Rare copy of US Constitution found in Edenton home to be auctioned off in Asheville

As the United States of America marks the 236th anniversary of the signing of the US Constitution in Philadelphia, a rare copy of the founding document is soon to be to be auctioned off in Asheville.

The official signed ratification copy was found in an old filing cabinet at the Hayes Farm Plantation home in Edenton, in 2022, as the historical home was being cleared out to be sold to the state.

Other historical books, documents, and artifacts were found in the home in the 1980s, including a rare copy of the Declaration of Independence that was found in 1983 and sold at auction for $412,500.  Other items were donated to the state and UNC-Chapel Hill.

The property was once owned by Samuel Johnston, the governor of North Carolina from 1787 to 1789.

According to the North Carolina History Project, Johnston took office amid the debate over the ratification of the Constitution and soon found himself a leader of the Federalist minority supporting ratification.

The Constitution was ratified on June 21, 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth of the thirteen states to ratify it. One of two states (Rhode Island) to hold out on ratifying the Constitution until it was amended with the Bill of Rights, North Carolina became the 12th state to ratify Nov. 21, 1789.

According to reports, it’s taken the last two years to authenticate the document. Charles Thomson, Secretary of the Continental Congress, printed one hundred copies. Only eight are known to exist, including the one found in Edenton.

Brunk Auctions will auction the document on Sept. 28. The starting bid is $1 million, but it is expected to sell for much more.

In addition to the copy of the Constitution, the auction house will also auction off a copy of The Journal of the Convention of North Carolina at Hillsborough, a Draft Circular Letter from Joseph Hewes et al. to the Inhabitants of North Carolina, and other important early American documents.

The copy was on display Friday, Sept. 13, at the Federal Hall National Memorial in New York before returning to North Carolina for the auction.

The state finalized the purchase of all 194 acres at the Hayes Farm Plantation house in December 2022, one year after the General Assembly appropriated $6.1 million to acquire it from the Wood family and transform it into a public historic site.

They also agreed to lease the property and 28 of its structures to the Elizabeth Vann Moore Foundation for 50 years.

Renovations are continuing on the property and progress cab be viewed on the Elizabeth Vann Moore Foundation’s Facebook page.

The post Rare copy of US Constitution found in Edenton home to be auctioned off in Asheville first appeared on Carolina Journal.