Most people living in the United States today call themselves

Americans. However, this was not always the case. Colonists

were not united under a central government. They felt much
more connected to their separate colonies. Likewise, the states
in 1776 thought of themselves as separate political, or
government, units. Each had its own laws and its own armed
forces. Each also had its own free and independent governing
body. This body represented the states citizens. The only
central government was the British one, and even that seemed
very foreign. The colonies did sometimes cooperate with each
other, but that cooperation was purely voluntary. The
Committees of Correspondence, or groups that represented
each of the colonies, for example, shared information with each
other. They also made plans together, but they had no power
over each other.
The Continental Congress took the first step toward replacing
the British government. The Congress set up a meeting of
people who represented each state. It instructed the delegates,
or representatives, from each of the states to create their own
state constitution. A constitution is a written document that
shapes and outlines the purposes and powers of a government.
The state constitutions were alike in many ways. They limited
the power of officials. They made clear the rights of citizens,
such as free speech, freedom of religion, and a free press. Some
of these rights were valued protections in the English Bill of
Rights of 1689. Some were rights the British had broken or
taken away. The violation of these rights had caused anger
among colonists and brought on the Revolutionary War.
All of the states, but one, kept in place the old laws that
limited voting to free male property holders. The 1776 New
Jersey state constitution had no limit against voting rights for
females. For a while, female property owners in New Jersey
enjoyed the right to vote.
The new state constitutions created 13 separate governments.
The young United States still needed a central government. It
needed a single government that could act on matters affecting
all the states. The states would have to give up some of their
control to this central government.

Did the colonies feel like one country or

separate states? Why?
What was the only central government
before the Revolution?

What is one way that colonies

cooperated or shared?

What was the first step towards

replacing the British government?
What were some ways that the state's
constitutions we're alike?

What was the only state that allowed

women to vote?

What did the new state constitutions

create?
What did the U.S. Still need?