The Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia from late May 1787 until Sept. 18, 1787, when the final draft of the new Constitution was approved by the Continental Congress. Over the 3½ months the convention met, the new document proposed as a replacement for the Articles of Confederation was debated in detail by the delegates.At the same time the convention sent the final document to Congress, it sent it to the 13 states. Because the document was intended to be authored by “we the people,” ratifying …