John Nixon read the Declaration of Independence aloud in Philadelphia during its first public reading on July 8, 1776.
Nixon delivered the reading in the yard of the Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall. The reading occurred at noon, alongside first public readings in Trenton, New Jersey, and Easton, Pennsylvania.
The Declaration had been adopted by Congress four days earlier. Printed copies, known as Dunlap broadsides, were then distributed so that people throughout the colonies could learn about the announced separation from Great Britain.
John Nixon is sometimes confused with John Hancock, the president of the Continental Congress whose large signature became famous on the document. Nixon was the public reader in Philadelphia, while Hancock signed and authorized the congressional broadside.