On what date did delegates primarily sign the engrossed Declaration of Independence?

Delegates primarily signed the engrossed Declaration of Independence on August 2, 1776.

Congress adopted the Declaration on July 4, but the formal parchment copy was prepared and signed chiefly on August 2. The engrossed document was written by Timothy Matlack, a clerk associated with the Continental Congress, in a formal hand on parchment.

The difference between July 4 and August 2 causes a persistent historical confusion. July 4 is the adoption date and the date celebrated as Independence Day. August 2 is the date most historians identify for the principal signing ceremony, although some delegates signed later and the exact sequence was not identical for everyone.

Fifty-six delegates eventually signed the document. Their signatures represented the thirteen colonies and exposed them to the risk of being treated as traitors by the British government. America250 focuses on the 1776 independence declaration, including both its adoption and its signing.