Countess: U.S. Constitution Day: U.S. Constitution

Subject Headings

Libraries use what we call “Subject Headings” to help classify (i.e. categorize) resources. When you are using Countess, our library’s online catalogue (or using any library’s catalogue for that matter), take notice of the subject headings being used for your topic. Like most libraries, we use Library of Congress (LC) subject headings. These can help you narrow or broaden your topic to find resources more relevant to your research.

For resources on the U.S. Constitution, use the subject heading “United States. Constitution.” Among the more specific subject headings you will see (i.e. sub-headings) will be those for specific Amendments. To find resources on the U.S. Supreme Court, use the subject heading "United States. Supreme Court." You can then narrow your search using related sub-heading such as "United States. Supreme Court -- Decision making" or "United States. Supreme Court -- History."

Web Sites

ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union)
The American Constitution - A Documentary Record From Yale University's Avalon Project, a project that provides online access to documents in law, history and diplomacy.
Annenberg Classroom "Annenberg Classroom offers a wide array of educational resources under a single umbrella. Educators can find curricula, lesson plans, multimedia programs, and other teaching materials all indexed and in conformance with the educational standards of their state."
The Bill of Rights Institute "Includes interactive Flash activities that test your knowledge of The U.S. Constitution, The Founding Fathers, and Events."
The Constitution Annotated "The Constitution Annotated provides a comprehensive overview of how the Constitution has been interpreted over time. It includes legal analysis and interpretation of the United States Constitution based on a comprehensive review of Supreme Court case law."
Constitution of the United States: Primary Documents in American History "This guide provides access to digital collections at the Library of Congress, external websites, and print materials related to the Constitution."
ConstitutionalFacts.com A commercial site, here you can find the text of many of documents regarding and surrounding the Constitution, Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, and the Supreme Court. The site also sells a pocket U.S. Constitution.
Equal Justice Initiative "Founded in 1989 by Bryan Stevenson, a widely acclaimed public interest lawyer and bestselling author of Just Mercy, EJI is a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides legal representation to people who have been illegally convicted, unfairly sentenced, or abused in state jails and prisons. We challenge the death penalty and excessive punishment and we provide re-entry assistance to formerly incarcerated people."
The Federalist Papers From the Lillian Goldman Law Library at Yale University, another offering from the Avalon Project, comes the "full text of the Federalist Papers, still a primary source for interpreting the U.S. Constitution. The 85 papers were written to advocate ratification of the Constitution and explain its meaning. Written anonymously, they are now known to have been written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay."
The Federalist Society "The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies is a group of conservatives and libertarians interested in the current state of the legal order. It is founded on the principles that the state exists to preserve freedom, that the separation of governmental powers is central to our Constitution, and that it is emphatically the province and duty of the judiciary to say what the law is, not what it should be. The Society seeks both to promote an awareness of these principles and to further their application through its activities."
FindLaw The Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress prepared this document, The Constitution of the United States of America: Analyis and Interpretation.
Framing of the United States Constitution: A Beginner's Guide "This guide contains sources regarding the creation and ratification of the United States Constitution."
Law Library of Congress "From the Law Library of Congress, links to the text of the Constitution, plus information on constitutional interpretation, executive privilege, military tribunals, national security, whistleblowers, presidential inherent powers, presidential signing statements, second amendment, state secrets privilege, war initiation, war powers, war powers resolution, and other Constitutional resources."
Making of America "The Making of America (MOA) represents an endeavor to preserve and make accessible a significant body of primary sources related to development of the U.S. infrastructure. The project began in 1995 as a collaboration between the University of Michigan and Cornell University to develop a 'thematically-related digital library documenting American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction.' Ultimately, over 5,000 volumes with imprints between 1850 - 1877 will be included."
National Archives - "The Charters of Freedom" Includes a listing with biographical information for the Founding Fathers (the Delegates to the Constitutional Convention).
National Constitution Center (Philadelphia) "The National Constitution Center is an independent, non-partisan, and non-profit organization dedicated to increasing public understanding of, and appreciation for, the Constitution, its history, and its contemporary relevance, through an interactive, interpretive facility within Independence National Historic Park and a program of national outreach, so that 'We the People' may better secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity."
National Endowment for the Humanities: U.S. Constitution Day "Includes a copy of The Constitution annotated by George Washington, a bibliography, a webliography, and a web-enhanced version of the famous painting, Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States, by Howard Chandler Christy."
Native American Constitutions and Legal Materials "This Law Library of Congress collection contains a variety of Native American legal materials. The Law Library holds most of the laws and constitutions from the early nineteenth century produced by the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole who were forced to leave the Southeast for the Indian Territory after passage of the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Some of these documents are in the vernacular languages of the tribes. This collection includes nineteenth-century items and those constitutions and charters drafted after the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act. The recognition of Indian nations or tribes by the federal government formally began with the 1934 Indian Recognition Act. Today there are 574 federally recognized sovereign Indian nations and tribes operating under constitutions and charters within the U.S. federal and state structure. The constitutional organization of tribal entities is expressed in the corporate component such as Community, Association, or Community Association, Native Village, Traditional Council, Village of Council, or Corporation added to the name of the tribe."
Southern Poverty Law Center Located here in Montgomery, Alabama, the Southern Poverty Law Center "is a nonprofit civil rights organization dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of society. Founded by civil rights lawyers Morris Dees and Joseph Levin Jr. in 1971, the SPLC is internationally known for tracking and exposing the activities of hate groups." Its Teaching Tolerance program produces and distributes free of charge books, films and other materials.
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The SPLC also has offices in Atlanta, New Orleans, Miami, Fla., and Jackson, Miss.
U.S. Constitution - Cornel University Law School, Legal Information Institute
U.S. Constitution Online
U.S. Department of Education: Notice of Implementation of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day on September 17 of Each Year A document from the Federal Register that establishes Constitution Day as a recognized event.
The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) A site for helpful interpretation and analysis of the Constitution.
United States Department of Justice The U.S. Justice Department houses the Civil Rights Division, which can be found with the direct link below. http://www.justice.gov/crt/index.php
United States Supreme Court