 |
|
|
|
 |
|
Click here to access thousands of historical images.
|
|
 |
|
 |
Webisode 2: 1776-1809 |
Page: 1 | 2 |
|
|
The Official Seal of the United States
This eagle with thirteen stars, an olive branch, a sheaf of arrows, and the sign "E Pluribus Unum" ("Out of many, one"), became the United States' official seal in June, 1782.
|
|
|
|
|
The City of Philadelphia
This is what Philadelphia looked like in the years just after the Constitutional Convention.
|
|
|
|
The Constitutional Convention
George Washington -- shown seated at his raised desk above the floor -- served as president of the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Around him can be seen many of the state delegates.
|
|
|
|
Roger Sherman
A shoemaker from Connecticut, Roger Sherman had helped draft the Declaration of Independence, and would continue in politics all his life. "No man has a better heart or a dearer head," one admiring colleague wrote of him.
|
|
|
|
Notes on the Bill of Rights
Here are James Madison's hand-written notes from the 1789 debates on the Bill of Rights. At the top he lists four major reasons for adopting the amendments. Number three played a large part: "[to] bring in North Carolina and Rhode Island."
|
|
|
|
An Indian Chief's Widow
In this 1789 British engraving, based on a painting by T. Wright, the wife of an American Indian Chief mourns beside the weapons of her deceased husband. During the Revolutionary War, almost every important Indian nation fought on the side of the British. After the British went home, the United States continued to fight against the Indians.
|
|
|
|
James Wilson
Scottish-born James Wilson was, along with James Madison, the principal author of the Constitution. Because of his especially close involvement with Article II, he has been called "the father of the presidency." Benjamin Rush wrote, "his mind, while he spoke, was one blaze of light."
|
|
|
|
The Signing of the Constitution
In this modern painting, George Washington presides over the signing of the Constitution on September 17, 1787. Of the fifty-five delegates from twelve of the thirteen states (Rhode Island did not participate) only three refused to sign -- Edmund Randolph and George Mason of Virginia, and Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts.
|
|
|
|
Benjamin Franklin
Eighty-one year old Benjamin Franklin was not a principal figure at the Constitutional Convention, but, along with George Washington, he exercised a strong, symbolic role. He told a friend he felt younger after the exertions of that long, hot summer.
|
|
|
|
The Pennsylvania State House
The Pennsylvania State House, shown here, was also known as Independence Hall.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
