To honor the United States’ 250th anniversary, Cumberland County will host a public reading of the Declaration of Independence on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, at 6:00 PM. The event, which commemorates the historic first public reading of the document on July 8, 1776, will feature Cumberland County Mayor Allen Foster reading the declaration in its entirety from the courthouse steps.

In tandem with the live event, the Upper Cumberland Development District (UCDD) is inviting community members to participate in a video time capsule project. Residents can contribute by filming short smartphone video clips—up to 10 seconds long—of themselves reading portions of the declaration and emailing them to [email protected]. Once completed, the collaborative video capsule will be distributed to all participants.