ELLIOT’S DEBATES

 
Read Elliot’s Debates at the Library of Congress here, or download PDF’s below.
 
The Debates in the Several State Conventions
on the Adoption of the Federal Constitution

“The Debates in the Several State Conventions on the Adoption of the Federal Constitution is a five-volume collection compiled by Jonathan Elliot in the mid-nineteenth century. The volumes remain the best source for materials about the national government’s transitional period between the closing of the Constitutional Convention in September 1787 and the opening of the First Federal Congress in March 1789. On September 17, 1787, the Continental Congress accepted the recommendation of the Constitutional Convention and agreed to distribute the proposed constitution to the states; each state was then to elect delegates to a state convention to approve or disapprove the new constitution. The Constitution would take effect upon ratification by the conventions of nine of the thirteen states.

Elliot’s Debates collects the documents pertinent to the discussions on ratification: the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the Journal of the Constitutional Convention (from a version that is earlier and less accurate than that in The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787), the text of the proposed Constitution, and the debates in the various states. The Federalist Papers also presents a vital part of the debate over the Constitution.”Library of Congress, Elliot’s Debates

Read Elliot’s Debates on the Library of Congress site here.

Download searchable PDF versions of the complete five volume set as transcribed by The Library of Liberty and archived on the Patriot Coalition servers for your convenience.

These are essential documents to add to your offline liberty library.

Elliot’s Debates Volume 1

Elliot’s Debates Volume 2

Elliot’s Debates Volume 3

Elliot’s Debates Volume 4

Elliot’s Debates Volume 5