A lucky intern recently found an incredibly valuable original draft of the colonists' plea to the British people in the attic storage of a historic house in New York City. Talk about earning college credit…(Source)

An online poll found that Americans see the Declaration of Independence as the most influential document in American history. Which kind of makes sense, because without it there wouldn't be American history. Well done, Americans. (Source)

The night of July 4, 1776, the Declaration was taken to the printing shop of John Dunlap and an unknown number of copies were printed and sent out to local legislatures and military leaders, including George Washington. This first printing is known as the "Dunlap Broadside," and there are twenty-six known copies remaining in existence. This was a time before, you know, electricity was a thing, so they had to use old-fashioned methods like paper copies to spread the word. (Source)

Thomas Jefferson drew heavily from the Virginia Declaration of Rights, adopted on June 12, 1776, for the first two paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson was really into his home state of Virginia, so how lucky for him to have such a relevant document nearby just waiting to be a source of inspiration for him. (Source)

Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence on a portable writing desk, which he superstitiously kept because, you know, the Declaration turned out pretty well. The desk is still at Monticello. (Source)