Towards a More Perfect Union: A Series on the U.S. Constitution hosted in SERC’s Woodlawn History Center
From the Philadelphia Mutiny of 1783 to foreclosure riots in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maryland and elsewhere in the mid-1780s, cracks appeared among the 13 confederated states. Congress couldn’t pay war debts and contracted economies led to innumerable foreclosures, prompting soldiers and farmers to threaten insurrection. These events provide significant background to our understanding of why the Constitutional Convention dismissed the Articles of Confederation outright and began consideration of “the Virginia Plan” that ultimately provided the basis for the Constitution. From this unrest we also see the emergence of political parties.
Event Series Info:
In anticipation of America’s 250th anniversary, we invite you to a continuing series of talks hosted by SERC archaeologist Jim Gibb, examining our country’s often bumpy road towards freedom and self-determination. From October 2025 through March 2026, explore the evolution of the U.S. Constitution, in a sequel to the “Road To Independence” series from spring 2025. The new series will highlight the deficiencies of the initial Articles of Confederation, the refinement of such ideas as the “sovereignty of the people,” and the development of our nation’s “owners’ manual,” the document that instructs government as to its role in American society and the U.S. Constitution’s constraints on government.
