Category: Important Documents

Treaty Between the United States and Tripoli It is not often that an obscure treaty from the late 18th century becomes a touch point in a 21st century philosophical debate, but such is the case with the 1796 treaty between the United States and Tripoli. At issue is not the treaty itself — it exists…

Letter of Transmittal The Convention, upon completing its work on the Constitution, wrote a letter to the Congress. The letter, known as The Letter of Transmittal, laid out for Congress that which the Convention felt should happen next: that the Constitution should be presented to the states and that each state should ratify the Constitution…

Issue Guide for “The Court” Advertisement Note: As of the third episode, The Court has been placed on hiatus. The Issue Guide will be updated if any further episodes air. The Court is a television show that airs on the ABC television network. It began airing in March, 2002. This page is not an episode…

The Declaration of Rights (Stamp Act) Advertisement In 1764, the British Parliament passed the Sugar Act, which placed tariffs on sugar, coffee, and other goods imported into the New World. These taxes increased the burden on ordinary citizens at a time of recession in America. It was thought that the Sugar Act would give rise…

The Declaration of Sentiments In 1840, Lucretia Mott attended the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London, England. Mott, a Quaker minister, was a strong abolitionist. She and the Hicksite Quakers refused to use materials produced with slave labor, including cotton and cane sugar. She worked as a teacher and at her school, met her husband, James…

The Quebec Act Following the British victory over France in the Seven Years’ War, the territories of France in northern North America, known as Canada, were granted to Britain in the Treaty of Paris in 1763. The British renamed the territory Quebec. The British Parliament passed the Quebec Act on October 7, 1774, in an…

The Quartering Act Advertisement In 1765, Parliament passed a quartering act that stated that British troops in America would be housed in barracks and in public houses unless and until the number of troops overwhelmed the facilities, at which time, the troops could be housed in private commercial property, such as inns and stables, and…

Washington’s Letter In addition to the official Letter of Transmittal that accompanied the freshly signed Constitution, the President of the Convention, George Washington, wrote his own personal letter to the President of Congress, Arthur St. Clair. The text of this letter can be found in the The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 (Farrand’s…

List of Presidential Vetoes The Senate Library maintains a list of all bills vetoed by presidents over time. This list is published from time to time. The source for the information presented on this page was published in three documents, Presidential Vetoes, 1789 – 1988, Presidential Vetoes, 1989 – 2000, and Vetoes by President George…

Message Board Posting Tips Advertisement The USConstitution.net messaging system uses the YaBB system for posting messages and replies. The YaBB system is used throughout the Internet and may already be familiar to many users. This document will offer some tips for posting, both from a technical and a social point of view. The social tips…