There can be no more important words than these.
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
With these words, We began our great experiment with Democracy 238 years ago. In honor of this momentous date, Constitution Day and Citizenship Day were established as a federal day of observance to commemorate the signing of the United States Constitution on September 17, 1787.
In declaring the first Citizenship Day in 1952, President Truman wrote in Proclamation 2984 "Whereas it is most fitting that every citizen of the United States, whether native-born or foreign-born, should on September 17 of each year give special thought and consideration to his rights and responsibilities under our Constitution." President Obama would later write in Proclamation 8418 "To succeed, the democracy established in our Constitution requires the active participation of its citizenry. Each of us has a responsibility to learn about our Constitution and teach younger generations about its contents and history."
Congress would later change the designation of Citizenship Day to Constitution Day and Citizenship Day in 2004. Continuing in this spirit, and in service to the day's educational mission, a whole host of public and private organizations have put together resources and activities to inform and enrich us as Americans. One of my favorites is the National Constitution Center in historic Philadelphia. The Center and Museum are located just blocks from Independence Hall where the U.S. Constitution was debated and signed.
The National Constitution Center has a full schedule of events planned for Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. "This year, in honor of America’s upcoming semiquincentennial, the Center is commemorating the signing of two of the nation's founding documents: the U.S. Constitution, the anniversary we celebrate every year on September 17; and the Declaration of Independence, which is celebrating its 250th birthday all year long!" New this year is the America at 250 CivicToolkit.
Fun fact: Six men signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution: George Read, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Morris, George Clymer, and James Wilson.
At the National Archives Museum in Washington D.C., one may see original copies of the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Declaration of Independence proudly known as the Charters of Freedom in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom. The National Archives has events and new displays planned all year long to Celebrate America's 250th Anniversary! There is even a Celebrating Constitution Day webpage with many additional resources, such as the Founders Online where you can read in their own words about creating the Constitution during the period of our Nation's founding.
The Library of Congress has a world of interesting items for you to explore such as the Constitution of the United States: Primary Documents in American History. This Digital Collection includes the records of the Constitutional Convention known as Farrand's Records, as well as the papers of Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson.
There is also the Constitution Annotated for the public to view online. This resource provides a comprehensive overview to the Constitution and how it has been interpreted over time. A new feature is the Constitution Annotated: A Research Guide which helps users to better understand and navigate the most important document in American history.
You can read a copy of the U.S. Constitution here. I encourage you to do so, especially if you have never done so. For those of you in the law library, you can pick up your very own copy of the U.S. Constitution at the Reference Desk.
Here at UW-Madison, scholars have made enormous contributions to the study and understanding of the U.S. Constitution. The University is home to the nationally renowned Center for the Study of the American Constitution (CSAC). The Center's masterwork The Documentary History of the Ratification of the Constitution is freely accessible to the public through the UW Digital Collections. Like the other websites mentioned above, the more you explore the more you will discover. CSAC's website includes maps of the original thirteen States and how they voted to ratify the Constitution, lesson plans to use in the classroom, and an extensive lineup of books and broadsides available for purchase from their online bookstore.
Scholars here at the UW Law School have been doing important work as well. The school's State Democracy Research Initiative recently launched a new and expanding website 50 Constitutions : Explore State Constitutions. The website's introduction reads: "State constitutions are distinctive documents—in the rights they confer, the governmental structures they establish, and the ways they change over time. They are not miniature federal constitutions, and they should be studied on their own terms. 50 Constitutions aims to make state constitutions more accessible."
UW-Madison will also be hosting a Constitution Day lecture on Wednesday, Sept. 17th, at 5 p.m. This year's lecture will be at the Pyle Center in the AT&T Lounge. The topic will be "Can Originalism 'Get With The Times'? How Originalism Meets The Challenge Of A Changing World." The featured speaker is Professor Lee Strang, director of The Ohio State University Chase Center for Civics, Culture and Society. This event will be offered in person and online via livestream. You are encouraged to register in advance to reserve your spot.
Submitted by Eric Taylor, Evening Reference Librarian on September 12, 2025
This article appears in the categories: Law Library
