The Continental Congress, formed by the 13 colonies in 1774, faced new issues after securing independence from the British in 1783. Congress, it was discovered in these early years of the nation, lacked the teeth to manage the states under the current Articles of Confederation. Aiming to broaden the authority of the central government, the Constitutional Convention met in 1787. First, amendments to the Articles were drafted. After two moths of debate, the Articles, Congressional resolutions, state constitutions and other materials were used to draft a new Constitution, setting up the system of checks and balances that form our government. Once completed, the task of creating a final document was given to Pennsylvania delegate Gouverneur Morris. He's responsible for language such as the preamble's "We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union..." and he's known as the "penman of the Constitution." The Constitution was approved on Sept. 17, 1787, and sent to the states to ratify, with nine of the 13 needed to adopt it. After campaigns by the Federalists, who supported it, and Anti-Federalists who, among other things thought it was dangerous to individuals without a Bill of Rights, New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify on July 2, 1788.