For Constitution Day, a few facts about the document

Today is Constitution Day, a day in which all federally-funded educational institutions must provide education on the United States Constitution.

In recognition of Constitution Day, we share the following information about the U.S. Constitution:

• The Constitution was signed 227 years ago, on Sept. 17, 1787.
• Under the previous constitution, the Articles of Confederation, the nation was a loose confederation of states which operated like independent countries. The national government consisted of a legislature, but there was no president or judicial branch.
• At the Constitutional Convention, delegates devised a plan for a stronger federal government with executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
• The Constitutional Convention began in May 1787 and was held in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania State House, which is now known as Independence Hall. This also is where the Declaration of Independence was adopted 11 years earlier.
• George Washington was chosen as the president of the convention after he became a national hero leading the Continental Army in the American Revolution.
• The convention had 55 delegates, eight of whom were signers of the Declaration of Independence. Benjamin Franklin was the oldest delegate at age 81. Most of the other delegates were in their 30s and 40s.
• Reporters and others were excluded from the convention, which was held in private to avoid outside influences.
• One of the most contentious issues at the convention was how many representatives a state could have in the legislature. Delegates from larger states wanted proportional representation, while smaller state delegates wanted equal representation. The “Connecticut Compromise” created the bicameral Congress, with proportional representation in the House of Representatives and equal representation in the Senate.
• Washington was the first to sign the Constitution. Of the 55 original delegates, only 39 actually signed the document. Some had already left the convention and a few refused to sign. The Constitution would then need to be ratified by at least nine of the 13 states.
• New Hampshire was the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, on June 21, 1788, and government under the Constitution began on March 4, 1789.
• Washington was inaugurated as the nation’s first president on April 30, 1789.
• The Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, did not become part of the Constitution until Dec. 10, 1791. James Madison, a member of the House of Representatives, had introduced the amendments and later became known as the “Father of the Constitution.”