The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787. On September 17th each year, the United States celebrates the virtues of the Constitution and all those who have attained American citizenship.
Primary Sources and Interpretation
The Charters of Freedom
This website, from the National Archives and Records Administration, provides an excellent introduction to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
The Constitution: What it says/What it means
A guide to the constitution with a section by section analysis of "what it says" and "what it means." Created by Justice Learning, a collaboration of National Public Radio's "Justice Talking" radio show (produced by the Annenberg Public policy Center) and the New York Times Learning Network.
The Interactive Constitution
Created by the National Constitution Center. For each provision of the Constitution, scholars of different perspectives discuss what they agree upon, and what they disagree about. These experts were selected with the guidance of leaders of two prominent constitutional law organizations—The American Constitution Society and The Federalist Society.
Primary Documents in American History
The website consists of materials digitized from the historic collections of Library Congress.
Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation
The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation, popularly known as the Constitution Annotated, encompasses the U.S. Constitution and analysis and interpretation of the U.S. Constitution with in-text annotations of cases decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. Visit constitution.congress.gov to access the Library of Congress' regularly updated online version of the Constitution Annotated.
Framing of the United States Constitution: A Beginner's Guide
Provides a list of online and print resources related to the creation and ratification of the Constitution.
Federalist Papers
The Federalist Papers were a series of eighty-five essays urging the citizens of New York to ratify the new United States Constitution. Written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, the essays originally appeared anonymously in New York newspapers in 1787 and 1788 under the pen name "Publius." The Federalist Papers are considered one of the most important sources for interpreting and understanding the original intent of the Constitution.
The Anti-Federalist Papers and the Constitutional Convention Debates / edited and with an introduction by Ralph Ketcham
Gathers the dissenting opinions of Patrick Henry and John DeWitt concerning the U.S. Constitution.
The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 (also known as Farrand's Records)
Published in 1911, Farrand's work gathered the documentary records of the Constitutional Convention into four volumes (three of which are included in this online collection) containing the materials necessary to study the workings of the Constitutional Convention.
Modes of Constitutional Interpretation - Congressional Research Services Report
When exercising its power to review the constitutionality of governmental action, the Supreme Court has relied on certain “methods” or “modes” of interpretation—that is, ways of figuring out a particular meaning of a provision within the Constitution. This report broadly describes the most common modes of constitutional interpretation; discusses examples of Supreme Court decisions that demonstrate the application of these methods; and provides a general overview of the various arguments in support of, and in opposition to, the use of such methods of constitutional interpretation.