Commission on Art Unveils Connecticut Compromise
DODD
The New Britain Herald
Tia Albright
Boston University Washington News Service
September 12, 2006
WASHINGTON – A new mural debuted Tuesday in the U.S. Capitol honoring the two constitutional convention delegates from Connecticut who came up with the compromise credited with saving the Constitution.
“Without the compromise, the constitution may never have emerged,” said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn. “As we unveil this masterpiece we celebrate the masterpiece that stands at the center of our nation – the Constitution.”
Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., the author of the resolution that created the mural honoring Connecticut delegates Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, said it was an overdue honor for “a missing piece of the story of our nation.”
Sherman and Ellsworth attended the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. The delegates decided on terms for Senate and House members, but there was still disagreement over the amount of representation each state deserved.
With the Connecticut Compromise, Sherman and Ellsworth proposed a dual system of representation, cutting one of history’s great deals. Under the compromise each state would have two senators but representation in the House would be based on population.
“They broke the logjam between small and large states over constitutional representation and ensured successful signing of the Constitution two months later,” said Dodd.
The mural of Ellsworth and Sherman signing the compromise was painted by Bradley Stevens of Westport and it fills one of the four remaining portrait spaces in the ornate Senate Reception Room, where Senators can meet guests near that body’s chamber.
“Sherman and Ellsworth deserve to be placed among the greatest of the founding fathers,” said Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va. “They are the ones who saved the Constitutional Convention and saved the Republic.”
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