Constitution Day commemorates the signing of the Constitution on September 17th, 1787. Every year, Americans are encouraged to learn more about the Constitution and how it affects our daily lives.
The 13 original states convened for the Constitutional Convention on May 25th, 1787, but it would take 4 months of debates to write what eventually became our Constitution. In order to ratify it, 9 of the 13 states were required to sign it. New Hampshire was the ninth state to sign on June 21st, 1788 and it was agreed by the Convention that the new government under the Constitution would begin on March 4th, 1789. The US Constitution is the oldest written national constitution still in effect today.
The National Archives located in Washington DC currently houses the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. In an effort to preserve them, they were initially moved to the Library of Congress where they were publicly displayed February 28th, 1924. While the documents have changed locations over the years, as of December 13th, 1952, they now reside permanently at the National Archives building.
"There will be aggregated here the most sacred documents of our history--the originals of the Declaration of Independence and of the Constitution of the United States."
- President Herbert Hoover, February 20, 1933, at the laying of the cornerstone of the future National Archives Building
To learn more about the Constitution and Constitution Day, be sure to visit the following websites. |
