Americans are learning a new word this year: 

Semiquincentennial. 

A word not even recognized on spell check, but just give it a Google and you’ll find a surprise on your screen. 

The United States Semiquincentennial, also called the Bisesquicentennial, the Sestercentennial, or the Quarter Millennium, will be the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence.

The Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, voted for the independence of the United Colonies by passing the Lee Resolution on July 2, 1776. The Declaration of Independence, mainly written by Committee of Five member Thomas Jefferson, was proclaimed on July 4, the date on which the anniversary of independence is observed.

In today’s edition of the Sullivan County Democrat is the special 250th section detailing the history of Sullivan County and how the Revolutionary War had connections to our county. 

The 56-page edition also has detailed stories on upcoming events in the county to commemorate the 250th as well as features about the historic relevance of that time period in our region. 

We give our thanks to Sullivan County Historian John Conway, Executive Director of The Delaware Company Debra Conway, and the members of the Sullivan County Semiquincentennial Commission for helping us produce this keepsake edition. 

John Conway is a wealth of knowledge of our county’s history and deftly writes these historical moments and people into interesting articles for all to enjoy. For instance, did you know that the county was named for General John Sullivan, a major player in the American Revolution?

Find out about this and much more in the 250th section in today’s paper, and available for free at multiple locations throughout the year (as available). 

And as you read these stories of the past, you can then go out and visit some of the notable places mentioned, as many are preserved and open to the public, marking living histories right here, such as Minisink Battleground Park in Barryville, the site of the “Battle of Minisink”, the Upper Delaware’s only major Revolutionary War skirmish.

Fort Delaware in Narrowsburg, an authentic depiction of the life of the Delaware Company Pioneers who settled in the Upper Delaware Valley in 1754, will hold multiple events throughout the year to commemorate the Semiquincentennial.