Who wrote the original draft of the United States Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson wrote the original draft of the United States Declaration of Independence.

Congress appointed a five-member Committee of Five on June 11, 1776, to prepare a declaration. The committee consisted of Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Although the committee worked collectively, it selected Jefferson to produce the initial draft.

Jefferson largely wrote the document between June 11 and June 28 in Philadelphia. The other committee members suggested changes, and the Continental Congress subsequently edited the text during several days of debate. Congress removed substantial material, including Jefferson's criticism of the slave trade and slavery-related grievances.

Jefferson's draft is therefore not identical to the final Declaration. The famous language about equality and natural rights belongs to the adopted document, but its wording reflects revisions by the committee and Congress rather than Jefferson alone.