Following the Constitutional Convention, a great debate took place throughout America over the Constitution that had been proposed. This is the story of the debate over the ratification of the United States Constitution.
This exhibit provides a guide to understanding a) the records of the debates of the official delegates that took place essentially between December 1787 and July 1788 and b) the public advocates who participated in the conversation over whether or not to ratify the newly proposed Constitution for the federal republic of the United States that took place mainly between October 1787 and July 1788. Tips on navigating the various sections and Gordon Lloyd’s introduction can be found here.
GENERAL OVERVIEW
The Six Stages of Ratification by Gordon Lloyd
Ratification Timeline by Gordon Lloyd
Biographies of the Key Figures by Gordon Lloyd
OUT-OF-DOORS DEBATE
The Federalist Papers
Introduction by Gordon Lloyd
Design of the Federalist Papers by Gordon Lloyd
The Essential Federalist Papers by Gordon Lloyd
The Complete Federalist Papers
The Antifederalists
Introduction by Gordon Lloyd
The Legacy of the Antifederalists by Gordon Lloyd
The Essential Antifederalists by Gordon Lloyd
IN-DOORS DEBATE
Massachusetts (Winter 1788)
Introduction by Gordon Lloyd
Day-by-Day Summary by Gordon Lloyd
Massachusetts Ratifying Convention
Collected by Jonathan Elliot
Massachusetts Amendment Proposals
Virginia (Summer 1788)
Introduction by Gordon Lloyd
Day-by-Day Summary by Gordon Lloyd
Virginia Ratifying Convention
Collected by Jonathan Elliot
Virginia Amendment and Bill of Rights Proposals
New York (Summer 1788)
Introduction by Gordon Lloyd
Day-by-Day Summary by Gordon Lloyd
New York Ratifying Convention
Collected by Jonathan Elliot
New York Amendment and Bill of Rights Proposals
The Federal Pillars
The political arithmetic of ratification meant only nine out of thirteen states were needed to ratify the Constitution. Follow the progress towards this goal (and, eventually, unanimity) visually with these images of the “raising of the federal pillars.”
State-by-State Ratification Table
by Gordon Lloyd
Collected by Jonathan Elliot
Pennsylvania and the Federal Constitution, 1787-1788
Edited by John Bach McMaster and Frederick D. Stone
The Geographical Distribution of the Vote of the Thirteen States on the Federal Constitution, 1787-8
by Orin Grant Libby
Documents Illustrative of the Formation of the Union of the American States
Selected, Arranged, and Indexed by Charles C. Tansill
Storing, Herbert J., editor. The Complete Anti-Federalist, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1981.
Allen, W.B. and Gordon Lloyd, editors. The Essential Antifederalist, Lanham, Maryland: Rowland and Littlefield, 2001.
Carey, George W., editor. The Federalist, Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 2001.