By the summer of 1976, the United States was hungry for a reset. After Vietnam, Watergate, a recession and an energy crisis, the American Bicentennial arrived as both a distraction and a snapshot of the national mood—part patriotic revival, part marketing wave.
But the celebration was never just bunting and fireworks.
“Most official Bicentennial planners certainly hoped to ‘turn the page’ on the tragedies and traumas of the late 1960s and early 1970s,” says Marc Stein, author of Bicentennial: A Revolutionary History of the 1970s. Yet, he adds, the year also sparked protests and alternative events led by racial and ethnic minorities, women, LGBTQ people and other groups demanding a more honest national story.
Still, for millions of Americans, 1976 was a year of pageants, parades and over-the-top merchandise, with some critics calling it the “buy-centennial.” These photos capture the range—from tall ships to tea bags—of how the country marked its 200th birthday.
