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Madison's Copy of the
Proposed "Bill of Rights"

Jefferson's Rough Draft of the Declaration of Independence
[Proposed Articles of Amendment]

New York: Thomas Greenleaf
[September 14, 1789]
Rare Book & Special Collections Division

In response to the demands of the anti-federalists for amendments guaranteeing individual rights, James Madison (1751-1836) drafted these twelve amendments to the Constitution. Seen here in one of only two known copies of the preliminary printing, these amendments were closely modeled on Mason's Virginia Declaration of Rights. Articles three through twelve were ratified by the required number of states in December 1791 and became known as the Bill of Rights.

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