The first printed version of the Declaration of Independence was the Dunlap broadside, issued soon after its 1776 adoption.
John Dunlap, a Philadelphia printer, produced the broadsides for the Second Continental Congress. Printing began after Congress approved the Declaration on July 4, 1776, and roughly 200 copies were made. These large single-sheet prints could be distributed quickly to military leaders, colonial governments, and the public.
The Dunlap broadsides were not the same as the later engrossed parchment copy. They did not carry the delegates’ handwritten signatures, but they preserved the adopted text and helped spread the news of independence. George Washington received copies for reading to the Continental Army.
Only a limited number of original Dunlap broadsides survive. Their rarity and historical importance have made them valuable primary sources for studying the Declaration’s earliest public circulation. The name comes from the printer, not from a signer or a congressional committee.