John Dickinson, of Pennsylvania, headed a committee that drafted the Articles of Confederation.  The goal of the Articles of Confederation was to bring the thirteen colonies together as a nation.  The Articles were adopted on November 15,  1777,  and did not go into effect until 1781.

    The Articles were more state oriented than they were nationally oriented.  Under the Articles of Confederation there was no Executive Branch,  no Judicial Branch,  and only states could tax.  On May 25, 1787 the Constitutional Convention was opened in Independence Hall in Philadelphia, headed by George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

    The Articles needed to be changed because they were not working.  Delegates from twelve of the thirteen states attended the convention.  The delegates agreed to discard the Articles of Confederation and write a brand-new Constitution.
 
 
 

References:

                       Our Country Silver Burdett Ginn
                       The Golden Book Encyclopedia
                       The New Book of Knowledge
                       http://history1700s.about.com/education/history1700s/