Keeping the party going: U.S. Rep. Boyle proposes commission to plan 250th anniversary of signing of Constitution in Philadelphia

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While July 4, 1776 is typically considered the day that the United States of America was born, it would be another 11 years before the U.S. Constitution was officially adopted. The Constitution officially formed the system of federal government, defined the fundamental laws of the new nation and established the basic rights of its citizens.

And it was signed in Philadelphia, giving the city another semiquincentennial to celebrate.

To that end, U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle is proposing a national commission to begin planning for the 250th anniversary of the event, set for 2037. He said he was inspired by the city’s 200th anniversary celebrations.

“I distinctly remember the bicentennial of our Constitution being celebrated here in Philadelphia in 1987,” Boyle said announcing the legislation Monday at the National Constitution Center alongside the museum’s interim president and CEO, Vince Stango. “It was a massive event, and I look forward to ensuring that 2037 will be at least as significant as 2026 and 1987.”

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia beginning in May 1787 to write the new framework for the nation’s governance. Thirty-eight delegates signed the completed document at Independence Hall on Sept. 17, 1787, according to the National Archives. The anniversary will fall on Sept. 17, 2037.

Boyle’s proposed commission would bring together federal, state and local officials, as well as civic leaders, to coordinate events surrounding the anniversary.

Stango said planning for the Constitution’s anniversary should build on the relationships and public investments developed for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026.

The National Constitution Center has described the period between the declaration’s anniversary in 2026 and the Bill of Rights’ 250th anniversary in 2041 as a “civic decade.” Stango said the initiative could sustain investment in civic, educational and cultural organizations while connecting more Americans to the country’s constitutional history.

“As Americans across the country have come together to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we must see 2026 not as an end point, but as the beginning of a longer national effort,” Stango said.

Boyle’s proposal is continuing the representative’s efforts to emphasize Philadelphia’s role in the nation’s founding during this year’s semiquincentennial. In July, he organized a gathering of members of Congress of both parties from around the country at Independence Hall in commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Continental Congress’ vote for independence.

Boyle said he wants the 2037 commemoration to also include members from both sides of the aisle.

“This is a great bipartisan effort,” Boyle said. “I think it is badly needed in our times that we keep this not as a Democratic thing or a Republican thing, but as an American thing.”

Federal planning for the country’s 250th birthday began approximately a decade before the 2026 anniversary. Congress established the United States Semiquincentennial Commission in 2016 to plan and coordinate the national commemoration. The city also started planning years ahead.

Boyle said creating a similar commission now would give federal and local officials more than a decade to prepare for the Constitution’s anniversary and ensure that Philadelphia remains central to the celebration.

“It is also an opportunity over these next few years to tell the story of our nation’s Constitution and why it matters today,” Boyle said. “These anniversaries are not just about honoring the dead, they’re about educating the living.”