History of Ohio’s Constitution

Learning Objectives. Students will be able to:

Identify the problems that followed from the 1802 Ohio

Constitution

Explain how the 1851 Constitution addressed these

problems

Analyze maps to explain why the traveling Supreme

Court requirement became impractical

Describe the changes in how officials were selected

between 1802 and 1851

Time Needed: Two Class Periods

Materials Needed:

Student worksheets

Copy Instructions:

Reading (2 pages; class set)

Primary Source Activity (2 pages; class set)

Review Activities(3 pages; class set)

STEP BY STEP

Teacher’s Guide

ANTICIPATE by asking students if state constitutions can change. Why might they need to

change? What kind of changes might need to happen? How would change happen?

DISTRIBUTE the reading pages to each student.

READ through the sections on both pages as a class. Make sure to discuss challenges,

making sure that they understand the need for the changes in each area of

government

DISTRIBUTE the Primary Source Activity pages and review the instructions. You may have

students work through these constitutional excerpts as a class, in pairs, or

individually. Go over responses when this activity is completed.

DISTRIBUTE the activity pages to the class and explain that you will be going though them as a

class.

REVIEW the “Before and After” activity instructions. Give the students time to draw their

graphic organizers. Ask individual students to share their two images and explain

their thinking. Allow students to add detail to their own drawings at this time.

REVIEW the instructions for the “Adding On” activity with the class and give the students a

few minutes to complete. Read through the correct answers and explain that

women gained the write to vote nationally in 1920, the word “white was struck

from the text in 1923 (although Africans Americans had the right to vote nationally

when the 15th Amendment passed in 1870.

CONTINUE through the activities on the next page. Discuss student answers along the way.

DISTRIBUTE the “Problem? Solution!” activity page to each student. Read through the

instructions, reminding students to think about all the possible causes and effects.

You may choose to lead the class through the list together, have students work in

pairs or individually.

PROJECT the “Problem? Solution!” activity and solicit suggestions from the class. Have them

add connections that they missed to their worksheets.

CHECK IT OUT! Dig deeper with the Ohio Constitution and compare it to the U.S. Constitution with

the new iCivics Lesson: Comparative Constitutions– Ohio. © 2016 iCivics, Inc. You may copy, distribute, or transmit this work for noncommercial purposes only. This copyright notice or a legally valid equivalent such as “© 2016 iCivics Inc.” shall be included in all such copies, distributions or transmittals. All other rights reserved. Find this lesson and more at www.iCivics.org.

Name: History of Ohio’s Constitution

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Reading - Side A

Ohio 2.0: The Executive Branch

The 1802 Constitution only created offices of the governor and

the secretary of state, both selected by the General Assembly.

The powers of the governor were limited to issuing pardons,

filling official vacancies when the General Assembly wasn’t in

session, acting as commander-in-chief of the state militia, and

calling the General Assembly into session in extraordinary

situations.

Time for a Change?

It didn’t take too long for Ohioans to find some flaws in the

initial structure of the state government. A national economic

crisis hit in 1837, leaving many to blame their state government

and lack of economic policy. Early banks did not have many

rules to follow, so many were weak and collapsed—taking the

people’s money with them. This economic panic and the lessons

learned from governing the new state led many to support

constitutional reform. Another constitutional convention was

held and the state was presented with a new constitution in

1851. The new constitution aimed to address the lack of

balance between the branches of government, as well as issues

relating to state funding.

Why the branch imbalance? The

territorial governor Arthur St. Clair was not

very popular and was thought to rule with a

heavy hand. So many at the convention

wanted to prevent one power-hungry

executive being replaced with another.

The 1851 Constitution did not give much more power to the

governor, but it did expand the executive branch. The offices of

lieutenant governor, auditor, treasurer, and attorney general

were created—providing additional executive oversight and

guidance. These offices were no longer appointed by the

General Assembly, but elected by the people.

Since 1851 there have been plenty of

changes made to the Ohio Constitution.

But the change between 1802 and

1851 was bigger; it involved a

restructuring of the way the whole

state government worked!

Ohio 1.0

Before it was a state, Ohio was part of the Northwest Territory

and was governed under the Northwest Ordinance created in

1787. The Ordinance prohibited slavery, protected freedom of

worship, the right to a jury and a number of other basic rights.

Over the next 20 years, the population in the Ohio area grew

and, in 1802, President Thomas Jefferson signed a bill allowing

for the establishment of a new state. Before it could be added

to the Union, this new state needed a new constitution, so a

convention was formed and got to work.

The 1802 Constitution created a state government with most of

the power in the hands of the legislature, called the General

Assembly. The governor and executive branch had very little

power, as did the judicial branch. With a constitution, the U.S.

Congress recognized Ohio as a state and President Jefferson

signed it into law. The first meeting of the General Assembly

was held in Chillicothe, Ohio’s first capital, on March 1, 1803.

This date is celebrated as Ohio’s birthdate.

Ohio 2.0: The Judicial Branch

The original constitution created a rather simple and streamlined judicial

system—a Supreme Court for the whole state and Courts of Common

Pleas within each county. The Supreme Court was required to meet at

least once a year in each of the nine counties that were established in

1802. In the nearly fifty years that followed, the number of counties

jumped up to 88! That’s a lot of travel!

To address the population growth and the growing demands on the

court, the 1851 Constitution created an additional level of district

courts to bridge the gap between the lower state courts and the

Supreme Court. Judges were no longer appointed by the General

Assembly, but elected by the people. The travel requirement was also

removed, allowing the Supreme Court to stay put.

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Reading - Side B

Name: History of Ohio’s Constitution Ohio 2.0: The Legislative Branch

The General Assembly was created to act as the main governmental

branch and held the majority of power in the state government. All

major officials (except the governor) were appointed by this branch

rather than elected by the people of the state. Laws were passed that

favored some citizens and companies over others. Their legislative

actions were unchecked by the other branches, and the General

Assembly soon gained the reputation of being corrupt.

In an effort to rebalance the three branches, the 1851 Constitution

stripped the General Assembly of many of their powers. They were no

longer given the power to appoint key executive officers and judges. The

legislature was no longer able to pass laws retroactively, nor were they

allowed to pass laws that did not apply to everyone equally. The General

Assembly maintained its “most powerful branch” status, but its authority

had been lessened in favor of the executive and judicial branches.

Ohio 2.0: Economic Policy

In the early years of the state, the government racked up a lot of debt.

Some debt is ok, but the General Assembly had used the public’s money

irresponsibly. One law passed by the General Assembly required the

state to provide financial aid to railroad, canal and other companies,

benefitting individual businessmen connected to the officials. So the

state government was investing in private businesses–if those businesses

failed, the state lost that investment. These kind of laws, risky

investments, and corruption helped spur calls for change.

The 1851 Constitution addressed the corruption and financial concerns

in a number of ways. It set a $750,000 limit on state debt. It also

required that money to be used for exactly what it was borrowed for.

In other words, if you borrow state money to build a bridge—you had

to build a bridge, not a new house for a corrupt legislator. Same for

taxes: if you raise tax money to create a school, you can’t use it for a

road. Poll taxes were outlawed and all property had to be taxed in a

uniform way.

Corruption: the practice of

using money and power to

unfairly influence

governmental officials

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Primary Source Activity - Side A

Name: History of Ohio’s Constitution Dealing with the Documents. Read each of the excerpts from the 1802 and 1851 constitutions and

answer the questions that follow on the next page.

On the Legislative Branch

1802 1851

Article I. Sec. 21. No money shall be drawn from

the treasury but in consequence of appropriation made by law.

Article II. Section 22. No money shall be drawn from

the treasury except in pursuance of a specific appropriation made by law; and no appropriation shall be

made for a longer period than two years.

(The 1802 Constitution has no mention of this.)

Article II. Section 26. All laws of a general nature,

shall have a uniform operation throughout the State; now shall any act, except such as relates to public

schools, be passed, to take effect upon the approval of any other authority than the General Assembly, except

as other provided in this constitution.

(The 1802 Constitution has no mention of this.)

Article II. Section 28. The General Assembly shall

have no power to pass retro-active laws, or laws impairing the obligation of contracts; but may, by

general laws, authorize courts to carry into effect, upon such terms as shall be just and equitable, the manifest

intention of parties, and officers, by curing omissions,

defects, and errors in instruments and proceedings, arising out of their want of conformity with the laws of

this State.

On the Executive & Judicial Branches

1802 1851

Article II. Section 1. The supreme executive power

of this State shall be vested in a Governor. Article II. Sec. 16. A secretary of State shall be

appointed by a joint ballot of the Senate and House of Representatives...

Article III. Section 1. The Executive Department shall

consist of a Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, and an Attorney General, who

shall be chosen by the Electors of the State on the second Tuesday of October, and at the places of voting

for members of the General Assembly.

Article III. Sec. 1. The judicial power of this State,

both as to matters of law and equity, shall be vested in a Supreme Court, in Courts of Common Pleas for

each county, in Justices of the Peace, and in such other courts as the Legislature may, from time to

time, establish.

Article IV. Sec. 1. The judicial power of the State shall

be vested in a Supreme Court, in District Courts, Courts of Common Pleas, Courts of Probate, Justices of the

Peace, and in such other Courts inferior to the Supreme Court, in one or more counties, as the General Assembly,

may, from time to time, establish.

Article III. Sec. 8. The Judges of the Supreme

Court, the President and the Associate Judges of the Courts of Common Pleas shall be appointed by a joint

ballot of both Houses of the General Assembly...

Article IV. Sec. 9. A competent number of justices of

the peace shall be elected, by the electors, in each township in the several counties...

Article IV. Sec. 10. All judges, other than those provided for in the Constitution, shall be elected by the

electors of the judicial district for which they may be

created…

Article III. Section 10. The Supreme Court shall be

held once a year in each county, and the Courts of Common Pleas shall be holden in each county, at

such times and places, as shall be prescribed by law.

Article IV. Sec. 5. District courts shall be composed of

the Judges of the court of common pleas of the respective districts, and one of the Judges of the

supreme court, ..., and shall be held in each county therein, at least once in each year...

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© 2016 iCivics, Inc.

Name: History of Ohio’s Constitution Dealing with the Documents. Use excerpts from the last page to answer the questions below.

Primary Source Activity - Side B

Example 1: What two elements have been added to this rule about the General Assembly spending

state money? Why did the 1851 Constitution add these two details?

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Examples 2 & 3: What two restrictions are being placed on the General Assembly in these excerpts?

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Example 4: How did the Executive change in the 1851 Constitution? (Consider the who and the how.)

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Example 5: Which courts were added to the Ohio judicial system in 1851?

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Example 6: Explain how the selection of judges and justices changed between 1802 and 1851.

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Example 7: How did the 1851 Constitution change the travel requirement of the state Supreme Court?

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Reflect: Of the changes mentioned in this activity, which do you think had the greatest impact on how

the Ohio government functions and serves the people? Explain your answer thoroughly.

_________________________________________________________________________________

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__________________________________________________________________________________

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© 2016 iCivics, Inc.

History of Ohio’s Constitution Dealing with the Documents. Use excerpts from the last page to answer the questions below.

Primary Source Activity - Side B

1– it has to be for a SPECIFIC appropriation, 2– it can be made for no longer than two years.

The General Assembly gained a reputation for corruption and large state debt. This limited their

ability to abuse their power.

The General Assembly must pass laws that are uniform across the state. This means they can’t

pass laws that apply to some and not others. They are not allowed to pass laws retro-actively.

The offices of Lt. Governor, Auditor, Treasurer, and Attorney General to the branch. These

positions were elected, and the Secretary of state went from being appointed to elected as well.

The District Courts were added along with the Courts of Probate.

Originally, the judges and justices were appointed by both houses of the General Assembly. The

new constitution now requires them to be elected by the people they serve in their areas.

The Supreme Court was no longer required to travel to each county. Instead it created District

Courts that had judges from the Supreme Court and the Court of Common Pleas meet in the

counties.

Student answers will vary.

Example 1: What two elements have been added to this rule about the General Assembly spending

state money? Why did the 1851 Constitution add these two details?

_________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Examples 2 & 3: What two restrictions are being placed on the General Assembly in these excerpts?

_________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Example 4: How did the Executive change in the 1851 Constitution? (Consider the who and the how.)

_________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Example 5: Which courts were added to the Ohio judicial system in 1851?

_________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Example 6: Explain how the selection of judges and justices changed between 1802 and 1851.

_________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Example 7: How did the 1851 Constitution change the travel requirement of the state Supreme Court?

_________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Reflect: Of the changes mentioned in this activity, which do you think had the greatest impact on how

the Ohio government functions and serves the people? Explain your answer thoroughly.

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

**TEACHER GUIDE**

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Lesson Activities - Side A

Name: History of Ohio’s Constitution A. Before and After. Use the space below to draw the three branches in 1802 and again in 1851. You

can use scale (size), descriptions, and your artistic side to show the differences.

B. Adding On, Rather than Starting Over. In 1873 a new constitution was proposed, but the voters

of the state rejected it. Learning from that experience, leaders tried a different approach—amendments!

In 1912, voters adopted 33 of the 41 proposed amendments to the 1851 Constitution. Additional changes

and updates have occurred since 1912, but none at the scale of 1851 or 1912.

Read through a sample set of amendments proposed in 1912 and guess which ones passed (put an X) ,

leaving the rejected amendments blank.

____ Grant women the right to vote in the

state of Ohio ____ Expand the state’s bill of rights

Establish a minimum wage ____ Give the governor a line-item veto in

appropriation (spending) bills

____ Allow for voter-led initiatives and

referendums ____ Use voting machines in elections

____ Abolish the death penalty ____

Strike the word "white" from the 1851

Constitution's definition of voter

eligibility

____ Allow for home rule of municipalities

D. Maps! Use the two maps below to explain the reasoning behind changing the requirement that states

that the Ohio Supreme Court must meet in each county once a year.

1. Why did the 1802 traveling Supreme Court requirement make more sense at the time it was written?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. What changed between the 1802 map and the 1851 map? How does this present a challenge to the

Ohio Supreme Court?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. How did the 1851 Constitution address this issue?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Lesson Activities - Side B

History of Ohio’s Constitution C. Brought to You By... Ohio officials were selected through different means over the history of the

state. Label each office with ELECTED or APPOINTED.

_________ Governor

_________ Secretary of State

_________ State Judges

_________ Members of the General

Assembly

_________ Governor

_________ Secretary of State and

other Executive Officials

_________ State Judges

_________ Members of the General

Assembly

Ohio

Counties

1851-Now

Name:

Did the 1851 Constitution increase or decrease the level of citizen impact on government? Explain your

answer.

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Lesson Activities - Side C

Problem? Solution! Match a problem or challenge facing the Ohio government with the

solution provided in the 1851 Constitution. (Some problems may need more than one solution,

and some solutions solve more than one problem!)

Name: History of Ohio’s Constitution

Explain it! Take a close look at your messy matching and answer the questions below.

Which problem took the most solutions to try to solve?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Which solution seemed to solve the most problems.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Lesson Activities - Side A

**TEACHER GUIDE** History of Ohio’s Constitution A. Before and After. Use the space below to draw the three branches in 1802 and again in 1851. You

can use scale (size), descriptions, and your artistic side to show the differences.

Students’ answers will vary.

B. Adding On, Rather than Starting Over. In 1873 a new constitution was proposed, but the voters

of the state rejected it. Learning from that experience, leaders tried a different approach—amendments!

In 1912, voters adopted 33 of the 41 proposed amendments to the 1851 Constitution. Additional changes

and updates have occurred since 1912, but none at the scale of 1851 or 1912.

Read through a sample set of amendments proposed in 1912 and guess which ones passed (put an X) ,

leaving the rejected amendments blank.

____ Grant women the right to vote in the

state of Ohio ____ Expand the state’s bill of rights

____ Legislature can establish a minimum

wage ____

Give the governor a line-item veto in

appropriation (spending) bills

____ Allow for voter-led initiatives and

referendums ____ Use voting machines in elections

Abolish the death penalty ____ Strike the word "white" from the 1851

Constitution's definition of voter eligibility

____ Allow for home rule of municipalities

General Assembly

(Legislative Branch)

Executive Branch Governor & Sec. of State

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court &

Court of

Common Pleas

Little power, only

two positions

Traveling Supreme

Court, two levels

Few checks on legislative

power, holds great power

Executive Branch Governor, Sec. of State, NOW four

additional positions

G.A. appoints nearly all offices in other

branches

General Assembly

(Legislative Branch)

Judicial Branch Supreme Court,

NEW District Courts, Court of Common Pleas

Offices are now elected by the people

Supreme Court stays

put, new courts help

with demand

Governor still has few

powers, but the

branch has grown

D. Maps! Use the two maps below to help explain the reasoning behind changing the requirement that

states that the Ohio Supreme Court must meet in each county once a year.

There were significantly less counties to cover. In 1802 there were only nine counties to travel

to, so it seemed reasonable.

The number of counties grew from 9 to 88. Being forced to visit ALL the counties was nearly

impossible in a year’s time. It also limited how many cases could be heard from each county.

The Supreme Court was no longer required to travel. A new level of District Courts were created

to help with the cases before they reached the Supreme Court.

1. Why did the 1802 traveling Supreme Court requirement make more sense at the time it was written?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. What changed between the 1802 map and the 1851 map? How does this present a challenge to the

Ohio Supreme Court?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. How did the 1851 Constitution address this issue?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

© 2016 iCivics, Inc. Lesson Activities - Side B

History of Ohio’s Constitution C. Brought to You By... Ohio officials were selected through different means over the history of the

state. Label each office with ELECTED or APPOINTED.

ELECTED

APPOINTED

APPOINTED

ELECTED

_________ Governor

_________ Secretary of State

_________ State Judges

_________ Members of the General

Assembly

ELECTED

ELECTED

ELECTED

ELECTED

_________ Governor

_________ Secretary of State and

other Executive Officials

_________ State Judges

_________ Members of the General

Assembly

Ohio

Counties

1851-Now

**TEACHER GUIDE**

Citizen power was increased because the people were able to directly elect more government

officials.

Did the 1851 Constitution increase or decrease the level of citizen impact on government? Explain.

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

© 2016 iCivics, Inc.

Problem? Solution! Match a problem or challenge facing the Ohio government with the

solution provided in the 1851 Constitution. (Some problems may need more than one solution,

and come solutions solve more than one problem!)

History of Ohio’s Constitution

**TEACHER GUIDE**

The General Assembly was so powerful that it took four major changes to fix it: elected judicial and

executive officials, law-making restrictions, limits on debt levels and taxes, no retroactive laws.

Placing restrictions on the kind of laws the General Assembly could pass helped address three problems:

General Assembly being too powerful, citizen distrust of government, and unequal application of laws.

Explain it! Take a close look at your messy matching and answer the questions below.

Which problem took the most solutions to try to solve?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Which solution seemed to solve the most problems.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Lesson Activities - Side C