NY’s 1788 Handwritten Copy Of Constitution Going On Display

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A nearly 230-year-old handwritten copy of the U.S. Constitution is going on public display this weekend in downtown Albany.

The New York State Archives and Library is celebrating Constitution Day on Saturday by exhibiting the state's 1788 copy of the Constitution from the convention in Poughkeepsie (poh-KIHP'-see), where it was ratified.

State Archivist Thomas Ruller calls the document a "national treasure" that was sued by convention delegates to help form the nation's system of government.

The copy of the Constitution was locked in a safe when the State Capitol burned in 1911, destroying thousands of the state's oldest records.

The document will be on display from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in the Cultural Education Center, housed in the same building in the Empire State Plaza that also houses the State Museum, Archives and Library.

[STORY BY: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS]