Malcolm Rivera
The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 42 delegates present, 39 signed the Constitution, with three refusing to sign: Governor Edmund Randolph, George Mason, and Elbridge Gerry. The Constitution was not ratified by all states until May 29, 1790, when Rhode Island, which had refused to send delegates to the Constitutional Convention, finally approved the document.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of delegates selected | 74 |
| Number of delegates who attended | 55 |
| Number of delegates who signed | 39 |
| Youngest signer | Jonathan Dayton, 26 |
| Oldest signer | Benjamin Franklin, 81 |
| States not represented | Rhode Island |
| Delegates who refused to sign | Elbridge Gerry, George Mason, John Lansing, Robert Yates |
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What You'll Learn
- Elbridge Gerry and George Mason refused to sign the Constitution
- Mason's refusal was due to the absence of a Bill of Rights
- New York delegates John Lansing and Robert Yates left the Convention early
- Rhode Island did not send any delegates to the Convention
- Nearly 20 men failed to attend the Constitutional Convention
Elbridge Gerry and George Mason refused to sign the Constitution
The US Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 74 delegates chosen to attend, 55 were present, and 39 signed the document. Three of the 42 delegates who remained refused to sign. Two of these three were Elbridge Gerry and George Mason.
Elbridge Gerry, born in 1744 in Marblehead, Massachusetts, to a wealthy family, received his academic training at Harvard and his political training from his mentor, Samuel Adams. During the early 1770s, he served in the colonial and Revolutionary legislatures, and during the American War for Independence, he served in the Continental Congress (1775–1780 and 1783–1785), where he signed the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation. Like his contemporaries, Gerry shared the view that the Constitution they drafted was not perfect and that the government created under it would have to be carefully nourished and watched. He is also known for approving a controversial redistricting plan designed to give the Republican Party an advantage in the state senatorial elections, which led to the coining of the term "gerrymander".
George Mason, a prominent figure in his home state of Virginia, was the main author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights and the Constitution of Virginia. As a delegate to the Constitutional Convention, Mason refused to sign the US Constitution, believing the document gave too much power to a central government and was incomplete without a bill of rights to guarantee individual liberty. His dissent also arose from what he perceived as the Convention's reluctance to deal more harshly with the institution of slavery (although he himself held slaves). Mason's refusal to sign the document cost him dearly, as he lost the friendship of George Washington and others, and his contributions are often uncredited. However, his efforts to ensure the protection of individual rights ultimately came to fruition with the passage of the federal Bill of Rights on December 15, 1791, providing the first ten amendments to the Constitution.
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Mason's refusal was due to the absence of a Bill of Rights
The US Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 74 delegates chosen, 55 attended the Constitutional Convention sessions, and 39 signed the Constitution. Three of the 42 delegates who remained refused to sign.
One of the three who refused was George Mason, a delegate from Virginia. Mason's refusal was due to the absence of a Bill of Rights. He felt that the Constitution as it stood did not sufficiently protect individual liberties. Mason was a strong advocate for a Bill of Rights, having authored the Virginia Declaration of Rights in 1776, which served as a precursor to the US Bill of Rights. He believed that a national Bill of Rights was necessary to safeguard the freedoms and rights of the people, and without it, he could not support the Constitution.
Mason's concerns about the lack of a Bill of Rights were shared by other delegates, including those who refused to sign the Constitution. They felt that the document, as written, did not adequately protect the rights of citizens and that a separate bill was needed to enumerate and guarantee those rights.
The absence of a Bill of Rights was a significant point of contention during the Constitutional Convention. While some delegates, like Mason, felt strongly about its inclusion, others believed that the Constitution already implied certain rights and that a separate bill was unnecessary. There were also disagreements about the specific rights that should be included and the level of protection they should be afforded.
Despite Mason's refusal to sign, he played a crucial role in shaping the Constitution. He was an active participant in the debates and made significant contributions to its content. Mason is often credited with authoring the Virginia Plan, which served as a blueprint for the structure and functioning of the federal government. He also proposed the addition of a Bill of Rights during the Convention, although his proposal was ultimately not adopted at the time.
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New York delegates John Lansing and Robert Yates left the Convention early
The US Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 74 delegates chosen, 55 attended, and 39 signed the document. Several attendees left before the signing ceremony, and three of the 42 who remained refused to sign.
Two of those who left before signing were New York delegates John Lansing and Robert Yates. Lansing and Yates left the convention early because they believed it was exceeding its instructions. They had understood that the convention would discuss revising the existing Articles of Confederation. However, the delegates were moving towards writing an entirely new constitution.
Lansing and Yates were opposed to any system that would consolidate the United States into one government. They warned that the kind of government recommended by the convention could not "afford that security to equal and permanent liberty which we wished to make an invariable object of our pursuit." In a joint letter to New York Governor George Clinton, they explained their opposition to centralizing power and urged others to oppose the adoption of the Constitution.
John Lansing was born in Albany, New York, in 1754. He studied law and was admitted to practice at age 21. Lansing served in the military and held various political offices, including six terms in the New York Assembly and two terms as Speaker of the Assembly. He was also the mayor of Albany from 1786 to 1790. Robert Yates, born in Schenectady, New York, in 1738, received a classical education and later studied law. He was admitted to the New York bar in 1760 and resided in Albany. Yates counted himself among the Radical Whigs during the pre-Revolution years and served on the Albany board of aldermen from 1771 to 1775. He was a recognized leader of the Antifederalists in the 1780s and opposed any concessions to the federal congress that might diminish the sovereignty of the states.
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Rhode Island did not send any delegates to the Convention
The US Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 13 states, 12 were represented at the Constitutional Convention, with Rhode Island being the only state that refused to send any delegates.
Rhode Island had acquired a reputation for opposing a closer union with the other former British colonies that had formed the United States of America. The state was particularly ready to use its veto power, and it vetoed an act of the Congress of the Confederation, which earned it nicknames like "Rogue Island" and "the Perverse Sister". This press war lasted for nearly 10 years.
Rhode Island was the last state to ratify the Constitution, doing so on May 29, 1790, more than a year after it went into effect. The state had rejected 11 attempts to ratify the Constitution between September 1787 and January 1790. The ratification process was controversial, with Rhode Island capitulating only after the United States threatened a trade embargo against the state for non-compliance.
Rhode Island's ratification included a lengthy list of caveats and proposed amendments, including the abolition of the slave trade, a ban on poll taxes, and a request for further limits on federal power.
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Nearly 20 men failed to attend the Constitutional Convention
The US Constitution, which outlines the framework of the nation's federal government and its three branches, was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 74 delegates chosen from 12 states (excluding Rhode Island, which did not send any delegates), 55 attended the sessions, and only 39 signed the Constitution.
Among those who attended but did not sign was Edmund Randolph of Virginia. He initially refused to sign due to concerns about the Constitution not receiving approval from the requisite nine states. However, he later changed his mind and supported the document.
Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts and George Mason of Virginia also participated in the Convention but refused to sign. Their main objection was the compromise that allowed Congress to pass "navigation acts" with a simple majority, which strengthened slave provisions. They also opposed the office of the vice president. While most of their objections did not lead to changes, Mason successfully added "high crimes and misdemeanors" to the impeachment clause, and Gerry convinced the Convention to include an additional method for ratification of amendments.
Slavery was a significant issue during the Convention, with at least a third of the delegates owning slaves. The Southern delegates, particularly those from states where slavery was prevalent, were unwilling to accept proposals that threatened the institution of slavery. This conflict between the North and South was so intense that three Southern states, Georgia, and the two Carolinas, threatened to secede if slavery were not allowed.
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Frequently asked questions
74.
55.
39.
Edmund Randolph and George Mason from Virginia, and Elbridge Gerry from Massachusetts.
Rhode Island.
