When the first U.S. Congress met in New York
25© National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
amend·ment / əˈmɛndmənt
/ noun plural
amend·ments
: a change in the words
or meaning of a law or
document (such as a constitution)
• The first 10 Amendments
to the Constitution of
the United States are called
the Bill of Rights.
press / ˈprɛs / noun plural
press·es
: newspapers, magazines,
and radio and television
news reports • American/
foreign/local press • freedom
of the press [=the right of
newspapers, magazines, etc.,
to report news without being
controlled by the government]
Above: John Marshall was chief
justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
from 1801 to 1835.
Left: The Liberty Bell in Philadelphia
is a symbol of freedom and
was first rung on July 8, 1776,
to celebrate the adoption of the
Declaration of Independence. It
cracked in 1836 during the
funeral of John Marshall.
City in September 1789, the delegates proposed
a number of amendments to the Constitution to
list these rights. They added 10 amendments,
known as the Bill of Rights.