John Hancock’s signature appears first on the engrossed parchment copy of the United States Declaration of Independence.
Hancock was president of the Second Continental Congress when the declaration was adopted. His position explains why his name is placed separately and prominently above the state-grouped signatures rather than simply appearing in the Massachusetts list.
His large, distinctive signature later made “John Hancock” a familiar American expression for a person’s signature. Stories about Hancock proudly making his name large enough for the king to read are popular, but historians treat the best-known versions as later anecdotes rather than securely documented exchanges.
Hancock was a Massachusetts merchant and political leader who became a prominent supporter of the revolutionary cause. He did not write the declaration’s main text; that role belongs chiefly to Thomas Jefferson. Hancock’s importance here comes from his congressional office and his place as the first signature on the parchment.