Description
Book SynopsisRarely is it possible to hear the voice of the people in a revolution except as it filters through the writings of articulate individuals who may not really be representative. But on several occasions during the effort to draft a constitution for Massachusetts after 1776, the citizens of the Commonwealth were asked to convene in their 300 town meetings to debate and convey to the legislators their political theories, needs, and aspirations. This book presents the transcribed debates and the replies returned to Boston which constitute a unique body of material documenting the political thought of the ordinary citizen. In an important, extended introduction, the editors, interpreting the American Revolution and its sustaining political framework in light of this material, analyze the forces that were singular and those that were universal in the shaping of American democracy. Comparisons are made with popular uprisings in other parts of the world and at other times, and the whole is integrated into a general discussion of the nature of revolution and its relationship to constitutional authority.
Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION PART 1:THE PROBLEM EXPLORED, August 1775-November 1776 1. An Act to Confirm the Records of the Provincial Congresses, August 23, 1775 2. An Act on Representation, August 23, 1775 3. Pittsfield Memorial, December 26, 1775 4. Proclamation of the General Court, January 23, 1776 5. Report of a Lecture by Thomas Allen on February 18, 1776 6. Essex County Convention, Ipswich, April 25, 26, 1776 7. An Act for More Equal Representation, May 4, 1776 8. O.P.Q., "To the Electors," May 18, 1776 9. Pittsfield Petitions, May 29, 1776 10. Boston's Instructions to Its Representatives, May 30, 1776 11. Topsfield's Instructions to Its Representatives, June 14, 1776 12. Resolution of the House of Representatives, September 17, 1776 13. Returns of the Towns on the House of Representatives Resolution of September 17, 1776 14. Resolution of Worcester County Towns, November 26, 1776 PART 2: THE CONSTITITION OF 1778 January 1777-November 1778 15. Sutton Requests a County Convention, January 1777 16. Resolution Authorizing the General Assembly to Frame a Constitution, April 4, 1777 17. Resolve of May 5, 1777 18. Boston Objects, May 26, 1777 19. Journal of the Convention, June 17, 1777--March 6, 1778 20. The Rejected Constitution of 1778 21. Returns of the Towns on the Constitution of 1778 22. The Essex Result, 1778 23. Berkshire County Remonstrance, August 26, 1778 24. Response of the Worcester Committee of Correspondence, October 8, 1778 25. Statement of Berkshire County Representatives, November 17, 1778 PART 3: FORMATION OF THE CONSTITUION OF 1780 February 1779-March 1780 26. Resolve on the Question of a Constitution, February 20, 1779 27. Opinions of Hampshire County Towns, March 30, 1779 28. Berkshire County Address, May 3, 1779 29. Returns of the Towns on Resolves of February 20, 1779, May 1779 30. The Call for a Convention, June 1779 31. Votes of Towns in Choosing Delegates, July-October 1779 32. Proceedings of the Convention, March 2, 1780 33. Address of the Convention, March 1780 34. The Constitution of 1780 PART 4: RATIFICATION, May 1780-June 1780 35.Returns of the Towns on the Constitution of 1780 i. Berkshire County ii. Bristol County iii. Hampshire County iv. Lincoln County v. Middlesex County vi. Plymouth County vii. Barnstable County viii. York County ix. Suffolk County x. Worcester County xi. Essex County xii. Cumberland County Appendix: The Massachusetts Towns of 1780 Index
