Thomas Jefferson drafted the main text of the United States Declaration of Independence, commemorated by America250.
Congress appointed Jefferson to the Committee of Five, which was tasked with preparing a declaration. The other committee members were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston. Jefferson wrote the principal draft, which the committee reviewed before submitting it to Congress.
Congress edited the document during debate. One notable change was the removal of a passage criticizing the transatlantic slave trade, among other revisions. The final Declaration therefore reflects both Jefferson's drafting and Congress's collective action.
Jefferson was 33 years old in 1776 and represented Virginia in the Second Continental Congress. He later became the third president of the United States. Benjamin Franklin and John Adams are sometimes credited as the sole authors because they helped revise the draft, but Jefferson is the canonical answer for the principal drafter.