Who was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, central to America250?

Thomas Jefferson was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, the document whose 1776 approval is commemorated by America250.

Jefferson was one of five delegates appointed to the Committee of Five, which prepared a formal declaration after Congress began considering independence. The other members were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston.

Jefferson wrote the initial draft, but Congress debated and revised the text. John Adams and Benjamin Franklin reviewed the draft before it was presented to Congress. The final document therefore reflects both Jefferson’s principal authorship and the wider work of Congress.