John Nixon read the Declaration of Independence aloud in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776.
The reading took place at noon in the yard of the Pennsylvania State House, the building now known as Independence Hall. It was one of three first formal public readings held simultaneously; the other locations were Trenton, New Jersey, and Easton, Pennsylvania.
Nixon was a Philadelphia official and militia officer who was selected to read the document to the public. His reading helped transform the Declaration from a congressional text into a public announcement that ordinary residents could hear directly.
John Hancock and Charles Thomson are sometimes confused with the public reader because Hancock was president of Congress and Thomson was its secretary. Thomas Jefferson drafted the principal text, but he did not deliver the Philadelphia reading. America250’s commemorative story includes this moment because public readings were an important part of how independence became known across the colonies.