2025 civics test · Question 78 · Colonial Period and Independence
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
Official answer
- (Thomas) Jefferson
What this means
Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.
He was 33 years old and drafted it in about two weeks in the summer of 1776. A committee that included Benjamin Franklin and John Adams reviewed his draft, and the Continental Congress edited it before adopting it on July 4, 1776.
Jefferson later served as the third president of the United States, and it was during his presidency that the country bought the Louisiana Territory from France.
Answer: (Thomas) Jefferson. The last name alone is accepted.
Why this is on the test
Jefferson is one of a small group of founders the test asks about by name, and this is the question where he appears.
How this question is asked
On the 2025 civics test, the officer asks up to 20 of the 128 questions out loud and you pass by answering 12 correctly. You answer in your own words. There is no multiple choice and nothing to write down for the civics portion.
This question also appears on the 2008 civics test , as question 62.
Related questions
More from Colonial Period and Independence.
- 73 The colonists came to America for many reasons. Name one.
- 74 Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
- 75 What group of people was taken and sold as slaves?
- 76 What war did the Americans fight to win independence from Britain?
- 77 Name one reason why the Americans declared independence from Britain.
- 79 When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?