Two Constitutions and the 32nd State
Minnesota became a state on May 11th, 1858. What Congress actually ratified that day is a harder question. Two political parties so opposed, they refused to share a room spent six weeks drafting the same document in separate wings of the same building, signed two versions on two colors of paper, and sent both to Washington. Voters approved a constitution most of them never knew was two. A legislature passed laws before the state legally existed. And somewhere between St. Paul and Washington, the wrong constitution ended up attached to the bill. It worked anyway. Today we find out how.
The skinny
The skinny isn't ready yet — notes appear once the transcript is processed.