July 5, 1961 - A total of 509 persons died in traffic accidents over the 4-day Independence Day weekend, a record for any similar summer holiday. The total of 924 accidental deaths, 204 of them from drowning, was a record for any holiday period, winter or summer. California had the most traffic fatalities - 47. The previous summer holiday record was 491 dead over the Fourth of July holiday of 1950, which also was four days long.
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