At the time the Declaration of Independence was signed 250 years ago, Catholics were a small minority in the 13 colonies — about 25,000 (1%) of the 2.5 million people — and were often mistrusted and treated with hostility. Today, Catholics represent more than 60 million (20%) of the roughly 350 million people nationwide.
A lot has happened over those 250 years to get to this point. Here is a look at Catholicism in the United States.
