Constitutional Convention Delegates

After months of heated debate, the time came, on Monday, September 17, 1787, for the delegates to sign the U.S. Constitution before sending it to the Confederation Congress and the states for their approval. This excerpt, from the last minutes on the last day of the Constitutional Convention, illustrates the belief held by many delegates that unanimous support was necessary to encourage ratification by the states. In the end, while all state delegations approved the document, not all of the delegates agreed to sign. Delegates Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts, and George Mason and Edmund Randolf of Virginia, although extremely active during the Convention, refused to sign the document despite Benjamin Franklin's pleas for unanimous support.

The engrossed Constitution being read, DR. [BENJAMIN] FRANKLIN rose with a speech in his hand, which he had reduced to writing for his own...