Five members made up the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence.
Congress appointed the committee on June 11, 1776, to prepare a formal explanation of independence. Its members were Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston. Jefferson produced the initial draft, while the other committee members reviewed it before presenting it to Congress.
Congress then debated and edited the draft before adopting the Declaration on July 4. The committee’s name describes its membership, not the number of people who ultimately signed the finished document. Fifty-six delegates eventually signed the engrossed parchment, making five and 56 two distinct figures in the Declaration’s history.
The committee also explains why Thomas Jefferson is generally credited as the principal writer without being the only contributor to the document’s preparation. Adams and Franklin were especially influential reviewers, and Congress made further changes during its debate.