![Samuel Johnston Bust](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Samuel_Johnston_Bust.JPG)
The Hillsborough Convention, was the first of two North Carolina conventions to ratify the
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
. Delegates represented 7 boroughs and 59 counties, including six western counties that became part of Tennessee when it was created in 1796. They met in
Hillsborough, North Carolina
The town of Hillsborough is the county seat of Orange County, North Carolina, United States and is located along the Eno River. The population was 6,087 in 2010, but it grew rapidly to 9,660 by 2020.
Its name was unofficially shortened to "Hillsb ...
from July 21 to August 4, 1788 to deliberate and determine whether to
ratify the Constitution recommended to the
states by the
General Convention The General Convention is the primary governing and legislative body of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. With the exception of the Bible, the Book of Common Prayer, and the Constitution and Canons, it is the ultimate authority ...
that had been held in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
the previous summer. The delegates had won their seats through special
elections
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...
held in March 1788, as mandated by the
North Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Government of North Carolina, State government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the North Carolina Senate, Senate and the North Ca ...
.
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Samuel Johnston
Samuel Johnston (December 15, 1733 – August 17, 1816) was an American planter, lawyer, and statesman from Chowan County, North Carolina, Chowan County, North Carolina. He represented North Carolina in both the Continental Congress and the Un ...
presided over the Convention. The Hillsborough Convention was dominated by anti-Federalists, and North Carolina did not ratify the Constitution until the
Fayetteville Convention
The Fayetteville Convention was a meeting by 271 delegates from North Carolina to ratify the US Constitution. Governor Samuel Johnston presided over the convention, which met in Fayetteville, North Carolina, from November 16 to 23, 1789 to debate o ...
, which met a year later.
Location
The convention was held in
Hillsborough,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
, at the St. Matthew's
Episcopal (Church of England) Church. The church was located on lot 98 in Hillsborough. It was also the location of the third Provincial Congress of North Carolina of 1775 and the meeting place of the North Carolina Legislature in 1778, 1782 and 1783. The church was destroyed by fire before 1800s. A new structure was built on the site in 1814 and became the Hillsborough Presbyterian Church in 1816.
Division
Key state
Federalists
The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''.
History Europe federation
In Europe, proponents of de ...
were
James Iredell
James Iredell (October 5, 1751 – October 20, 1799) was one of the first Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was appointed by President George Washington and served from 1790 until his death in 1799. His son, James Iredel ...
Sr.,
William Richardson Davie
William Richardson Davie (June 20, 1756 – November 29, 1820) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States, military officer during the Revolutionary War (United States), Revolutionary War, and List of Go ...
, and
William Blount
William Blount (March 26, 1749March 21, 1800) was an American Founding Father, statesman, farmer and land speculator who signed the United States Constitution. He was a member of the North Carolina delegation at the Constitutional Convention of ...
.
Anti-Federalist
Anti-Federalism was a late-18th century political movement that opposed the creation of a stronger U.S. federal government and which later opposed the ratification of the 1787 Constitution. The previous constitution, called the Articles of Con ...
leaders included
Willie Jones,
Samuel Spencer, and
Timothy Bloodworth
Timothy James Bloodworth (1736August 24, 1814) was a slave owner, ardent patriot in the American Revolution, member of the Confederation Congress, vigorous anti-Federalist, U.S. congressman and senator, and collector of customs for the Port of Wi ...
. The Anti-Federalist delegates outnumbered their Federalist colleagues by a margin of two to one. The Federalists wanted to strengthen the powers of the federal government to help the country keep from dissolving. They argued that the powers granted to the federal government in the
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 Colonies of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government. It was approved after much debate (between July 1776 and November 1777) by ...
were not sufficient. On the other side, the Anti-Federalists were suspicious of the federal government and did not want self-rule to come under fire from a government that could intrude on state and individual rights. Knowing that they would likely lose, members of the Federalist minority brought a stenographer to the convention to record their arguments for publication in the hopes of changing public opinion in the future.
Outcome
The debate resulted in the delegates voting 184 to 84 to neither ratify nor reject the Constitution. One of the major reasons for North Carolina not ratifying the Constitution was its lack of a
Bill of Rights
A bill of rights, sometimes called a declaration of rights or a charter of rights, is a list of the most important rights to the citizens of a country. The purpose is to protect those rights against infringement from public officials and pri ...
. The delegates, however, proposed a series of amendments to personal liberties and urged the new federal
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
to adopt measures to incorporate a bill of rights into the Constitution. North Carolina would not join the Union until after it ratified the Constitution, more than a year later, at the November 1789
Fayetteville Convention
The Fayetteville Convention was a meeting by 271 delegates from North Carolina to ratify the US Constitution. Governor Samuel Johnston presided over the convention, which met in Fayetteville, North Carolina, from November 16 to 23, 1789 to debate o ...
.
Delegates
![JamesIredell](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/JamesIredell.jpg)
There were 294 known delegates from the 59 counties and seven
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle Ag ...
s of North Carolina. Some counties (Greene, Sullivan, Sumner, Tennessee, Washington) later became part of the state of Tennessee in 1796.
The election of delegates from
Dobbs County was declared invalid because of violence that led to the loss of the ballot box.
Governor Samuel Johnston was the President of the Convention. While his home was in Chowan County, he represented Perquimans County in the Convention.
John Hunt was the secretary and
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, havi ...
was the assistant secretary of the Convention. The doorkeepers of the convention were
William Murfree,
Peter Gooding,
Nicholas Murfree, and
James Mulloy.
See also
![Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Scene_at_the_Signing_of_the_Constitution_of_the_United_States.jpg)
*
Fayetteville Convention
The Fayetteville Convention was a meeting by 271 delegates from North Carolina to ratify the US Constitution. Governor Samuel Johnston presided over the convention, which met in Fayetteville, North Carolina, from November 16 to 23, 1789 to debate o ...
*
History of the United States Constitution
The United States Constitution has served as the supreme law of the United States since taking effect in 1789. The document was written at the 1787 Philadelphia Convention and was ratified through a series of state conventions held in 1787 and ...
* ''
Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States
''Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States'' is a 1940 oil-on-canvas painting by Howard Chandler Christy, depicting the Constitutional Convention signing the U.S. Constitution at Independence Hall in Philadelphia on Septe ...
'', 1940 painting by
Howard Chandler Christy
Howard Chandler Christy (January 10, 1872 – March 3, 1952) was an American artist and illustrator. Famous for the "Christy Girl" – a colorful and illustrious successor to the "Gibson Girl" – Christy is also widely known for his ico ...
, shows Richard Dobbs Spaight, William Blount, and Hugh Williamson of North Carolina at center stage
*
References
Additional sourcing:
*
*
External links
North Carolina. Convention (1788) "Proceedings and Debates of the Convention of North-Carolina, Convened at Hillsborough, .." Documenting the American South (DocSouth), a digital publishing initiative sponsored by the University Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
{{North Carolina State Legislatures
1788 in the United States
1788 in North Carolina
History of North Carolina
Ratification of the United States Constitution
1788 in American politics