The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was drafted by Thomas Jefferson between June 11 and June 28 of 1776 with the purpose of giving the king of Britain a message. The message was clear and simple, the colonists were tired of the King's taxes and harsh rule. They wanted to be free from him forever (www.archives.gov).
John Hancock's Role
John Hancock was one of the leaders of the thirteen colonies that signed the Declaration (www.archives.gov). Hancock's signature is the largest on the Declaration. Two interesting stories that tell about John Hancock's signing are well known. One version explains that as he signed the document he exclamed, "The British ministry can read that name without spectacles; let them double their reward." An alternate story reports that he actually said, "There, I guess King George will be able to read that!" (www.ushistory.org). John Hancock's huge iconic signature left a impact on the way we think of signatures today. In fact, because of the attention Hancock received concerning his large signature, the name "John Hancock" is now interchangeable with the word "signature".