August 2: Declaration of Independence Signed

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Although the United States Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress on 4 July 1776, it was not actually signed by the delegates until 2 August 1776.

A Committee of Five was appointed by the Continental Congress to draft a declaration of independence: John Adams (Massachusetts), Roger Sherman (Connecticut), Benjamin Franklin (Pennsylvania), Robert R. Liviningston (New York), and Thomas Jefferson (Virginia). The document submitted to the Continental Congress was primarily written by Jefferson with changes made by Adams and Franklin.

Once the Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, the Committee of Five oversaw its printing as a broadside to be distributed around the colonies. However, the document could not be signed until it had been “engrossed,” the process of preparing the official manuscript.
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Not all 56 delegates who eventually signed the Declaration of Independence did so on August 2. Ironically, Robert R, Livingston never signed the declaration because he thought it was premature.

John Trumbull’s famous painting of “Declaration of Independence , July 4, 1776” is historically inaccurate but is based on recollections of both Jefferson and Adams. Even though historian Mellon Chamberlain brought the error to light in 1884, the painting was included on the American two dollar bill.

3 Responses

  1. Mohamed Shuman says:

    It is little known that the rough draft written by Thomas Jefferson included “We hold these truths to be sacred & undeniable” it was later changed to “We hold these truths to be self-evident” Nobody actually knows who rephrased it credit is often given to Benjamin Franklin but some would say it was John Adams some historians even like to claim it was Jefferson himself who made this key revision or its at least his handwriting The controversy comes because this change was made before Adams made his copy. But the question remains on who actually rephrased it. Another change in the preamble that would be very controversial today would be instead of reading “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” it would read “We hold these truths to be sacred & undeniable; that all men are created equal & independent, that from that equal creation they derive rights inherent & inalienable, among which are the preservation of life, & liberty, & the pursuit of happiness;” If you haven’t caught the controversial change yet its the phrase its “the preservation of life” if this was included in the ratified version of the Declaration of Independence the supreme court which often refers to the Declaration of Independence might rule abortions unconstitutional. Though the argument today is we are entitled to life it could have been we are not only entitled to life but we must also preserve life at all costs. Instead we have a sort of in between where we are entitled to life but when does life truly begin? If Jefferson’s version was ratified people would easily shoot down that argument on the basis of the preservation of life and they would actually have something to refer to where today they have something to refer to but it’s not very specific. In conclusion these changes have been crucial to the issues of separation of church and state regarding the first change and the issue of abortion regarding the second change I cited. There are many more changes but these two to me seem very important if not the most important.

    – Mohamed Shuman

  2. justin ghannam says:

    Wow. I did not know that illustration was on the back of a two dollar bill and I highly doubt many others did too. It’s also quite an interesting concept that we celebrate the fourth of July when it was actually completed on that day.
    On behalf of what Mohamed stated I think although it is blatant that the people writing the Declaration wanted it to be as clear as day, in modern society the entire thing means a lot of different things to different people. That’s not to say there isn’t an exact meaning, but I feel it’s a good thing that people interpret a document so important as that in their own way. Although most people in America take the entire freedom idea for granted, the Declaration is a beautiful piece of work for a lot of immigrants and although we don’t think about it often, the piece of paper can be what their dream was. The concept of living free under a fair government elected by the people.
    Though you bring up very valid points about the altering of certain pieces in the Declaration I personally think that most of the ‘fun’ in history comes from not knowing who did things like these. You make some very strong arguments in your comment but I’m attempting to say that discussing different view points and I guess ‘crack pot theories’ of what could of happened makes the entire idea interesting. You are however completely right on the general point you were making. We will never know, and their was a lot of hypocritical concepts written in document.

    -Justin Ghannam

  3. Makenzy Wilson says:

    Of the 56 autographs on the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress, gained infamy for his. His autograph, easily spotted on the Declaration, is not only clear, but also noticeably larger than that of other delegates. Viewed as an act of defiance toward King George III, John Hancock’s signature encouraged others to sign it as well. At that time, anyone who signed the document faced treason and therefore could be hanged. Perhaps a common misunderstanding is that the declaration was to formally notify the king that the colonies were declaring themselves independent of Britain. The document was actually geared toward the people living in the colonies. The Declaration of Independence clearly informed the people of America why independence from Britain was crucial.

    -Makenzy Wilson

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