John Nixon delivered the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence, a moment recalled in the history celebrated by America250.
Nixon was a Philadelphia financier and militia officer who became involved in the revolutionary cause. On July 8, 1776, he read the Declaration from the steps of the Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall. The reading took place in the building’s yard before a public audience.
The first formal public readings actually occurred simultaneously at noon in three locations: Philadelphia, Trenton, New Jersey, and Easton, Pennsylvania. Nixon is specifically associated with the Philadelphia reading, the best-known of the three. The event helped carry Congress’s written declaration beyond the meeting room and into public life.
John Hancock signed the engrossed document as president of Congress, Thomas Jefferson was its principal drafter, and Benjamin Franklin served on the drafting committee. None of those prominent figures delivered this first public reading, which is why Nixon’s name is an especially useful historical detail.