About 200 Dunlap broadsides of the Declaration of Independence were printed in July 1776.
John Dunlap printed the first published copies of the Declaration in Philadelphia during the night of July 4, 1776. A broadside was a large sheet printed on one side, a practical format for distributing an important announcement quickly. The precise number produced is unknown, but historians estimate about 200.
The Dunlap broadside was not the same as the famous parchment document displayed today. It carried the adopted text and identified John Hancock as signing on behalf of Congress, but it did not include the full set of delegates’ signatures. Congress used these printed sheets to send the independence announcement to colonial governments, military leaders, and the public.
Only 26 Dunlap broadsides are known to survive, making each an important historical artifact. The survival count can change if another copy is identified, while the original print run remains an estimate. This distinction explains why “about 200” is more accurate than an exact total.