Where were the first public readings of the Declaration of Independence held simultaneously?

The first public readings of the Declaration of Independence were held simultaneously in Philadelphia, Trenton, and Easton.

The readings took place at noon on July 8, 1776, four days after Congress adopted the document. In Philadelphia, John Nixon read the Declaration in the yard of the Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall.

The other two readings occurred in Trenton, New Jersey, and Easton, Pennsylvania. Public readings helped transform a document approved by delegates into a proclamation that ordinary people could hear across the colonies.

The event is sometimes overshadowed by the July 4 adoption date and by later traditions surrounding Independence Day. The first public readings were not held in every colony at once; the documented simultaneous readings occurred at these three locations.