A group of colonial-era men debate around a table with documents and a quill pen

September 17 is Constitution Day!

Illustration by Moreno Chiacchiera

Standards

Secrets of the Constitution

It was the summer of 1787. A group of 55 delegates from different states met in a small room in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though it was hot and sticky, they kept the windows shut. This meeting was top secret, after all. 

The United States had won independence from Great Britain four years earlier. But disagreements were tearing the new nation apart. The delegates had gathered to come up with a plan to save the country. The result was the U.S. Constitution.

Here are three things that may surprise you about one of our country’s most important documents.

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A Near Failure

At the time, the original 13 states weren’t so united. Each state passed its own laws, and there was no president. Many people worried that the new nation would fall apart.

The delegates spent four months sharing ideas and debating. By September 17, 1787, they had created a plan most of them agreed on. 

Two days later, a copy of the Constitution was printed in a Philadelphia newspaper. The secret was finally out. 

Not the First

The original plan for the meeting had been to revise a constitution that already existed. Called the Articles of Confederation, it gave most of the power to individual states.

But the delegates agreed that they needed a plan for a strong national government. It would be separated into three branches to ensure that no group or person had too much power. 

Safe and Sound

Today the Constitution is on display at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. At night, it gets moved into a secret vault. 

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