The first president from the first state should honor a pub that helped shape our nation | Opinion

On Dec. 7, 1787, 30 men gathered at the Golden Fleece Tavern in Dover, Del., to drink, debate, and ultimately ratify the U.S. Constitution. In so doing, Delaware rightfully earned its distinction as the First State — beating Pennsylvania, the second state, by five days — and becoming one of only three states to unanimously approve the Constitution.

The significance of this date is so important that it has been imprinted upon Delaware’s state flag for more than a century. Yet, the location of the ceremony that occurred that day was largely forgotten for 200 years, before being rediscovered right before the ratification’s bicentennial.

And now that we have a president from Delaware, it’s time for this place of national significance to receive the recognition it deserves.

While it may seem strange for men of consequence to approve the founding document of their new federal government in a pub, the Golden Fleece Tavern was more than a mere watering hole.

Originally built in the 1730s, it was the largest building in Dover and functioned as both a distinguished meeting place and a lodge situated in the heart of Kent County’s seat of government. It is therefore no surprise that, following the British victory at the Battle of Brandywine and subsequent occupation of nearby Philadelphia, the Delaware General Assembly moved the state capital from New Castle to Dover to safeguard its legislative proceedings from attack. Without time to construct a new building, the Golden Fleece Tavern served as a natural location for many of Delaware’s legislative proceedings from 1777 until the new state capitol was completed next door in 1791.

Sadly, much of the original structure of the Golden Fleece Tavern no longer stands, even though at least one of its old walls remains. In the 1830s, the edifice was torn down and replaced by the Capitol Hotel, and now, a local souvenir store stands in the historic spot. However, commemorative placards from the State of Delaware and Friends of Old Dover hang on the side of the building to pay homage to the original tavern site, and a Golden Fleece sign hangs from a corner near the door. There’s also a sculpture garden near the current building that marks Delaware’s role in ratifying the Constitution. Yet despite state-level recognitions for the Golden Fleece Tavern, there is no national protection or celebration of this historical location.

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The First State’s birthplace would likely have been lost to history were it not for the fact that Delaware’s ratifiers delayed in compensating Elizabeth Battell, the proprietor of the Golden Fleece Tavern, in the amount of 2 pounds and 10 shillings. The invoice documenting the sum owed to Battell resurfaced in 1987 when a researcher featured it prominently in his work addressing the Golden Fleece Tavern ahead of the constitutional ratification’s 200th anniversary.

In celebrating Delaware’s role in ratifying the Constitution each year, Delaware’s elected officials often emphasize the historic role that the Golden Fleece Tavern played in our nation’s founding, including a Facebook post by Sen. Chris Coons this year.

It would therefore be fitting if President Joe Biden, the first president from the First State and Delaware’s longest-ever serving federal elected official, were to take action to recognize the Golden Fleece Tavern’s role in American history.

President Biden should confer the Golden Fleece Tavern with a more lasting status by making the pub a National Historic Site or National Historic Landmark, or listing it in the National Register of Historic Places, as permitted by law.

Utilizing official designations to address past injustices or score political points is not a new phenomenon. The Obama administration, which established more national monuments than any other administration and created the First State National Historical Park in Delaware, changed Mount McKinley’s name to Mount Denali to honor Alaska’s request and pay homage to the site’s Native American heritage. In contrast, after the Civil War, those sympathetic to the South ensured that U.S. Army bases bore the names of Confederate generals, a practice that’s come under scrutiny in the last several years. Given the controversial history of naming at least some federal property, President Biden would certainly be justified in recognizing a genuine American treasure from his adopted home state that was nearly lost to time.

President Biden should seize the moment and grant the Golden Fleece Tavern its due spot in the pantheon of American national sites and ensure that it is forever remembered as the location where the Constitution was first ratified at the state level. No other public official will ever be as well-placed to properly recognize the birthplace of the First State as President Biden is at this moment.

Harry William Baumgarten previously served as legislative director and counsel to members of the House of Representatives. He is also co-owner of the Grundy Mill Complex, a building listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Deepika Kennedy Murala is a pediatric critical care doctor from southern India. She resides in Philadelphia and works in Lewes, Del.