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Center for Civics Education
Dr. Jo Ellen Chatham
Director, Center for Civics Education
949-214-3200
[email protected]
Convention: A Daily Journal is a day-by-day journal of the 1787 Constitutional Convention convened by twelve of the original thirteen states to amend the Articles of Confederation and create a “more perfect union.” It chronicles the daily activities of the Convention, profiles the delegates and their interactions with each other, and looks back to life in America in the 1780s. Writing in the first person, the story is told from an “observer” hearing events as told in contemporary newspaper accounts and delegates’ personal notes and letters.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/20/2020 - 5 minute read
William Blount arrived from North Carolina this morning and took his seat immediately after his credentials were produced and read.
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By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/19/2020 - 5 minute read
When the Convention convened this morning as the Committee of the Whole, there were no comments about the epic monologue delivered so forcefully yesterday by Alexander Hamilton. It was as though it had never happened. However, it was not without effect. It will likely brand Hamilton as a “monarchist” for many years, a legacy not worthy of him but useful to his enemies. Its immediate impact may have been on the fate of the Virginia Plan by making it appear much more reasonable by comparison.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/18/2020 - 4 minute read
Consideration of the contrasting principles embodied in the Virginia and New Jersey plans began in earnest on Saturday. Twice, debate has been postponed, giving delegates time to review what has been presented to them. When James Wilson rose to compare the two plans point by point, he was well prepared and delivered a thorough and comprehensive rebuttal to the author of the New Jersey Plan. The exchange between Wilson and William Paterson had been intense. Sunday offered delegates a time to reflect, cool off, and ponder the weighty issues before them.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/17/2020 - 4 minute read
If the East Room of the Pennsylvania State House is the official meeting place of the Constitutional Convention, then the taverns and inns are its unofficial meeting places. Among Philadelphia’s finest taverns are the Indian Queen, Cross Keys Tavern, and the City Tavern where many delegates have taken rooms. Taverns are the central meeting places throughout the United States where business transactions take place, news and information are shared, and political discussions abound.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/16/2020 - 4 minute read
This morning, William Samuel Johnson (Conn.), Rufus King (Mass.), and John Lansing (New York) were among the group of delegates taking the short walk from the City Tavern at 2nd and Walnut to the State House on Chestnut, between 5th and 6th streets. The air is cleaner and cooler, brought on by an easterly wind.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/15/2020 - 4 minute read
After a full day and evening of small State leaders huddling together to craft an alternative to the Virginia Plan, George Washington called the Convention to order at 11:00 this morning. William Paterson was recognized and “laid before the Convention a plan which he said several of the deputations wished to be substituted in place of that proposed by Mr. Randolph.”
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/14/2020 - 4 minute read
Between May 29, when Gov. Randolph introduced a set of fifteen resolves known as the Virginia Plan, and June 9, when William Paterson moved the Committee resume discussion of representation in the national legislature, the initiative has been in the hands of Virginia and its ally, Pennsylvania. In fact, the Virginia Plan has been the only alternative to the Articles of Confederation - and goes far beyond amending them.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/13/2020 - 3 minute read
Dear Reader, by this time, I hope you have finished reviewing the Constitution as suggested several days ago. This is the perfect time, because on this day in 1787, Nathaniel Gorham, Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, presented its report on the state of the resolutions presented by Gov. Edmund Randolph, known as the Virginia Plan.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/12/2020 - 4 minute read
Yesterday, after the intense debate regarding representation in the national legislature, the Committee voted in favor of guaranteeing to each State a republican form of government; devising a method for amending the new Constitution; and requiring oaths from members of the State governments to observe the national Constitution and laws.
By Center for Civics Education Posted on 6/11/2020 - 4 minute read
Dear Reader, if you have not yet read your copy of the Constitution, now would be a good time to do so. It is instructive, as well as just plain interesting, to observe what ideas did or did not make it into the Constitution, and why.
For more information, please contact the Director:
Dr. Jo Ellen Chatham Director, Center for Civics Education [email protected] 949-214-3200