When I was born in Denver my mom and dad got a piece of paper from the hospital that told the whole world that I was a "for-real" person. That paper is called my "Birth Certificate".

Our Nation's Founding Documents

Right now I want you to notice those large pieces of paper on the front of the exhibit. Some of those papers are the actual size as the original papers were printed (about the size of a newspaper). These are the documents that gave birth to the United States of America.  These papers could almost be thought of as the "birth certificates" of the United States of America. There is a big difference between MY birth certificate and these however.

One of these important papers was written almost 300 years before Columbus even discovered the New World that would one day be home to the United States. That paper is called the "MAGNA CARTA". While most people think of this document as an ENGLISH book of laws, it became the foundation for the establishment of the United States. Next to it is a document I'm sure you have heard of, The Declaration of Independence. A little further on is another set of papers called The Constitution. I'm sure you've heard of that too. But in between these two papers is another one called The Articles of Confederation.   Finishing it all off is a series of changes to The Constitution called "Amendments. So many papers, so many different "birth certificates"! Can you imagine what they are all for, or why we needed so many?

Click to meet my friends at "Royal, Inc.".   Its kind of a fun story we've put together to help you understand what all these papers are about.  Below is a map of all the pages in the Birth of a Nation Exhibit.   You'll find it at the bottom of each page.