New Hampshire, not New York, ended up being the critical ninth state needed to finalize adoption of the Constitution.  Supporters of the Constitution, however, realized that the new government would be quite tenuous without ratification from the two crucial states of New York and Virginia.  After a contentious battle involving such heavyweights as James Madison and Patrick Henry, Virginia voted to ratify the Constitution on the condition that a bill of rights be added to the Constitution.  One month later, New York gave its seal of approval by a slim majority of 30 yeas to 27 nays.  On September 13, 1788, the Continental Congress passed a resolution to put the new Constitution into operation.  Later, North Carolina and Rhode Island would become the last states to ratify the Constitution.

Some Interesting Information About the Period

RATIFICATION

Fascinating Facts About The Constitution

	The U.S. Constitution has 4,400 words. It is the oldest and the shortest written constitution of any government in the world.
	Of the typographical errors in the Constitution, the misspelling of the word "Pensylvania" above the signers' names is probably the most glaring.
	Thomas Jefferson did not sign the Constitution. He was in France during the convention, where he served as the U.S. minister.
	Thirty-nine men signed the Constitution.
	James Madison, "the father of the Constitution," was the first to arrive in Philadelphia for the Constitutional Convention. He arrived in February, three months before the convention began, bearing the blueprint for the new Constitution.
	Patrick Henry was elected as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention, but declined, because he "smelt a rat."
	Because of his poor health, Benjamin Franklin needed help to sign the Constitution. As he did so, tears streamed down his face.
	The oldest person to sign the Constitution was Benjamin Franklin (81). The youngest was Jonathan Dayton of New Jersey (26).
	When the Constitution was signed, the United States population was 4 million. It is now more than 290 million. Philadelphia was the nation's largest city, with 40,000 inhabitants.
	The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware, in December, 1787, three months after the framers had adjourned the convention in Philadelphia. When New Hampshire ratified on June 21, 1788, it was the ninth state to do so. By the ratification requirements set forth in Article VII, the Constitution was now officially established.

Jacob Shallus, a Pennsylvania General Assembly clerk, "penned" the Constitution for a fee of $30 ($261.45 today). Governor Morris was responsible for the wording of the Constitution. It was stored in various cities until 1952, when it was placed in the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C. During the daytime, pages one and four of the document are displayed in a bullet-proof case. The case contains helium and water vapor to preserve the paper's quality. At night, the pages are lowered into a vault, behind five-ton doors that are designed to withstand a nuclear explosion. The entire Constitution is displayed only one day a year, September 17, the anniversary of the day the framers signed the document