Malcolm Rivera
The US Constitution was inscribed by Jacob Shallus on parchment, with the original spelling and punctuation preserved in the document on display in the Rotunda at the National Archives Museum. The final draft, presented to the convention on September 12, was authored primarily by Gouverneur Morris, with Alexander Hamilton, William Samuel Johnson, and Rufus King also serving on the Committee of Style and Arrangement. The final document was engrossed by Shallus, with 500 copies of the third and final draft printed on September 15, 1787, to be signed by the Convention on September 17.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Jacob Shallus |
| Role | Engrosser |
| Committee | Committee of Style and Arrangement |
| Committee Members | Alexander Hamilton, William Samuel Johnson, Rufus King, Gouverneur Morris (chief architect) |
| Date Presented to Convention | September 12 |
| Number of Articles | Seven |
| Other Components | A preamble and a closing endorsement |
| Copies Printed | 500 |
| Date of Copies | September 15, 1787 |
| Date of Signing | September 17, 1787 |
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What You'll Learn
The Committee of Detail
On July 24, 1787, a Committee of Detail was formed to draft a detailed constitution that reflected the resolutions passed by the convention up to that point. The committee members included John Rutledge (South Carolina), Edmund Randolph (Virginia), Nathaniel Gorham (Massachusetts), Oliver Ellsworth (Connecticut), and James Wilson (Pennsylvania).
The Convention recessed from July 26 to August 6 to await the report of the Committee of Detail, which had a week and a half to prepare the first draft of the Constitution. The committee's report conformed to the resolutions adopted by the convention, with some additional elements. They presented a twenty-three-article (plus preamble) constitution, which was discussed from August 6 to September 10, section by section and clause by clause.
During these discussions, further compromises were made, and a Committee of Style and Arrangement was formed, including Alexander Hamilton from New York, William Samuel Johnson from Connecticut, and Rufus King from Massachusetts. The final draft, presented on September 12, contained seven articles, a preamble, and a closing endorsement, of which Gouverneur Morris was the primary author. The final document was engrossed (copied in a clear hand) by Jacob Shallus and taken up on September 17 at the convention's final session.
Several delegates were disappointed with the result, a series of compromises, and some left before the ceremony or refused to sign. Of the thirty-nine signers, Benjamin Franklin summed up his thoughts, saying, "There are several parts of this Constitution which I do not at present approve, but I am not sure I shall never approve them. [...] I expect no better, and [...] I am not sure that it is not the best."
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The Committee of Style and Arrangement
The US Constitution was the result of a long process of negotiation and compromise. A Committee of Detail was first elected to draft a detailed constitution, reflective of the resolutions passed by the convention. The report of this committee was discussed section by section and clause by clause, and further compromises were made. The Committee of Style and Arrangement was then tasked with finalizing the language and presentation of the document.
Gouverneur Morris, a member of the Committee of Style and Arrangement, made subtle changes to the language of the Constitution that had a significant impact on its interpretation. Federalists, including his fellow committee member Alexander Hamilton, drew on the language crafted by Morris to fight for their vision of the Constitution. Both Federalists and Republicans were able to appeal to the text during the great constitutional battles of the early republic.
The final draft of the US Constitution was a series of compromises, and several delegates were disappointed in the result. Some delegates left before the ceremony, and three others refused to sign. Benjamin Franklin, one of the thirty-nine signers, summed up the feelings of many when he said: "There are several parts of this Constitution which I do not at present approve, but I am not sure I shall never approve them." He accepted the Constitution because "I expect no better and because I am not sure that it is not the best".
The Constitution of the United States, as inscribed by Jacob Shallus on parchment, is on display in the Rotunda at the National Archives Museum. The spelling and punctuation reflect the original document.
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Chief architect Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris, an American statesman, Founding Father of the United States, and signatory to the Articles of Confederation and the US Constitution, is often regarded as the "Penman of the Constitution". He was born on January 31, 1752, into a wealthy landowning family in what is now New York City. After graduating from King's College (now Columbia University), he studied law and was admitted to the bar.
Morris played a significant role in the American Revolution as a delegate to the Continental Congress, taking his seat in 1778. He was a strong advocate for the Continental Army and helped enact substantial reforms in its training, methods, and financing. Notably, he cast the decisive vote in favour of retaining George Washington as Commander-in-Chief during the Conway Cabal's attempt to remove him. Morris also signed the Articles of Confederation in 1778, becoming its youngest signer.
As a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, Morris was a key member of the Committee of Style and Arrangement, responsible for drafting the final copy of the US Constitution. He authored large sections of the document, including the famous Preamble: "We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union..." Morris was an outspoken opponent of slavery and argued for the inclusion of language protecting religious freedom in the Constitution. He gave the most speeches of any delegate, totalling 173, and his ideas reflected a unified vision of the nation, moving beyond individual state identities.
Morris's legacy extends beyond his contributions to the Constitution. He represented New York in the United States Senate from 1800 to 1803 and was known for his many affairs, which he recorded in his diary. Morris died on November 6, 1816, at his family estate, Morrisania, from internal injuries and an infection caused by a self-attempted medical procedure. His life and contributions to the founding of the nation continue to be studied and remembered, with some negative perceptions of him being re-evaluated in light of new research.
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Jacob Shallus, the engrosser
Jacob Shallus, born in 1750, was the son of German immigrants, Valentine and Frederica Catherina Shallus. His father, Valentine, immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1747. Shallus was a volunteer in the Revolutionary War, serving as a quartermaster of Pennsylvania's 1st Battalion and assisting in the outfitting of a privateering vessel, the Retrieve. He was also a veteran of the war, having fought in Canada. During the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Shallus served as the Assistant Clerk to the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
Shallus is known for being the engrosser or penman of the original copy of the United States Constitution. The convention needed a clerk who was trustworthy, competent, and conveniently located nearby, and Shallus happened to be working upstairs in the West Wing of the State House at Philadelphia while the Federal Convention was concluding its work downstairs in the East Chamber. Shallus had about 35 to 40 hours to transcribe the final draft of the Constitution, which consisted of over 4,000 words. He completed the task with elegance and on time, but even he, as an experienced clerk, made some mistakes. He added an "errata" note at the end of the document to address these errors.
Shallus engrossed the entire document, except for the list of states at the end, which was written by Alexander Hamilton. His name does not appear on the document, and his identity as the engrosser was only revealed in 1937 during the 150th-anniversary celebrations of the Constitution. The original handwritten document engrossed by Shallus is on permanent display in the Rotunda of the Charters of Freedom at the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C.
Shallus also had a notable role in the re-authoring of the State Constitution of Pennsylvania in 1790, where he is credited as the Assistant Secretary. Outside of his professional life, Shallus married Elizabeth Melchor, with whom he had at least one child, their eldest son, Francis Shallus, born in 1774. Shallus passed away in 1796, leaving behind a legacy as the engrosser of one of the most important documents in American history.
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Printers John Dunlap and David Claypoole
John Dunlap and David Claypoole were printers who produced the first copies of the United States Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation. They had been printing for the US Congress since 1775 and were designated as its official printer in 1778.
John Dunlap was born in Strabane, County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1746. At the age of ten, he began working as an apprentice to his uncle, William Dunlap, a printer and bookseller in Philadelphia. In 1766, William Dunlap left the business in his nephew's care. John eventually bought the business and initially made a living by printing sermons, broadsides, and handbills. In 1771, Dunlap, along with David C. Claypoole, started publishing the Pennsylvania Packet, or General Advertiser, a weekly newspaper. During the American Revolutionary War, Dunlap served as an officer in the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry and fought alongside George Washington in the battles of Trenton and Princeton.
David Claypoole, meanwhile, does not appear to have a dedicated Wikipedia page, and thus, little information about him is readily available. However, it is known that he partnered with John Dunlap in their printing endeavours, including the publication of the Pennsylvania Packet.
In 1787, during the Constitutional Convention, Dunlap and Claypoole printed 820 draft copies and 500 final copies of the United States Constitution. John Dunlap received the first draft of the Constitution from the Committee of Detail for printing as a seven-page broadside on August 4, 1787, and completed the task in just two days. The final printings were six-page broadsides with Caslon small-pica type, and they included a sole typographical error in Article Five, which was corrected in subsequent reprints.
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Frequently asked questions
Jacob Shallus inscribed the final copy of the US Constitution on parchment.
The Committee of Style and Arrangement, including Gouverneur Morris as the chief architect, wrote the content of the US Constitution.
The Committee of Style and Arrangement included Alexander Hamilton from New York, William Samuel Johnson from Connecticut, and Rufus King from Massachusetts.
