This Constitution Day, The Claremont Colleges Library is bringing the history of printing to life.
On September 17, 2026, from 1-4 p.m., the Library’s First Floor Press on Honnold 1 will open its doors for a special Constitution Day activity. Students can get hands-on with the printing process, helping create Constitution-themed prints on the Library’s printing presses — and take their prints home as a keepsake. Free copies of the U.S. Constitution will also be available, while supplies last.
This year’s event marks the second year the Library has used its printing presses to celebrate Constitution Day. The activity offers a unique way to connect with the history of the Constitution while exploring a craft that was once central to how information was shared and is now increasingly uncommon.
The printing press has a particularly fitting connection to Constitution Day. In the early years of the United States, printed materials played an important role in circulating ideas, public debate and the text of the Constitution itself. Today, the Library’s First Floor Press provides students with an opportunity to experience a small part of that history firsthand.
The Library’s Constitution Day observance is part of a much longer tradition. For many years, the Library has marked Constitution Day through events and activities designed to encourage members of The Claremont Colleges community to engage with the Constitution and its history. Records dating back to 2005 document 17 Constitution Day talks and panel discussions, featuring more than 60 speakers. The Library has also distributed more than 250 copies of the Constitution since 2019.
While the format of how Constitution Day has been celebrated over the years varies — from speaker events and panels to screenings, Constitution giveaways and hands-on activities — the Library’s programming continues to provide opportunities for all seven colleges of the consortium to observe the day together.
Constitution Day is observed each year on September 17, the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787. Federal law requires educational institutions that receive federal funds to hold an educational program related to the U.S. Constitution on or around the date. The Claremont Colleges Library helps fulfill this requirement on behalf of the seven colleges of The Claremont Colleges.