Rhode Island sent no delegates to the 1787 Constitutional Convention.
Delegates from 12 states met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation, but Rhode Island opposed the convention and declined to participate. Its leaders feared that a stronger national government could threaten state authority and economic independence. The state was sometimes nicknamed “Rogue Island” during the ratification struggle because of its resistance to the proposed Constitution.
The convention instead produced an entirely new governing document. George Washington presided, and the delegates debated representation, executive power, taxation, commerce, and slavery. The Constitution was signed by 39 delegates representing the participating states.
Rhode Island eventually joined the Union under the new Constitution, but only after every other original state had ratified it. Its ratification on May 29, 1790, made it the last of the original 13 states to approve the Constitution. Thus, Rhode Island was absent from the convention but later became part of the constitutional system.