<Li> In 1781, the Massachusetts General Court became the first state legislature to recognize July 4 as a state celebration . </Li> <Li> In 1783, Salem, North Carolina held a celebration with a challenging music program assembled by Johann Friedrich Peter entitled The Psalm of Joy . The town claims to be the first public July 4 event, as it was carefully documented by the Moravian Church, and there are no government records of any earlier celebrations . </Li> <Li> In 1870, the U.S. Congress made Independence Day an unpaid holiday for federal employees . </Li> <Li> In 1938, Congress changed Independence Day to a paid federal holiday . </Li>

When did the 4th of july become an official holiday