Book excerpt: Americans had been designing state and local governments since 1776. The American experience included a long period of British colonial domination and a Revolutionary War. It had taken some time for the Continental Congress to propose and implement the Articles of Confederation (1781). John Jay, Henry Know and Rufus King provided ideas about a new form of government. Congress adopted a resolution that endorsed a convention ""for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation."" What these pages contain are the ""unplugged"" goings-on recorded by James Madison, a key participant in the convention, that took place May-September 1787. At last, a simple, handy guide to the making of the American Constitution.