National Handwriting Day 2027: Saturday, Jan. 23, John Hancock's Birthday

National Handwriting Day 2027 is Saturday, Jan. 23, the birthday of John Hancock, according to the Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association (WIMA). WIMA’s January 2026 release says the day is “observed annually on the birthday of iconic American signer John Hancock.” This story adds the weekday for Jan. 23 from 2027 to 2032, WIMA’s own suggestions and a free writing sheet with lines to fill in.

What day is National Handwriting Day from 2027 to 2032?

Jan. 23 is fixed, so only the weekday changes. We computed these weekdays from the calendar.

Year	National Handwriting Day
2027	Saturday, Jan. 23
2028	Sunday, Jan. 23
2029	Tuesday, Jan. 23
2030	Wednesday, Jan. 23
2031	Thursday, Jan. 23
2032	Friday, Jan. 23

Mark the date on the January 2027 printable calendar. It shares the day with National Pie Day, which we cover in National Pie Day 2027.

Why is National Handwriting Day on John Hancock’s birthday?

WIMA, the trade group behind the day, said in a Jan. 13, 2010 release (PR Newswire) that it “has declared Hancock’s birthday, Jan. 23, National Handwriting Day.” Its Jan. 15, 2025 release (PR Newswire) repeats the link, saying the day is celebrated “on the birthday of the famous scribe John Hancock.”

The National Park Service (NPS) says Hancock was born on “January 23, 1737,” in “Braintree, Massachusetts.” It adds that “The Continental Congress swiftly and unanimously elected him President in 1775.” The National Archives says Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, and that “on August 2, 1776, delegates began signing it.” Its words on Hancock are: “On August 2nd John Hancock, the President of the Congress, signed the engrossed copy with a bold signature.” The picture at the top of this page is a file image of an engraved copy of that document.

Is Jan. 23, 2027 the 50th National Handwriting Day?

WIMA’s Jan. 16, 2026 release was titled “Celebrate the 49th Anniversary of National Handwriting Day on January 23.” By that count, Jan. 23, 2027 is the 50th anniversary. The count points back to 1977, though we have not seen WIMA print that year as the start, so treat it as our arithmetic.

What does WIMA suggest doing on the day?

The 2026 release lists several ideas, quoted here:

• A Screen-Free Writing Hour: “Designate one hour to step away from devices.”
• Write “a favorite memory from the past year.”
• Write “a favorite recipe, tradition, or family story by hand.”
• “Create labels for gifts, lunch bags, folders, or household items.”

WIMA has not published its 2027 suggestions yet, so these are the 2026 ideas.

Can you help read old handwriting?

The National Archives runs a Citizen Archivist program in which volunteers transcribe historical records. Its transcription tips warn that “18th and 19th century handwriting can be difficult to read!” and advise you to “Compare similar letters in the document to help confirm that you are reading the text correctly.” Hancock’s era is exactly that period, so a transcription session suits the day. For another way to mark a date with pen and paper, see our National Authors’ Day 2026 reading log.

Free National Handwriting Day 2027 writing sheet

The printable lists the four WIMA ideas with a tick box each and a lined area for your own note, memory or recipe. Print it for Saturday, Jan. 23, and keep the printable weekly calendar beside it for the week around the date. If you plan a puzzle break the following week, see National Puzzle Day 2027.

Not in our sources: the first year of National Handwriting Day, any 2027 WIMA events and WIMA’s own website, which was unavailable when we checked on Nov. 4, 2026.