The Final Text of the Declaration of Independence July 4 1776 Introduction On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee introduced into Congress a resolution, (adopted on July 2) which asserted that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, fee and independent States. Rough Draft This is the "Rough Draft" text of the Declaration as Jefferson probably presented it to Benjamin Franklin and John Adams, for correction, prior to committee. A transcription is provided below the image on this page. Click the image for an enlargement. From a comparison of it with the facsimile of Jefferson's rough draft, it is evident that it represents the first phrasing of the paper. The text in the second column is approximately that reported by the committee to Congress, and is taken from Jefferson's rough draft. The Changes Made to Jefferson’s Original Rough Draught Second Continental Congress In June of 1776, the Committee of Five—John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston—was charged by the Committee of the Whole with the responsibility of authoring a draft of the Declaration of Independence— just in case the Lee Resolution were approved. After Manuscript copies of the Declaration of Independence (distinct from the rough drafts and clean copies) are simply handwritten copies of the final, approved text. (This is Professor Julian Boyd's reconstruction of Thomas Jefferson's "original Rough draught" of the Declaration of Independence before it was revised by the other members of the Committee of Five and by Congress. The final draft of the Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776, but the actual signing of the final document was on August 2, 1776. Writing and signing the Declaration of Independence took courage, but it was an important step in the founding of our Government. Directions: Read through each version and circle or underline unfamiliar words. Then make notes, or draw lines and arrows, to identify or indicate differences between the “Rough draught” and the first printed version. Thomas Jefferson's "original Rough draught” of the Declaration of Independence* One important statement in an early draft of the Declaration of Independence, but not in the final version, was a section criticizing the British monarchy's support for the slave trade. This part, written by Thomas Jefferson, blamed King George III for violating the "sacred rights of life and liberty" of enslaved people. The Second Continental Congress received a draft of the Declaration from Jefferson that made the British rejection of the petition submitted by the First Continental Congress to end the slave trade one of the grounds for severing ties. In an early draft of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson included a passage that attacked the institution of slavery. This was, in the early drafting stages of the Declaration, and proved to be one of the most controversial aspects of the document. This statement was not included in the final draft of the Declaration of Independence. The Rough Draft in its present form is thus the ‘original paper,’ together with all, or nearly all, the corrections, additions, and erasures made between the day on which Jefferson submitted it to Franklin and Adams and the 4 of July when Congress adopted the Declaration in its final form. The "original Rough draught" of the Declaration of Independence, one of the great milestones in American history, shows the evolution of the text from the initial composition draft by Jefferson to the final text adopted by Congress on the morning of July 4, 1776. Read a transcript of the rough draft of the Declaration of Independence as authored by Thomas Jefferson before it was edited by the larger Continental Congress. Why Was the Declaration’s Anti-Slavery Passage Removed? Thomas Jefferson reading the rough draft of the Declaration of Independence to Benjamin Franklin. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images A Draft Copy On June 11, 1776, the Second Continental Congress entrusted a committee of five delegates (Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Roger Sherman) with composing the Declaration of Independence. The phrase “he has dissolved” was struck out at the beginning of this line; it is obvious that TJ had started to repeat the preceding sentence-a clear evidence that he was copying from an earlier draft (Boyd, Declaration of Independence, 1945, p. 26). Drafting the Documents Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia behind a veil of Congressionally imposed secrecy in June 1776 for a country wracked by military and political uncertainties. In anticipation of a vote for independence, the Continental Congress on June 11 appointed Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R Declaration of Independence (Rough Draft with Final Draft) Declaration of Independence (Official) Jefferson created the original draft of the Declaration of Independence before it was edited by the Continental Congress. Some of the major difference between the original and the final version include: replacing “sacred and undeniable” with “self-evident” and “that from that equal After the document is identified as Thomas Jefferson’s “original Rough draught” of the Declaration of Independence, students will compare its text to that of the final document adopted by Congress on July 4, 1776 and discuss the significance of differences in wording.
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