- 11France. Spain and the Netherlands later joined the war efforts.
- 12Smallpox. The death by smallpox dropped from 17% to 1%.
- 132.5 shots, about 4 ounces
- 14$8.1 million
