Celebrating Constitution Week: September 17-23
Several local activities will take place on Wednesday, September 17.
At 3:45 p.m. on the front lawn and steps of Harmony Hall, a short program commemorating the signing of the U.S. Constitution will end with a bell ringing at 4 p.m. for one minute. This program is free and open to the public of all ages. It is hosted by the Moseley-Bright Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. Those attending are encouraged to bring their own bell.
The Visitor Center will be a host location for a small display about the U.S. Constitution. (Sept 17-23). Glenda and Theresa will set it up. They've met with Jan. Two DAR members, Glenda Alcock and Theresa Hardy, will also present a program to the 4th graders at Hope Preparatory School.
These activities are part of Constitution Week, which honors the signing of the Constitution of the United States of America. On September 17, 1787, the Constitution was signed at the Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
The U.S. Constitution is America’s most important document and the supreme law of the United States. The Daughters of the American Revolution initiated this observance in 1955 when the service organization petitioned the U. S. Congress to dedicate September 17-23 annually for the observance of Constitution Week.
Congress adopted the resolution and on August 2, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed it into Public Law #915. The original signed, handwritten Constitution is on display at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. The DAR encourages Americans to learn more about the Constitution and celebrate this powerful document.
The DAR has also erected a structure built in tribute to the Constitution of the United States. DAR Constitution Hall, which is a performing arts center, opened in 1929.
On Monday, September 17, 1787, Benjamin Franklin, who represented Pennsylvania, began the day with a prepared speech. Franklin, who was 81 years old and painfully afflicted with gout and a kidney stone, was unable to read the speech himself. He delegated that task to fellow Pennsylvanian James Wilson.
Despite some of his misgivings, Franklin moved to adopt the U.S. Constitution unanimously. Heated debate followed, but in the end, the convention adopted the U.S. Constitution.
As Franklin was leaving what we now call Independence Hall, Elizabeth Willing Powel asked him:
“Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”
Franklin replied:
“A republic, if you can keep it.”
The aims of Constitution week are to:
Emphasize the responsibilities of citizens for protecting and defending the Constitution.
Inform people that the Constitution is the basis for America’s great heritage and the foundation for our way of life.
Encourage the study of the historical events which led to the framing of the Constitution in September 1787.
The hope of the DAR is to help us remember and contemplate the foundational law of our land that we may keep our Republic.
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