Useful Web Sites
U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates 1774-1873
www.memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lawhome.html(Sponsored by the Library of Congress)
An extensive site that includes the Journals of the Continental Congress, detailing the First Continental Congress (September 5 to October 26, 1774) and the Second Continental Congress (May 10 1775 to March 2, 1789); Farrand's Records of the Federal Convention of 1787, the single best source of notes and correspondence during the Constitutional Convention; and Elliot's Debates, the record of the constitutional ratifying conventions in various states. It also includes the Journals of Congress, Maclay's Journal (one of the few accounts of Senate activity before the chamber was opened to the public in 1795) and the debates in Congress as recorded in Annals of Congress, Register of Debates and The Congressional Globe.Fundamental Documents of the American Founding
www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/(Sponsored by the National Archives and Records Administration)
The Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, and Bill of Rights in transcription form, as well as high-resolution images of the full original documents. In addition, there are articles detailing the creation of the Declaration and the Constitution, and useful biographies of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention. There is also a readable text and a high-resolution version of the Magna Carta, the charter of English liberties.The Founders' Constitution
press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/(Sponsored by the University of Chicago Press and the Liberty Fund)
The on-line version of a work first published in 1986 in five oversized volumes with more than 3,200 double-column pages. Edited by University of Chicago scholars Ralph Lerner and Philip Kurland, the documents included range from the early 17th century to the 1830s, from the reflections of philosophers to popular pamphlets, from public debates in ratifying conventions to the private correspondence of the leading political actors of the day. They are arranged, first, according to broad themes or problems to which the Constitution of 1787 has made a significant and lasting contribution. Then they are arranged by article, section, and clause of the U.S. Constitution, from the Preamble through Article Seven and continuing through the first twelve Amendments.A User's Guide to the Declaration of Independence
www.founding.com(Sponsored by the Claremont Institute)
An in-depth discussion of various fundamental concepts in the Declaration of Independence, such as equality, natural rights, the meaning of "self-evident" truths, and the Declaration's theory of man. In addition, this site offers a line-by-line analysis of the Declaration, with easy links to particular words and phrases allowing for a closer inspection and understanding of the reasoning and intent of Thomas Jefferson and other framers. Finally, there is an examination of a variety of issues within the context of the American Founding, such as race, property rights, religion, immigration restrictions, and property requirements and voting.
