The Constitutional Convention of 1787 Guessing Game
1. How many delegates went to Philadelphia for the convention in 1787? (B)
a) 40 b) 55 c) 75
2. What was the purpose of the convention? (B)
a) to write a new Constitution b) to amend the Articles of Confederation
3. Who was made President of the Convention? (He only opened and closed each meeting because the
delegates worked as a “Committee of the Whole”) (A)
a) George Washington b) James Madison c) Ben Franklin
4. Who was the chairman of the Committee of the Whole? (B)
a) Robert Morris b) Nathanial Gorham c) Alexander Hamilton
5. What time in the afternoon did they stop working each day? (A)
a) 4:00 b) 5:00 c) 6:00
6. Who is called “The Father of the Constitution”? (C)
a) George Washington b) Ben Franklin c) James Madison
7. Who was the oldest delegate at 81? (A)
a) Ben Franklin b) Dr. Hugh Williamson c) Abraham Baldwin
8. What ailment did Ben Franklin suffer from that caused him to be borne from his home to the convention
in a glass-windowed sedan with poles that was carried by four convicts? (C)
a) arthritis b) palsy c) gout
9. Who was the youngest delegate at 26? (B)
a) John Mercer b) Jonathan Dayton c) Charles Pinckney
10. What was the average age of the delegates? (C)
a) 34 years-old b) 40 years-old c) 44 year-old
11. What state did not send any delegates? (A)
a) Rhode Island b) Maryland c) Georgia
12. How many months did it take to write the Constitution? (C)
a) 9 months b) 6 month c) 4 months
13. What did the delegates decide to do to make their task easier? (C)
a) hire 3 secretaries b) write home for advice c) keep everything secret
14. How many of the delegates had signed the Declaration of Independence? (B)
a) 12 b) 8 c) 10
15. How many of the delegates were doctors? (A)
a) 3
b) 6
c) 9
16. How many of the delegates had fought in the American Revolution? (C)
a) almost one-fourth
b) almost one-third
c) almost one-half
17. How many of the delegates were lawyers? (C)
a) 15
b) 29
c) 35
18. How many of the delegates were college graduates? (C)
a) more than one-fourth
b) more than one-third
c) more than one-half
19. How many were or had been congressmen? (B)
a) 39 b) 41 c) 52
21. What two plans did the delegates study when it was decided to write a new Constitution? (A)
a) Virginia & New Jersey plans b) NC & SC plans c) New York & Delaware plans
22. What problem arose when they were discussing the Legislative Branch of the government? (A)
a) little states afraid of being dominated by large states
b) how to get money
23. William R. Davie from North Carolina was on the “Grand Committee” that came up with the
“Great Compromise”. What was the compromise? (A)
a) have Senate with equal representation and House of Representatives with representation by population
b) let the Supreme Court decide c) let the President decide
24. Richard Dobbs Spaight from NC came up with the 3/5 amendment. What did this amendment say? (A)
a) that 3 out of every 5 slaves would count as a person b) that 3 out of every 5 women would be counted as
a person
25. What was a funny suggestion that was made when they were discussing the Executive Branch? (D)
a) to have 3 kings b) not to pay the President c) to not choose 7 years as term of office as there were 7
years of famine from the bible d) all of them
26. Who was on the Committee of Style and is believed to have written the preamble to the Constitution? (C)
a) Robert Morris b) Gouverneur Morris c) James Wilson
27. What branch of the federal government is the Supreme Court? (B)
a) the Executive Branch
b) the Judicial Branch
c) the Legislative Branch
28. When was the Constitution signed? (C)
a) July 17, 1787
b) July 4, 1776 c) September 17, 1787
29. Why did several states not want to ratify the Constitution? (A)
a) Constitution did not have a Bill of Rights b) did not want a strong central government
30. Who is credited for writing the Bill of Rights? (A)
a) George Mason b) James Madison c) George Read
32. Each state has a star on the flag according to when they ratified Constitution. What star belongs to NC? (C)
(a) 8th
b) 10th
c) 12
33. What do the thirteen stripes stand for?
a) the 13 states
b) the 13 original colonies
c) was a lucky number
34. What was the last state to ratify the Constitution? (Rhode Island)
a) New York
b) South Carolina
c)Rhode Island
35. How old is our Constitution? (221 years-old)
a) 200 years-old b) 210 years-old c) 221 years-old