Declaration of independence
The Declaration of Independence was the beginning of the Revolutionary War. Signed by 56 people on July 4th, 1776, this document put their lives at stake. Many were captured or killed, but the document itself was put away in storage. Even then, they did not have good preserving methods, and the writing on the original is faded beyond recognition. The signing of the document that began the war, and America is still celebrated as the forth of July or, Independence Day.