Thomas Jefferson largely wrote the United States Declaration of Independence, adopted by Congress in 1776.
On June 11, 1776, the Second Continental Congress appointed the Committee of Five to prepare a declaration. The committee included Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Adams and the other members persuaded Jefferson to draft the document because of his reputation as a strong writer.
Jefferson worked on the text between June 11 and June 28. Congress then debated and edited his draft, removing passages and changing wording before approving the final declaration on July 4. Thus, Jefferson was its principal drafter, but the document was a collective congressional product.
Jefferson's original rough draft survives at the Library of Congress. The parchment engrossed copy displayed at the National Archives was prepared later for signing, making the drafting process different from the document most visitors recognize today.