Saturday marks the 224th anniversary of that historic day in 1787 when the United States Constitution was signed by 39 men in Philadelphia, although 55 delegates helped draft the document. The Constitutional Convention convened on May 14 that year. The delegates selected George Washington to preside over the convention.

After the Constitution was signed, it was sent to the states, with each holding a ratifying convention. Nine states had to ratify the Constitution to activate it. Delaware was the first, unanimously ratifying it on Dec. 7, 1787. New Hampshire was the ninth, doing so on June 21, 1788, on a 57-46 vote. The U.S. government did not declare the Constitution in effect until the March 4, 1789. By that time, 11 states had ratified it. After Washington was sworn in as the first president, on April 30, 1789, North Carolina ratified it 194-77 on Nov. 21, 1789, and Rhode Island did likewise on May 29, 1790, 34-32, making it the 13th state to join the Union.

The National Constitution Center has a Web site about our nation’s most fundamental and cherished set of laws.