Rhode Island Statehood
Rhode Island entered the constitutional Union later than the other original states, but still through ratification and with one of the strongest early traditions of religious and civic independence.
How This State Entered The Union
Statehood is where constitutional structure meets regional history: the point where a place entered the Union as an equal state.
Admission To The Union
Rhode Island ratified the Constitution on May 29, 1790, becoming the thirteenth and last of the original states to join the new federal system.
Path To Statehood
Its route was through revolution, statehood, and delayed ratification rather than territorial administration.
Why It Matters
Rhode Island matters because its hesitation reveals that constitutional union was not automatic; even founding states weighed how much authority the new federal structure should hold.
Read Next
Go back to the state page, then return to the larger constitutional story that made equal state membership possible.
Larger Context
Federalism and the founding era give the admission story its larger constitutional frame.