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Decleration of Independence
On this day, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Idependence. This announces our seperation from Great Britian, this document will provide the legal and governmental framework of the U.S. -
Establishment of the U.S. government
The Articles of Confederations, the first american constitution, it became the offical law of the land. The articles had been written for a while but we were waiting for Maryland to ratify. -
Surrender at Yorktown
The British surrenedered to the Continental army in Yorktown, Virginia. This ended the war between Great Britian and America. This gave us ultimate freedom from Britian. -
Treaty of Paris was Ratified helping end the revoluntionary war
The Treaty of Paris between Great Britian and the U.S. ended the Revolutionary War. The treaty recognized the U.S. as a free nation. -
Shays' Rebellion begins
Shays' Rebellion was a upset of farmers who hadn't been paid for their services during the revolutionary war. They were upset because of how much debt they were in after the war, and didnt have any moneyh to pay it back. -
Annapolis Convention Adjourns
Following Shays' Rebellion, a Convention in Annapolis discussed the state of commerce in the United States. The national government didn't have any power to regulate commerce between and among states, and it was decided that amendments to the Articles of Confederation were sorely needed. -
Constitutional Convention Opens
The Constitutional Convention addressed the weak central government that was set up by the Articles of Confederation. They had original got together to revise the Articles but they decided to design a new government. -
Constitution is signed by Convention Attendees
The final draft of the Constitution was signed and marked the adjournment of the Constitutional Convention. Only 39 of the 55 attendees signed it but it was enough to send it off for congress to approve. -
Congress Approves the Constitution
This happened very soon after the Constitutional Convention adjourned, and the ratification process began. Two-thirds of the states had to ratify the Constitution before it could go into effect. -
Constitution was Ratified by States
New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, officially making it the new governmental framework for the United States. Set by the Congress under the Articles of Confederation, which would ultimately be giving up power to the newly elected government. -
The New Constitutional Government Began
The newly established government under the Constitution began. This was a begin turn for the U.S. -
The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution
The first ten ammendments were added to the constitution. The lack of a "Bill of Rights" led to several delegates refusing to sign the Constitution until it was included. The disagreement centered on the fear that people would think that the listed rights were their only rights.