# Who wrote the  Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution - Original Copies

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 3, 2004, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395 "2004-02-03T23:46:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Pepsi\_Classic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pepsi\_Classic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pepsi_Classic)\
**Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395/1 "2004-02-03T23:46:07Z")

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Who literally wrote the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution? That is, whose job was it to write down the words on paper? Is there an original copy or multiple original copies? How are amendments added to the original copy(s)?

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**Author:** ![audit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@audit1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audit1)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395/2 "2004-02-04T01:26:11Z")

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Thomas Matlock is the person whose handwriting is on the Declaration of Independence. Jacob Shallus did the U S Constitution. The ones you see in the National Archives with the signatures that is. Amendments to the US Constitution are on seperate pieces of paper.

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**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395/3 "2004-02-04T01:37:54Z")

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Sidebar  
When viewing the Constitution during the 1976 Bicentennial  
the lady in front of me was taking too long  
so the guard said, “ **Don’t read it!** Keep moving.”

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**Author:** ![audit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@audit1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audit1)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395/4 "2004-02-04T03:33:25Z")

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Many questions regarding the US Constitution can be answered at [www.usconstituion.net](http://www.usconstituion.net)

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**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-wrote-the-declaration-of-independence-and-the-us-constitution-original-copies/227395/5 "2004-02-04T08:04:19Z")

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The copy of the Declaration that was signed by John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, and Charles Thomson, secretary of the Congress, on July 4, 1776, was sent to a printer the following day to have copies made, and the original was subsequently lost. One of the printed copies was glued into the minutes of the Congress, and the other printed copies were distributed to state assemblies, conventions, committees of safety, and commanding officers of the Continental troops.

On July 19, 1776, Congress ordered the Declaration to be “engrossed” (enlarged), for the delegates to sign. This engrossed copy written on parchment by [Timothy](http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=old&doc=2) Matlock was presented to the Congress on August 2, when the delegates began to sign it. That copy is what is on display at the National Archives.