According to the National Retail Federation’s report, 87% of Americans plan to celebrate Independence Day this year, the official 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In fact, “planned per-person spending on food items for Independence Day” is reported at $94.41. The Federation estimates that this year, 13% of Americans will not celebrate the federal holiday.

In 1866, Mary Jane Edwards does not mince words in expressing her attitude about such revelry, despite the end of the war and beginning reconstruction of the nation:

Wednesday, July 4, 1866

The anniversary of our national independence, a day usually spent by many people in vanity and foolishness, and I suppose in many places, efforts have been made to celebrate this day in the usual way and may be with increased zeal since our country has lately overcome the rebellion which was kindled in his midst, but I apprehend no very great good originates therefrom. Brothers harvested, and Lizzie and I did some work at home and in the afternoon went visiting to Eliza Gards.

–Mary Jane Edwards

Like many early Friends, the Edwards family did not recognize secular holidays. She and her family still used numbered references to days of the week and the months- e.g. “First Day” instead of Sunday; “Third Month” for March- rather than their pagan-influenced common names.  

Her diary does have common date headings because it was a purchased, preprinted gift from new coworkers living together in Jackson, Mississippi. I suspect she did not cross off the common headings and replace them because of the tiny size of the pages. Mary Jane does occasionally confuse the dates, perhaps because she is unaccustomed to navigating the waters of mythologically-based terms for days and months.

For these early Friends, the value of each day being holy- none more holy than another- was cement in the foundation of their lives. Because of this guiding principle, many did not even celebrate religious holidays, such as Christmas or Easter. 

Later, in Mary Jane’s diary, though, there is evidence that this attitude is changing: She and Lizzie, now teaching freedmen in Arkansas, buy toys and trinkets to decorate a Christmas tree in their lodging house.

Even so, I suspect Mary Jane would be as annoyed as I am in my neighborhood with the continual cracks and booms of fireworks starting in the middle of June.

Today, many Friends do celebrate secular holidays. How about your family?