Texts that shaped American government, law, and political identity.
23 entries, in chronological order
Nov 11, 1620·Document
Passengers bound for Virginia agree to govern themselves at Plymouth
Jul 4, 1776·Document
The Continental Congress explains why thirteen colonies are breaking with Britain
Nov 15, 1777 – Mar 1, 1781·Document
The first constitution of the United States, 1781–1789
Jul 13, 1787·Document
The plan for governing the Old Northwest and admitting new states
Sep 17, 1787·Document
The framework of the federal government, written in 1787 and amended twenty-seven times
Oct 1787 – May 1788·Document
Eighty-five essays defending the proposed Constitution
Dec 15, 1791·Document
The first ten amendments to the Constitution
Dec 2, 1823·Document
The United States warns Europe away from the Americas, 1823
May 30, 1854·Document
The law that repealed the Missouri Compromise and set Kansas bleeding, 1854
Jan 1, 1863·Document
Lincoln declares freedom for enslaved people in the Confederacy, 1863
Nov 19, 1863·Document
Lincoln’s brief speech on the meaning of the war
Dec 6, 1865·Document
The abolition of slavery, 1865
Jul 9, 1868·Document
Citizenship, due process, and equal protection, 1868
Feb 3, 1870·Document
Voting rights regardless of race, 1870
May 6, 1882·Document
The first federal law to bar immigrants by nationality, 1882
Feb 8, 1887·Document
Breaking up tribal lands through allotment, 1887
Aug 18, 1920·Document
Women’s right to vote, 1920
1924·Document
The Johnson-Reed Act and the national origins quota system
Aug 14, 1935·Document
The 1935 law that created old-age pensions and unemployment insurance
Feb 19, 1942·Document
The 1942 order that led to the incarceration of Japanese Americans
Jun 22, 1944·Document
The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944
Jul 2, 1964·Document
The law that outlawed segregation in public places and job discrimination
Aug 6, 1965·Document
The law that enforced the Fifteenth Amendment
