It’s Constitution Week
September 17-23
Want to Learn More about the U. S. Constitution?
The Blackwater Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) shares some interesting facts about the United States Constitution.
Hopefully, there’s at least one surprising fact in this list that you didn’t previously know.
**Throughout the World, the United Stated Constitution is revered as an excellent one that is the guiding document of the United States of America. Even though America declared independence on July 4, 1776, it did not have a signed written constitution until September 17, 1787. Many intelligent people put in countless hours working together to determine what the document needed to include to protect this new country.
**It took an entire year until it was ratified by the necessary nine states in 1788.
**The U. S. Constitution was actually prepared in secret, behind locked doors that were guarded by sentries.
**Some framer delegates at the state-ratifying conventions were very troubled that the original Constitution lacked a description of individual rights. In 1791, a list of rights was added.
**The first ten amendments became known as The Bill of Rights. The people’s rights were protected.
**There were 55 delegates attending the Constitutional Convention. The Constitution was signed by 39 delegates, and 3 delegates dissented. Two of the “ Founding Fathers” did not sign. Many are probably surprised that Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, both to become U. S. Presidents, did not sign the Constitution.
**The first national “Thanksgiving Day” was established on November 26, 1789, by George Washington as a way of “giving thanks” for the Constitution. The meaning of “Thanksgiving Day” has changed throughout the years. Much later, September 17 was designated as the date to celebrate this wonderful document.
**The U. S. Constitution is the oldest and the shortest of all the written constitutions.
**Ben Franklin was the oldest delegate to sign. He was 81 years old. The youngest signer of the Constitution was Jonathon Dayton. He was only 26 years old.
**The original Constitution is on display at the National Archives in Washington, DC. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, the Constitution was moved to Fort Knox, Kentucky, for safekeeping.
**More than 11,000 amendments have been introduced in Congress. Thirty-three have gone to the states to be ratified, and twenty-seven have received the necessary approval from the states to actually become amendments to the Constitution.
**A flag was designed to carry in an Independence Day Parade in Philadelphia on July 4, 1788, to celebrate the ratification of the Constitution. The Honorable Peter Muhlenberg, Revolutionary War Hero from Pennsylvania, rode on horseback carrying the banner. The flag consisted of a blue background with gold writing that simply said, “Seventeenth of September 1787,” the date the document was signed.
**America was blessed with tremendous writers of our Constitution who had the best interests of Americans at heart when drafting this document.