U.S. Constitutional Convention and Ratification
- The Federalist PapersAlso available in print at Law Library KF4515 .F4 and through FederalistPapers.org.
- The Anti-Federalist PapersFrom FederalistPapers.org. Also available in print at Law Library KF4515 .C65.
- Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 (Farrand’s Records)Also available in print at Law Library KF4510 .F37.
- Documentary History of the Ratification of the ConstitutionAlso available in print/microform at Law Library KF4502 .D63 and Law Audiovisual Microfiche 5.
- Documentary History of the Constitution of the United StatesIn print at Law Library KF4502 .R63 1894r.
- Founders OnlineContains searchable writings from George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams (and family), Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison.
U.S. Constitutional Amendments
Many books on individual amendments are shelved in the KF 4557 - KF 4560 call number area on 1st floor. To find additional sources on the history of individual amendments, use the "Sources" sections at the end of the amendment's entry in Constitutional Amendments: 1789 to the Present (see below).
- Complete Bill of Rights: The Drafts, Debates, Sources and OriginsIn print at Law Library KF4744 1997.
- Statutory History of the United States: Civil RightsIn print at Law Library KF4743.8 .S3 1970. Covers the 13th-15th Amendments.
Treatises on U.S. Constitutional History
- Story’s Commentaries on the Constitution of the United StatesAlso available in print at Law Library KF4541 .S86 1833r.
State Constitutional Conventions and Ratification
To locate historical resources on the development and ratification of state constitutions, try an InfoHawk+ Browse search "By subjects" for
Constitutional history - [state]
Constitutions - [state]
Constitutional Conventions - [state]
Also try these sources:
- Sources and Documents of United States ConstitutionsIn print at Law Library KF4530 .S68. Contains documents affecting the constitutions of individual states.
- Sources and Documents of United States Constitutions, 2dIn print at Law Library KF4530 .S68 1982. Contains documents affecting the constitutions of all or multiple states.
Iowa Constitutional History
- Journal of the 1844 Convention for the Formation of a Constitution for the State of IowaIn print at Law Library KFI4601 1845 .A2.
- Journal of the 1846 Convention for the Formation of a Constitution for the State of IowaIn print at Law Rare Book (Special Collection) KFI4601 1846 .A2.
- Fragments of the Debates of the Constitutional Conventions of 1844 and 1846From the State Library of Iowa.
- Journal of the Constitutional Convention of the State of Iowa (1857)In print at Law Library KFI4601 1857 .A22.
- The Debates of the Constitutional Convention of the State of Iowa (1857)Also available in print at Law Library KFI4601 1857 .A222.