Malcolm Rivera
The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 74 individuals selected to attend the Constitutional Convention, 55 attended, and only 39 signed the document. The remaining delegates either left before the signing ceremony or refused to sign. Those who did not sign the Constitution are sometimes referred to as the Founding Fathers who did not sign the document. This group includes Richard Henry Lee, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock.
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What You'll Learn
Rhode Island refused to send delegates
The US Constitution, signed on September 17, 1787, outlines the framework for the nation's federal government and delineates the functioning of its three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial. Of the twelve states represented at the Constitutional Convention, Rhode Island was the only state that refused to send delegates.
Rhode Island's absence at the Constitutional Convention was notable, as it was the only state not in attendance. The state had acquired a reputation for opposing a closer union with the other former British colonies, earning it nicknames like "Rogue Island" and "the Perverse Sister". Rhode Island's opposition was partly due to its concern that the Constitution gave too much power to the central government, potentially diminishing the autonomy of the states. Additionally, the state had its own paper money system, which would have been illegal under the new Constitution.
Rhode Island's resistance to ratifying the Constitution continued even after the Constitutional Convention. Between September 1787 and January 1790, the state legislature rejected eleven attempts to ratify the document. The state's governor, writing to Congress in September 1789, explained that the people of Rhode Island still adhered to the principles of the old Confederation and desired further checks on federal power before adopting the Constitution.
Faced with growing pressure, including threats of secession from several towns and the prospect of reprisals from the other twelve ratifying states, Rhode Island finally capitulated and ratified the Constitution in 1790. This decision came after the United States Senate passed a bill proposing a trade embargo against Rhode Island, which would have effectively isolated the state from the Union.
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Three of the 42 remaining delegates refused to sign
The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The signing occurred after a four-month-long convention, during which a draft constitution was prepared and discussed. The final draft, presented on September 12, contained seven articles, a preamble, and a closing statement.
Of the 74 individuals selected to attend the Constitutional Convention, 55 delegates participated, and 39 signed the Constitution. Three of the 42 remaining delegates refused to sign the final draft. The names of these three individuals are not specifically mentioned in the sources. However, some sources do provide lists of delegates who did not sign the Constitution, including William Samuel Johnson, William Pierce, and William L. Pierce. It is unclear if these individuals are among the three who refused to sign out of the 42 remaining delegates.
The delegates who signed the Constitution represented 12 states, with Rhode Island being the only state that declined to send delegates. The signatures on the Constitution were grouped by state, with the listing of states arranged geographically from north to south. The signers subscribed their names as witnesses to the unanimous consent of the states, rather than on behalf of particular states, as had been done in the Articles of Confederation.
The advocates for the new frame of government hoped to obtain unanimous support from the delegations. To achieve this, the concluding endorsement, conceived by Gouverneur Morris and presented by Benjamin Franklin, was made intentionally ambiguous. This was done to win over the votes of dissenting delegates and create a sense of common accord.
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Some delegates wanted a Bill of Rights
The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Of the 74 delegates chosen, 55 attended the convention, and only 39 signed the Constitution. The delegates who did not sign the Constitution are referred to as "Anti-Federalists".
However, the proposal for a Bill of Rights was unanimously rejected by the delegates, who deemed it unnecessary to safeguard individual rights. James Madison, initially an opponent of the Bill of Rights, later introduced a list of amendments to the Constitution on June 8, 1789, due to mounting pressure from voters. The House passed a joint resolution containing 17 amendments based on Madison's proposal, which the Senate changed to 12 amendments.
On October 2, 1789, President Washington sent copies of the 12 amendments to the states for ratification. By December 15, 1791, three-fourths of the states had ratified 10 of these amendments, which became known as the "Bill of Rights." The inclusion of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution was a significant step in recognizing and protecting the rights of individuals in the United States.
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Concerns about the lack of specific statements of rights
The US Constitution, signed on September 17, 1787, lays out the framework for the nation's federal government and delineates how its three branches (legislative, executive, and judicial) are to function. The original states collectively appointed 70 individuals to the Constitutional Convention, but only 39 delegates from 12 states endorsed the Constitution.
The lack of specific statements of rights in the original Constitution was a concern for some. This concern led to the addition of the Bill of Rights, which comprises the first ten amendments to the Constitution. The Bill of Rights was added to limit government power and protect individual liberties. It guarantees civil rights and liberties to the individual, such as freedom of speech, press, and religion. It also sets rules for due process under the law and reserves all powers not delegated to the Federal Government to the people or the states.
The Ninth Amendment, part of the Bill of Rights, states that listing specific rights in the Constitution does not mean that people do not have other rights that have not been spelled out. The Tenth Amendment further reinforces this by stating that the Federal Government only has those powers delegated to it in the Constitution. These amendments address the concern that a positive declaration of essential rights could not be obtained in the requisite latitude and might be narrowed by public definition.
The controversy regarding the proper division of power between state and national governments has persisted from the Founding generation to the present day. The Federalists advocated for a strong national government, believing that the people and states automatically kept any powers not given to the federal government. On the other hand, Anti-Federalists wanted power to remain with state and local governments and favored a bill of rights to safeguard individual liberty.
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Signatures were not required to ratify the Constitution
The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The signing marked the endorsement of the Constitution by 39 delegates to the Constitutional Convention, representing 12 states (all except Rhode Island, which declined to send delegates). The endorsement included a statement declaring the document's adoption by the states present, a formulaic dating of its adoption, and the signatures of those endorsing it.
However, it is important to note that signatures were not required to ratify the Constitution. The Constitution was ratified by the states, and nine of the 13 states needed to ratify it for it to become the law of the land. The process was outlined in Article VII, and it did not require individual signatures. Instead, the ratification process involved special ratifying conventions in each state, bypassing the state legislatures.
The delegates who chose not to sign the Constitution had their concerns, especially regarding the lack of a Bill of Rights. Edmund Randolph of Virginia stated, "In refusing to sign the Constitution, I take a step which might be the most awful of my life, but it is dictated by my conscience, and it is not possible for me to hesitate, much less, to change." Similarly, Elbridge Gerry from Massachusetts believed that the Constitution combined the negative aspects of both democracy and its opposing extreme, and predicted that it would never succeed.
Despite these objections, the Constitution was ratified by the required number of states, and it became the governing document of the nation. The first state to ratify was Delaware, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. The terms of the Massachusetts Compromise, reached in February 1788, addressed the concerns about the lack of a Bill of Rights, and amendments were proposed to include what became known as the Bill of Rights.
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Frequently asked questions
Those who didn't sign the US Constitution are often referred to as Anti-Federalists.
Some delegates chose not to sign the Constitution due to concerns about its power without a Bill of Rights. Some also believed that the document combined the negative aspects of democracy and violent extremism.
Out of the 55 delegates present at the convention, 39 signed the Constitution, which means 16 refused to sign.
