Three simultaneous public readings of the United States Declaration of Independence occurred on July 8, 1776.
The readings took place at noon in Philadelphia, Trenton in New Jersey, and Easton in Pennsylvania. These events followed Congress's approval of the Declaration on July 4 and helped communicate the break with Britain to communities beyond the congressional meeting place.
In Philadelphia, John Nixon read the document in the yard of the Pennsylvania State House, the building now known as Independence Hall. The Declaration was also printed and distributed as broadsides, allowing its arguments to circulate widely.
The date is sometimes confused with July 4, the adoption date, or August 2, when most delegates signed the engrossed parchment copy. Public reading, congressional adoption, and physical signing were separate milestones.