Page 53 - ASM Book 9/2020

July 4, 1776
47
Independence Decisions Had to be Unanimous
How the 56 Delegates Voted
“S
T
ecretary Charles Thomson began the roll call in the north with New Hampshire and moved south to Georgia. Each colony had one vote and the majority vote of that colony’s representatives determined the vote for the colony. When the name of each delegate was announced, the delegate would stand and say either ‘yea’ or ‘nay.’”
issues concerning independence from Great Britain had to be unanimous. For that reason the Declaration’s subtitle reads: “The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen United States
of America, . . .”
- Excerpt from Jefferson’s Masterpiece, page 71
ohn Dunlap, the official printer for Congress, was given an order on the afternoon of July 4 to print copies of the Declaration of Independence for delivery the next morning. He and his staff worked through the night to handset the type, proofread their work, print and allow adequate time for each sheet to dry before they were delivered. It is estimated that he printed and delivered 200 copies the next morning. These prints are known as the “Dunlap Broadsides.” Twenty-four copies are believed to exist today.
he congressional delegates agreed that all
1st Printed Copies of
J
the Declaration
Little did the King know that the colonies
- now states -
had declared independence
from his rule.