Let’s look at a fun mathematical fact about our young country as it turns 249 today.

On the day Thomas Jefferson passed away — significantly enough, the same day America was celebrating its 50th birthday, July 4, 1826 — Jefferson was 83 years old. What, you may be asking, does that have to do with this year’s national birthday celebration?

Well, if you talk to an 83-year-old person living in America today, you’d find he was born in 1942. If you went back to 1942 and found another 83-year-old, you’d find he was born in 1859. And if you went back to 1859 and found another 83-year-old, you’d find he was born in … 1776!

Just three 83-year-olds living back-to-back-to-back takes you to the year our nation was founded.

Facts About Founding Fathers

Sidebar: Jefferson, our third president, was not the only Commander in Chief whose life was tied historically to America’s birthday. John Adams, our second president died within five hours of Jefferson on the same day.

Plus, our fifth president, James Monroe, passed away on July 4, 1831.

However, one president was actually born on the Fourth of July. Calvin Coolidge came into the world on that day in 1872 and would grow up to become America’s 30th president.

Young Fighters for a Young Nation

And while we’re pondering this age thing, it’s also fun to look at the relative youth of those who signed the Declaration of Independence, keeping in mind that 56 delegates representing the 13 original colonies actually put their very “lives, fortunes, and sacred honor” on the line when they put their John Hancock to the document (and, yes, one of them was indeed John Hancock). (Also, due to present-day controversy, it is worth noting that none of the representatives signed using an autoquill.)

Their average age was 44, which happened to be George Washington’s age at the time. And Washington’s nemesis across the Pond, King George III of England? He was 38.

The oldest signer of the Declaration was (no surprise), Benjamin Franklin at age 70.

And Thomas Jefferson, the document’s chief author, was 33 when he signed it.

Now, enjoy the celebrations and get ready for the biggest one of all: next year’s 250th!

A different version of this article appeared originally at American Thinker.

Albin Sadar is the author of Obvious: Seeing the Evil That’s in Plain Sight and Doing Something About It, as well as the children’s book collection, Hamster Holmes: Box of Mysteries.