Would the Confederacy Have Celebrated the Fourth of July?

From the July 3, 2014, Atlantic.

Back in 1861, a reporter for the New York Times, on the first July 4th since the beginning of the war, described it thus:  "It is like the anniversary of a divorced couple's wedding."  I can definitely agree with that.

In a 2009 paper in the Journal of Southern History, historian Paul Quigley wrote that while some Southerners were conflicted with celebrating the holiday, the acknowledgement of the significance of the day continued.

In Charleston, S.C., in 1861, a committee of five decided the "public procession, solemn oration, and political language ought to be omitted on the present occasion," but offices would be closed.

Even before the war, the meaning of the Fourth of July was changing.  In the North, the abolitionists used the declaration's language of freedom to call for an end to slavery.  In the South, secessionists used the language of willful rebellion to call for a new country, insisting that the North had not lived up to the Declaration of Independence's promise.

I'll Shoot Off the Fireworks Anyway.  Maybe Just Aim Them Northward.  --Old Secesh