On This Day In Alabama History: State’s 1819 Constitution Was Adopted

By Alabama NewsCenter Staff

July 30, 1819

On March 2, 1819, President James Monroe signed an act enabling the people of the Alabama Territory to form a Constitution and government. That set the stage for Alabama’s admission as a state. Two months later, 44 people from 22 counties were elected to serve as delegates to a constitutional convention that took place in Huntsville from July 5 through Aug. 2. Although the constitution was unanimously adopted on July 30, it was not formally signed until Aug. 2.

For its time, Alabama’s constitution was considered liberal because it did not restrict voting rights and the holding of an office to property owners, taxpayers or members of the state militia, and offered minimal protections to enslaved people. The people of Alabama did not vote to ratify the constitution. Rather, it went into effect at the close of the convention on Aug. 2.Read more at Encyclopedia of Alabama.

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