Tampa Chapter - September 2018
Contents
Meeting
Announcement
Revolution
History note
Chapter Facebook Page
Program Schedule
Children of the American Revolution
Color Guard Activities
Other Dates of Interest
Misc.
Reminders
Meeting Announcement
The next meeting of the
Tampa Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution, will be held on Saturday, Sept.
15, at the Golden Corral in Temple Terrace. Please remember to pay on your way in and
keep your receipt for the waitress. If
possible, the room will be open and set up by 11:30 for social time and lunch. The formal meeting will start around 12:00
Noon. The street address for the Golden
Corral is: 11801
N 56th St.
Tampa, FL 33617
(813) 899-1833
We will kick off the new program
year by presenting the new SAR Life Saving Medal to two Tampa Police Department
officers for an incident that occurred last fall. As this is our first meeting in four months
and as we are honoring two of TPDs finest, lets have a good turnout, get the
year started off well and show our appreciation to our police department.
American Revolution Notes:
This is the last of our series on the ratification of the Constitution.
Although the ratification conventions in North Carolina and New York met after the Constitution had been officially ratified, their deliberations are still worth noting.
In New York, the anti-federalist forces were organized and in mid-June 1788, at the outset of the convention, may have had the votes to reject the Constitution. However, with Congress meeting in New York City to draw up the rules for the first election and with a debate going on in Congress over where to put the new national capitol, the anti-federalists were fighting a losing battle. Fearful of being left out of the Union and whatever economic benefits it might bring, and hopeful that ratification would help sway votes to make New York City the capitol, New York voted for ratification. Prior to the final vote an anti-federalist’s motion that New York’s ratification was conditional - that after “X” number of years it could secede from the Union - failed and on July 26 New York approved the Constitution by a vote of 30-27. As a last gasp effort, the convention did send to Congress, along with its ratification documents, a circular letter asking all the states to request a second national convention to improve the Constitution. This found little traction as the efforts of the country were now directed toward the first election and getting the new government started.
When the North Carolina convention convened in Hillsborough, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that they would not approve the Constitution. The anti-federalist forces were organized, had done their pre-convention work thoroughly and there would be no surprises as there had been in some of the other states. All that really remained to be seen was if there would be an outright rejection or a conditional wait and see conclusion regarding the amendments they knew other states had proposed.
Despite knowing the outcome, the Federalist leaders requested that the convention go through the Constitution point by point. The anti-federalist forces allowed it knowing that it would not sway any votes. The federalist understood that even though N. Carolina would reject it now, eventually N. Carolina would have to agree to it and join the union. Therefore, they went through it point by point building a case of the merits of the plan to be used later.
Despite the lack of real debate, several issues did get thoroughly discussed. The President’s treaty making power was decried as opening the door for the President to undermine the freedom and liberty of the people through concessions to foreign powers. The North Carolinian anti-federalist also pointed out that the national government would, in effect, be the judge of its own power. They did not buy into the theory of checks and balances, believing that the three branches of the new national government would eventually work together to remove power from the states. Despite the federalist protestations to the contrary, it was believed that the national courts would, in time, subvert the state courts. While the federalist argued this could not and would not happen, history has shown the North Carolina anti-federalists to be correct.
The only other issue that caused real debate concerned the lack of a religious test for national office. There was concern, especially among the rural Presbyterians and Baptists that this might result in Roman Catholics, Deist or even atheist being allowed to run for office. While they favored religious freedom, they wanted to be governed by Protestant Christians.
When the federalist finished their journey through the Constitution, all that remained was the formality of rejecting it. After some debate and behind the scenes maneuvering, the convention voted on Aug. 4, 1788 by a vote of 184-83 to neither ratify nor reject the Constitution. And, as other states had done, they sent along a list of amendments they wished to see added. They knew they would be welcomed into the Union at a future date and decided to wait and see if the promised amendments did indeed get added. Once twelve of the proposed amendments had cleared Congress and were on the way to be ratified, a second convention ratified the Constitution by a vote of 194-77 in November 1789.
In Rhode Island several ratification conventions met, and all rejected the Constitution. On May 18, 1790, the United States Senate passed a bill that would have embargoed all trade with Rhode Island. Before the House could act on the bill, Rhode Island reluctantly ratified the Constitution on May 29, 1790.
Meanwhile, prior to the official ratifications by N. Carolina and Rhode Island, Congress had devised the rules for the first election under the new Constitution. The election took place with very few problems. George Washington was elected President and inaugurated in April 1789.
Now it remained for subsequent events to answer the question of whether a government operating under the rules as written and ratified in the Constitution could thrive and survive.
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Bibliography
Bowen, Catherine: Miracle in Philadelphia
Bradford, M. E. A
Worthy Company: Brief Lives of the Framers of the Constitution
Original Intentions: On the Making and Ratification of the Constitution
Kirk, Russell: Roots
of the American Order
McDonald, Forrest Novus Ordo Seclorum:
Intellectual Origins of the U S
Constitution
Requiem: Variations on Eighteenth
Century Themes
St. John, Jeffrey: A Child of Fortune
FACEBOOK PAGE
From the President - The new face book page for the Tampa Sons of the American Revolution is Tampa Sar. The password to add anything is American1776.
Please feel free to upload pictures or comments. Invite all your friends to look.
Program schedule
Dates for the fall are below but
no program particulars are available at this time.
Sept. 15 Presentation of SAR Life Saving Medals
Oct. 20 Speaker to be Announced
Nov. 17 Annual Law Enforcement & Fire Fighter Commendations
Dec. 15 Wreaths Across America Ceremony at American Legion Post #5
Jan Officer Installation
Children of the American Revolution
The National Society of
the Children of the American Revolution, founded in 1895, is the oldest
patriotic youth organization in our country. Membership is open to children (up
to 21 years of age) descendants of patriots of the American Revolution. Members gain valuable leadership experience
in conducting meetings, following parliamentary procedures and standard
protocol, serving as delegates and speaking before groups at local, state and
national conferences. The responsibility and privilege of selecting officers
helps members gain an understanding of the democratic process.
The Tampa Chapter has a
long relationship with the Fort Brooke Society (Tampa) of the C.A.R. generally serving
as a local society sponsor providing financial and leadership support. That relationship has faded over the past
couple of years as we have moved around the Tampa area looking for a permanent
home. We hope to rebuild that
relationship this year by having a joint meeting in early 2019 and again
providing financial and leadership support.
The new Senior President
of the Fort Brooke Society will be attending our September and other
meetings. At this meeting, she will be
selling Florida Society C.A.R. pins used as a fundraiser for their State
Project. Any of your children,
grandchildren, nieces and nephews who are eligible for membership are invited
to join any local Society C.A.R. meeting.
More information on C.A.R. and their project will be discussed at the
meeting.
Color Guard Activities
Since our May Meeting, your Tampa
Chapter Color Guard met the West Central Florida Honor Flight on June 5 and
presented the Colors at a Hillsborough County Candidates Forum on August
3. David Chestnut of St. Petersburg
joined us for both events.
We also plan to meet the next WC
Florida Honor Flight at the Clearwater/St. Petersburg Airport on the evening of
September 11. Everyone is invited
to join us, in uniform or not. See more
information at www.honorflightwcf.org
VP David Bryant is getting together
the information needed to participate in the Haley VA Hospital Veterans Day
Parade. More information to come.
Other Dates of Interest
Oct
12-13 Florida SAR
Fall BOM
Oct
30 Honor Flight Mission #36
Nov
11 Veterans
Day
Dec
15 Wreaths
Across America
Feb
2 Florida SAR
Winter BOM
Miscellaneous Reminders
Chapter Website—remember
you can find information about the chapter and programs on the chapter
website. http://www.tampasar.org/
One of the duties of the
Chapter Chaplain is to send cards to our members that are sick. Another is to
send a sympathy card to the family of a member who has passed away. If you know
of anyone that should be the recipient of these cards please mention it to
Chaplain Sessums or one of the other officers at our next meeting.
Chapter officers and
committee chairman are encouraged to send any pertinent information they wish
included in the newsletter to the editor.