Known now as a day of patriotism and enjoying time off from work, the Fourth of July began the journey to becoming a quintessential American holiday in 1776, when the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence.

Orange Beach is decked out in all things red, white and blue this Independence Day. “Fourth of July has always been my favorite holiday,” Mckena Fisher, a beachgoer from Mississippi, said. Thousands of people had the same idea this holiday weekend — to celebrate our country’s independence right here on