Constitution Day

This cake, complete with chocolate constitution,
was on display when I went to the National
Constitution Center in Philadelphia a few
years ago. I don't know why.

Today is (U.S.) Constitution Day.

You may not have known that, but indeed, Constitution Day is celebrated every year on the 17th of September.

According to the U.S. Senate website, the holiday was started in 1956 and established as Constitution Week. The 17th itself, the date when delegates signed the Constitution, was originally known as Citizenship Day.

In 2004, the day was renamed "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day" after Senator Robert C. Byrd included the language in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of Fiscal Year 2005.

I'm not really sure why.

As far as I know, no one celebrates constitutions on June 15 - the date the Constitution of Massachusetts was ratified in 1780. Seven years before the U.S. Constitution.

The Massachusetts constitution, as you may know, is the oldest functioning written constitution in continuous effect in the world.

The U.S. Constitution was modeled after it.

The purpose of Constitution Day is to educate people about the importance of the U.S. Constitution. So if you want to test your constitutional knowledge, check out this fun quiz from the Washington Post.

Who knows, you may just learn something.