Realizing the importance of the writing of the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation for the American Revolution and posterity, Thomas Jefferson later prepared his “Notes of Proceedings in Congress, June 7–August 1, 1776.” The committee of which Jefferson was a member, began composing the Articles of Confederation on July 12. Jefferson’s notes reflect his interest in Article XVII about representation in Congress. In 1781, James Madison asked Jefferson for his account of those tumultuous pivotal days, and Jefferson sent him these “notes.”