For America’s 250th anniversary, Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence.
Jefferson was chosen as the principal drafter by the Committee of Five, appointed by the Second Continental Congress in June 1776. The committee also included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston. Jefferson was 33 years old and a delegate from Virginia when he prepared the draft in Philadelphia.
Congress revised Jefferson’s language before approving the Declaration on July 4, 1776. Benjamin Franklin and John Adams offered suggestions, and Congress removed or changed several passages, including a lengthy section criticizing the transatlantic slave trade. Jefferson therefore wrote the principal draft, but the final document was a product of congressional debate and editing rather than the work of one person alone.