Constitution Day & Citizenship Day and Week: Interesting Facts

Ohio - Louisville -DT - o7-14-07 By:Mike Sharp is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Arthur Pine came up with the idea for “I am an American Day” from a song that was featured during the New York’s world fair in 1939.   The song was titled “I am an American”.   Pine, who was the head of a public relations firm, made arrangements for the song to be performed on national TV and radio stations.  President Franklin D. Roosevelt was so impressed that he declared “I am an American Day” an official day of observance.

In 1940, Congress declared the third Sunday in May as “I am an American Day”    During the end of World War II, Warner Brothers made a short film titled “I am an American” that was shown in theaters across America.  View here:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKqff8I9arA

Constitution Day proclamations had been established by the 48 states by 1949.   On February 29, 1942 Congress established, September 17 to be known as  ”Citizenship Day” thus renaming “I am an American Day” .  

In 1952, Olga T. Weber of Louisville, Ohio, as known as, “Constitution Town”, filed a petition to establish Constitution Day.  Mayor Romary then proclaimed that September 17 would be observed as Constitution Day.   The following year he petitioned the Ohio General Assembly to establish Constitution Day statewide.

In August 1953 US. Rep Frank T. Bow asked the U.S. Congress to make Constitution Day a national holiday.   President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed it into law September 17-23 as Constitution week nationwide.

• What makes the U.S. Constitution document special among all the major governments in the world?
• Where is the actual 4-page original document kept on display?
• Which two famous founders did not sign the Constitution?
• What is September 17 the actual anniversary of?
• Which famous founder was the oldest to sign the Constitution?
• What is the connection between Thanksgiving Day and the Constitution?
• Who were the only 2 presidents to have signed the Constitution?
• Does the Constitution mention the right to vote?
• How did the Bill of Rights come about?
• What prompted Benjamin Franklin's famous response "A republic, madam. If you can keep it." ?
• Can the word, "democracy" be found in the Constitution?
• Besides English, what is the only other language that appears in the Constitution of the United States?
• In what country outside of the United States were 4 of the signers born?
• Elbridge Gerry (governor of Massachusetts and namesake of gerrymandering) was vice president to which president?

Find answers to these questions and discover many more interesting facts below:  https://www.constitutionfacts.com/us-constitution-amendments/fascinating-facts/ 

Photograph 19-N-9982; Constitution. Sail plan; Naval History Photographs (Bureau of Ships), 1883 - 1941; Records of the Bureau of Ships, Record Group 19; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/constitution-sail-plan, September 14, 2020]