Selected Bicentennial Celebrations Commemorating the 200th Anniversaries of the US

83 Pages·2006·3.53 MB·English

SELECTEI) BICENTENNIAL CELEBRATIONS COMMEMORATING
THE 200th ANNIVERSARIES OF THE U.S. CONSTITUTION
AND OF THE U.S. CONGRESS
Roger H. Davidson
Senior Specialist i n American National
Government and Public Administration
and
Thomas Kephart
Research Assistant in American National Government
November 1986
The Congressional Research Service works exclusivelv for
the Congress. conducting research, analyzing legislation, and
prot iding information at the request of committees, Mem-
bers. and their staffs.
The Service makes such research available, without parti-
san bias, in rnanv forms including studies, reports, cornpila-
tions, digests. and backqround briefings. Upon request. CRS
assists committees in 'knalyzing legislative proposals and
issues. and in assessing the possible effects of these proposals
and their alternatives. The Service's senior specialists and
subject analysts are also available for personal consultations
in their respective fields of expertise.
ABSTRACT
Planning and preparation for commemorating the bicentennials of the
Congress and the Constitution are i n high gear. This report provides a
calendar of 18th century events that may occasion celebrations or
observances, and a preliminary review of selected activities currently in
preparation by federal agencies, private organizations, and state and local
entities. It expands upon the listings included i n earlier CRS publications
on this subject, Report No. 84-575, (April 18, 1984), Report No. 85-100s (May
1, 1985), and Report No. 86-9 (January 1986). As the period of significant
dates has proceeded, planning and activity has steadily quickened and broadened.
The authors wish to credit Mary L. Dunkley for the secretarial production
of this report.

Contents
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BICENTENNIAL CALENDAR 1
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ABOUT THIS COMPENDIUM 7
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GOVERNMENT-SPONSORED BICENTENNIAL PROJECTS 8
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U.S. Senate 8
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U.S. House of Representatives 11
Commission on the Bicenten.n.i.a.l. ....................................
of the Constitution 13
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U.S. Supreme Court 16
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The Library of Congress 17
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Manuscript Division 17
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Copyright Office 18
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Congressional Research Service 18
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National Endowment for the Humanities 20
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The National Archives 23
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Smithsonian Institution 24
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U.S. Information Agency 26
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National Park Service 27
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U.S. Marshals Service 28
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U.S. Bureau of the Census 28
National Historical Publicati.o.n.s. ..................................
and Records Commission 29
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BICENTENNIAL PROJECTS PRIVATE GROUPS 30
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American Rar Association 30
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American Enterprise Institute 31
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The Brookings Institution 33
Claremont Institute for the Study of
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Statesmanship and Political Philosophy 34
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Committee on the Constitutional System 35
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"The Constitution and The Commonwealth" 37
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Convention 11. Inc 37
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Council for the Advancement of Citizenship 38
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Daughters of the American Revolution 40
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Federal Bar Association 40
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First Federal Congress Project 41
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The Jefferson Foundation 42
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National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution 44
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The New York Public Library 44
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Project '87 47
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U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress 50
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U.S. Capitol Historical Society 50
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University of Wisconsin Projects 51
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University of Dallas 51
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U.S. Military Academy 52
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STATE AND LOCAL BICENTENNIAL COMMISSIONS 53
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Alabama Humanities Foundation 53
Arizona Commission on the Bicentennial
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of the U.S. Constitution 53
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California Bicentennial Commission 54
We The People .C olorado: The Colora.d.o. ...........................
Commission on the Bicentennial 54
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Connecticut 55
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Delaware Heritage Commission 55
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Florida Endowment for the Humanities 56
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Hawaii 57
Committee to Commemorate the U..S.. ..................................
Constitution in Illinois 58
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Kentucky Department of Education 58
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Louisiana Bicentennial Commission 59
Maryland Office for the Bicente.n.n.i.a.l. ..............................
of the U.S. Constitution 59
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Missouri Constitutional Bicentennial Commission 61
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Montana Statehood Centennial Office and Commission 62
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New Hampshire Bicentennial Commission 63
New Hampshire Constitution .B.i.c.e.n.t.e.n.n.i.a.l. ...........................
Education Commission 63
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New Jersey Bicentennial Commission 64
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New York 64
North Carolina Bicentennial Commission on
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the United States Constitution 64
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North Dakota Constitution Celebration Committee 65
Oregon Commission on the R.i.c.e.n.t.e.n.n.i.a.l. .............................
of the Constitution 65
Pennsylvania Commission on the Ricentennial
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of the United States Constitution 65
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Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission 65
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Philadelphia "We the People .2 00" Committee 66
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Rhode Island Bicentennial Foundation 67
viii
U.S. Constitution Bicentennial Commission
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of South Carolina 67
Tennessee: Knoxville-Knox Cou.n.t.y. .C.o.n.s.t.i.t.u.t.i.o.n. ....................
Bicentennial Commission 68
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Utah Governor's Commission on Law and Citizenship 69
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Virginia Commission on the Bicentennial 69
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Washington Constitutional Committee 71
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APPENDIX 72
BICENTENNIAL CALENDAR
Official Washington and private organizations across the nation are preparing
for two historically significant bicentennial celebrations: the bicentennial of
the U.S. Constitution i n 1987, and the bicentennial of the U.S. Congress i n 1989.
Actually, the nation is in the midst of a period of bicentennial dates,
extending to the B i l l of Rights' bicentenary i n 1991. A number of these may be
occasion for bicentennial celebrations. Here is a chronology of selected
eighteenth century events with potential for bicentennial observance. -11
March 28, 1785: Mount Vernon Conference. George Washington
hosted a meeting at Mount Vernon of four comissioners from
Maryland and four from Virginia to discuss problems relating to
the navigation of the Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River. After
negotiating agreements, the commissioners recommended t o their
respective legislatures that annual conferences be held on
commercial matters, and that Pennsylvania be invited t o join
Maryland and Virginia to discuss linking the Chesapeake and the
Ohio River.
January 16, 1786: Virginia's legislature adopted a statute
for religious freedom, originally drafted by Thomas Jefferson and
introduced by James Madison. The measure protected Virginia's
citizens against compulsion to attend or support any church, and
against discrimination based upon religious belief. The law served
as a model for the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.
January 21, 1786: Virginia's legislature invited all the states
to a September meeting i n Annapolis to discuss commercial problems.
August 7, 1786: The Congress of the Confederation considered a motion
offered by Charles Pinckney of South Carolina to amend the Articles of
Confederation in order to give Congress more control over foreign affairs
1/ This list is drawn from: Chronology of Bicentennial Dates. this
const~tution: A Bicentennial Chronicle, September 1983, revised Winter, 1985.
Published by Project '87 of the American Historical Association and the
American Political Science Association. pp. inside front cover, 51-53.
CRS -2
and interstate commerce. Because amendments to the Articles required
the unanimous consent of the states, an unlikely eventuality, Congress
declined t o recommend the changes.
September 11-14, 1786: Annapolis Convention. New York, New
Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Virginia sent a total of twelve
delegates to the conference which had been proposed by Virginia i n
January to discuss commercial matters. (New Hampshire, Massachusetts,
Rhode Island and North Carolina sent delegates but they failed to arrive
i n time.) The small attendance made discussion of commercial matters
fruitless. On September 14, the convention adopted a resolution drafted
by Alexander Hamilton asking a l l the states to send representatives to a
new convention to be held i n Philadelphia i n May of 1787. This meeting
would not be limited to commercial matters but would address a l l issues
necessary "to render the constitution of the Federal Government adequate
to the exigencies of the Union."
February 4, 1787: The end of Shays' Rebellion. General Benjamin
Lincoln, leading a contingent of 4,400 soldiers enlisted by the
Massachusetts governor, routed the forces of Daniel Shays. A destitute
farmer, Shays had organized a rebellion against the Massachusetts
government, which had failed to take action to assist the state's
depressed farm population. The uprisings, which had begun i n the
summer of 1786, were completely crushed by the end of February. The
Massachusetts legislature, however, enacted some statutes to assist
debt -ridden farmers.
February 21, 1787: The Congress of the Confederation cautiously
endorsed the plan adopted at the Annapolis Convention for a new meeting
of delegates from the states "for the sole and express purpose of
revising the Articles of Confederation and reporting to Congress and the
several legislatures such alterations and provisions therein."
May 25, 1787: Opening of the Constitutional Convention. On May
25, a quorum of delegates from seven states arrived i n Philadelphia
in response to the call from the Annapolis Convention, and the meeting
convened. Ultimately, representatives from a l l the states but Rhode
Island attended. The distinguished public figures included George
Washington, James Madison, Benjamin Franklin, George Mason, Alexander
Hamilton, Gouverneur Morris, James Wilson, Roger Sherman and Elbridge
Gerry.
May 29, 1787: Virginia Plan Proposed. On the fifth day of the
meeting, Edmund Randolph, a delegate from Virginia, offered 15
resolutions comprising the "Virginia Plan" of Union. Rather than
amending the Articles of Confederation, the proposal described a
completely new organization of government including a bicameral
legislature which represented the states proportionately, with the
lower house elected by the people and the upper house chosen by the
lower body from nominees proposed by the state legislatures; an
executive chosen by the legislature; a judiciary branch; and a council
comprised of the executive and members of the judiciary branch with a
veto over legislative enactments.