For America250, the first widely distributed printed version of the Declaration of Independence was the Dunlap broadside.
Philadelphia printer John Dunlap produced the broadsides after Congress adopted the Declaration on July 4, 1776. A broadside is a large sheet printed on one side, a practical format for posting publicly and distributing quickly. Congress ordered copies so the news could reach military commanders, colonial governments, and the wider public.
The surviving Dunlap broadsides are valuable because they preserve the text from the earliest printing stage. They were produced before the carefully engrossed parchment was signed by most delegates. The printed sheets also did not carry the delegates’ signatures.
The name refers to John Dunlap, not to Thomas Jefferson, whose manuscript draft is associated with the writing process. “Broadside” describes the format, while “Dunlap” identifies the printer. The earliest copies helped turn a congressional decision into public news across the revolutionary colonies.