July 4th - Celebrates the Adoption of the Declaration of Independence

Creating the Declaration: A Timeline | National Archives

Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Their Taking up Arms,

June 11, 1776: Committee of Five Appointed

June 11–July 1, 1776: Declaration of Independence Drafted

July 2, 1776: Lee Resolution Adopted & Consideration of Declaration

July 4, 1776: Declaration of Independence Adopted & Printed

July 5, 1776: Copies of the Declaration Dispatched

July 19, 1776: Congress Orders the Declaration Engrossed on Parchment

August 2, 1776: Declaration Signed by 50 members. The other six signed: 

• August 27th - George Wythe
• September 4th - Richard Henry Lee,  Elbridge Gerry, and Oliver Wolcott
• November 19th - Matthew Thornton
• 1781 - Thomas McKean possibly Aug 2, 1776  Thomas McKean | Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence

Text of the Declaration of Independence | Declaration Resources Project 

"Nearly every printed or manuscript edition of the Declaration of Independence has slight differences in punctuation, capitalization, and even wording. " Which Version is This, and Why Does it Matter?  

Some historians contend the last sentence, declaration, was read aloud on July 4th as a statement and was not part of the printed text on that day, however, all the broadsides, the printed Declarations, have the last sentence, the pledge.  It could be confused with the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking up Arms.doc , co‑authored by Thomas Jefferson and John Dickinson and approved by the Continental Congress in 1775.  It is a military declaration explaining the colonists’ reasons for going to war, and it was read aloud to troops before the July 4, 1776, vote on independence, including the statement:  

"We pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

More News from Calabasas

• Presentation of the 2026 Sundance Institute Indigenous Film Tour The evening’s program includes the documentary feature film "Aanikoobijigan" [ancestor/great-grandparent/great-grandchild] and "Menil and Her Heart."
• Bolton Hall, Tujunga, Participates in 4th of July Parade Great News!!! Local patriotism is back on the menu! Sunland-Tujunga’s Annual 4th of July parade is on! This year celebrates the U.S.'s 250th year, formally known as America250.