Senator Farley Announces September 17th Is Constitution Day

September 17th is Constitution Day and State Senator Hugh T. Farley (R,C - Schenectady) said the commemoration is being held to remind people of the uniqueness of our government and the importance of this document.

Senator Farley said on September 17, 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the Constitution and sent copies to the state legislatures for ratification and to officially join the Union. On July 26, 1788, New York State was the 11th state to approve the Constitution.

"In fact, five days after the issuance of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the people of New York met in convention in Kingston to vote their support and form their own state government," Senator Farley said. "New York adopted its first state constitution on April 20, 1777. After the adoption of the Federal Constitution, New York City was chosen to be the nation's first capital and was the site of the inauguration of George Washington as President on April 30, 1789."

As part of the Constitution Day observance, parents and teachers are encouraged to recite the Preamble with their children: "We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

Senator Farley also has free copies of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States available at his offices at: 412 Legislative Office Building, Albany (phone: 455-2181); 2430 Riverfront Center, Amsterdam (phone: 843-2188); and 33-41 East Main Street, Johnstown (phone: 762-3733).