An illustrated guide to America's birth certificate. On July 4, 1776, a document was announced that shaped the destiny of a nation-the holy Declaration of Independence. Although we Americans celebrate its birth every year, how much do we really know about what it says, how it was created, how it affects the nation? The U.S. Declaration of Independence for Everyone brings the U.S. to life: The events that led Americans to create the sacred historic document Thomas Jefferson's original composition-America's surge as the world's indispensable nation Profiles of the more than 50 signators The published Declaration, listing 27 British offenses that sparked the Revolutionary War and composition of the Declaration Why John Adams believed July 2 should be celebrated instead