The Fourth of July is about all things American: parades, cookouts, cold beer and, of course, fireworks. Those pyrotechnics remain at the center of Independence Day, a holiday 247 years in the making. Massive fireworks lit up the skyline of multiple American cities, marking festivities across the country.

Procession kicks off from Boston City Hall Plaza at 9 a.m. and meanders to the Old State House for the annual reading of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

The Fourth of July is a celebration of all things American with parades, backyard barbecues and the night sky lit up with fireworks.