Dunlap Broadside (First Printing of the Declaration of Independence)
This document is the first printed version of the Declaration of Independence. Drafted for the most part by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence justified breaking the colonial ties to Great Britain by providing a basic philosophy of government and a list of grievances against the Crown. John Dunlap of Philadelphia was the printer to the Continental Congress and produced the broadside on July 4, 1776.
The Dunlap Broadside is filed in Volume 3 of the Rough Journals in the Papers of the Continental Congress. The Rough Journals were created by Secretary Charles Thomson and, with the supplementary record books kept by the Secretary, they provide a complete record of motions and resolutions passed, letters received and read, committees appointed, and reports made. Volumes 1 through 8 include entries for the proceedings of the First Congress and part of the Second Congress, which met at Philadelphia, PA, and Baltimore, MD, during this period. Learn more about the Papers of the Continental Congress
Dunlap Broadside (First Printing of the Declaration of Independence). National Archives Identifier: 301682
View and download the Dunlap Broadside on the National Archives Catalog. You can explore more of our holdings by visiting our online Catalog or by visiting the National Archives in Washington, DC. This record is located with Record Group 360: Records of the Constitutional and Confederation Congresses and the Constitutional Convention, Series: Papers of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789, File Unit: Rough Journals. We encourage researchers to visit us onsite to explore these records and learn more about the archival collections held in the National Archives in Washington, DC.