Did Alexander Hamilton Spell Pennsylvania Wrong In The Constitution?
At the bottom of the Constitution next to Benjamin Franklin's name, Pennsylvania can be seen spelled as "Pensylvania." Alexander Hamilton had taken on the responsibility of writing the name of the states that the delegates represented next to their signatures (via the National Archives). Does this mean that Hamilton spelled Pennsylvania incorrectly on one of the most important documents in the United States? Alexander Hamilton was a controversial figure at the time, so wouldn't this mistake have been pointed out by one of his adversaries sooner?
What's even more puzzling, Hamilton is not the only person to incorrectly spell Pennsylvania in the Constitution. Pennsylvania is spelled both correctly and with one less "n" throughout the Constitution by the Pennsylvania State Legislature scribe Jacob Shallus. In addition to the misspellings found in the United States Constitution, Pennsylvania is also misspelled in a variety of other writings made during the same period of time.
Pennsylvania is also misspelled on the Liberty Bell
The Constitution is not the only place where Pennsylvania is spelled with one less "n." Some maps made at the time also featured this spelling (via Geographicus). The Liberty Bell also has the same spelling that Alexander Hamilton used in the Constitution (via the National Science Foundation). This misspelling is even more interesting, because it would've taken more effort than a missed pen stroke while writing.
Another case of misspelling Pennsylvania was committed by Benjamin Franklin, although it was intentional. According to Seymour Stanton Block's 2004 biography "Benjamin Franklin, Genius of Kites, Flights and Voting Rights," "[Franklin] purposely spelled Pennsylvania a different way on each denomination bill: Pennsylvania, Pensylvania, Pennsilvania, and Pensilvania." Benjamin Franklin's intentional misspelling of the state name on bills was one of many clever ideas Franklin had, used as a clever anti-counterfeiting measure, but what about these other misspellings? Were they mistakes, or were they too intentional?
It may have been an acceptable spelling at the time
According to the National Science Foundation, spelling Pennsylvania with one "n" was just one of several acceptable spellings of the state name at the time the Constitution was written. This would explain Hamilton's misspelling of the word, as well as all the other places that Pennsylvania is seen spelled with one less "n."
It is also worth noting that spelling did not matter as much in colonial America. The United States was comprised of mostly immigrants from other parts of the world trying to make a better living. According to a 1790s census, 20% of the American population spoke a language other than English as their first language (via Teaching History). This resulted in a culture that wasn't too hung up on minor grammar and spelling mistakes. Between the multiple acceptable spellings of Pennsylvania and the more relaxed approach to spelling, it is no wonder that no one batted an eye at Hamilton's spelling in the Constitution.