On August 2, 1776, in the hushed silence pervading Independence Hall’s Assembly Room, in Philadelphia, fifty six Congress members signed The Declaration of Independence. Some signed furtively, some with aplomb, like the first signer John Hancock, President of The Continental Congress, but all signed the pivotal parchment with resolve, knowing that appending their signatures would alter their lives irreversibly and place each one in mortal danger. They validated and affirmed Independence from the British Empire in a document prepared by a Committee composed of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Thomas Jefferson’s eloquence and common...