Congress Taps Jefferson: Declaration Committee Formed
The Continental Congress appointed a Committee of Five on June 11, 1776, to draft a formal declaration explaining the resolution for independence. Thomas Jefferson, at 33 the youngest member, was chosen to write the initial draft because of his reputation as an eloquent writer and because the committee wanted a Virginian to lead. Jefferson wrote the draft in 17 days at a portable writing desk in a rented room on Market Street in Philadelphia. The committee made minor revisions; Congress then debated and edited the text extensively, removing a passage condemning the slave trade (at the insistence of South Carolina and Georgia delegates) and adding references to divine providence. The final Declaration of Independence was approved on July 4, 1776, and signed by most delegates on August 2.
June 11, 1776
250 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Continental Congress
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Thomas Jefferson
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Benjamin Franklin
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John Adams
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Roger Sherman
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United States Declaration of Independence
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Robert R. Livingston
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Robert R. Livingston
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Committee of Five
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Continental Congress
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Thomas Jefferson
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John Adams
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Benjamin Franklin
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Roger Sherman
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Robert R. Livingston
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Committee of Five
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United States Declaration of Independence
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Second Continental Congress
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