
THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CONTINENTAL
CONGRESSES, FIRST EDITION
This new volume examines an in-depth history of the congresses and their impact and role in the shaping and foundation of early American Society and government. Comprehensive coverage covers both the first Continental Congress in 1774 and the first Federal Congress in 1789.
Profiles, Historical Timeline and Primary Documents
A
- Andrew Adams: (1736-1797)
- John Adams: (1735-1826)
- Samuel Adams: (1722-1803)
- Thomas Adams: (1730-1788)
- Robert Alexander: (1740-1805)
- Andrew Allen: (1740-1825)
- John Alsop: (1724-1794)
- Benjamin Andrew: (1730-1799)
- Annapolis State House:
- John Armstrong, Sr.: (1717-1795)
- John Armstrong, Jr.: (1758-1843)
- Jonathan Arnold: (1741-1793)
- Peleg Arnold : (1751-1820)
- The Articles of Confederation:
- John Baptista Ashe: (1748-1802)
- Samuel John Atlee: (1739-1786)
B
- Reverend Isaac Backus: (1724-1806)
- Abraham Baldwin: (1754-1807)
- John Banister: (1734-1788)
- The Bank of the United States:
- Robert Gibbes Barnwell: (1761-1814)
- Dr. Josiah Bartlett: (1729-1795)
- John Bubenheim Bayard: (1738-1807)
- John Beatty: (1749-1826)
- Gunning Bedford: (1742-1797)
- Gunning Bedford, Jr. : (1747-1812)
- Thomas Bee: (1725-1812)
- Egbert Benson: (1746-1833)
- Richard Beresford: (1755-1803)
- Edward Biddle: (1738-1779)
- William Bingham: (1752-1804)
- Jonathan Blanchard: (1738-1788)
- Richard Bland: (1710-1776)
- Theodorick Bland: (1742-1790)
- Timothy Bloodworth: (1736-1814)
- William Blount: (1749-1800)
- Simon Boerum: (1724-1775)
- The Boston Massacre:
- The Boston Port Bill:
- Elias Boudinot: (1740-1821)
- James Bowdoin: (1726-1790)
- Carter Braxton: (1737-1797)
- John Brown: (1757-1837)
- Nathan Brownson: (1742-1796)
- John Bull: (1740-1802)
- Archibald Stobo Bulloch: (1730-1777)
- Thomas Burke: (1744-1783)
- Dr. William Burnet: (1730-1791)
- Robert Burton: (1747-1825)
- Pierce Butler: (1744-1822)
C
- Lambert Cadwalader: (1742-1823)
- Canada and Canadian Relations:
- Capitals of the Continental Congress:
- William Carmichael: (1738-1795)
- Carpenters' Hall :
- Edward Carrington : (1748-1810)
- Charles Carroll "Barrister": (1723-1783)
- Charles Frémont Carroll III "of Carrollton": (1737-1832)
- Daniel Carroll: (1730-1796)
- Richard Caswell: (1729-1789)
- Jeremiah Townley Chase: (1748-1828)
- Samuel Chase: (1741-1811)
- Abraham Clark: (1726-1794)
- Matthew Clarkson: (1733-1800)
- Joseph Clay: (1741-1804)
- William Clingan: (1721-1790)
- George Clinton: (1739-1812)
- George Clymer: (1739-1813)
- John Collins: (1717-1795)
- The Committee of Five:
- The Committee of Fifty:
- The Committee of Safety/Council of Safety:
- The Committee of Secret Correspondence :
- Committees of Correspondence:
- The Conciliatory Resolution of 1775:
- Silas Condict: (1738-1801)
- Benjamin Contee: (1755-1815)
- The Continental Association:
- Joseph Platt Cooke: (1730-1816)
- John Cooper: (1729-1785)
- Ezekiel Cornell: (1732-1800)
- Tench Coxe: (1755-1824)
- Stephen Crane: (1709-1780)
- William Cumming: (1724-1797)
- Thomas Cushing: (1725-1788)
D
- Francis Dana: (1743-1811)
- Nathan Dane: (1752-1835)
- John Dawson: (1762-1814)
- Elias Dayton: (1737-1807)
- Jonathan Dayton: (1760-1824)
- Silas Deane: (1737-1789)
- The Declaration of Independence:
- John De Hart: (1728-1795)
- Charles DeWitt: (1727-1787)
- Samuel Dick: (1740-1812)
- John Dickinson: (1732-1808)
- The "Dickinson Draft" of the Articles of Confederation:
- Philemon Dickinson: (1739-1808)
- Diplomacy of, and by, the Continental Congress:
- William Henry Drayton: (1742-1779)
- James Duane: (1732-1797)
- Reverend Jacob Duché: (1738-1798)
- William Duer: (1743-1799)
- Reverend George Duffield: (1732-1790)
- John Dunlap: (1747-1812)
- Eliphalet Dyer: (1721-1807)
E
- Pierpont Edwards: (1750-1826)
- Samuel Elbert: (1740-1788)
- William Ellery: (1727-1820)
- Oliver Ellsworth: (1745-1807)
- Jonathan Elmer: (1745-1817)
- Espionage Tactics by the Continental Congress:
- The Essex Principles, also known as The Essex Result:
- Nicholas Eveleigh: (1748-1791)
F
- The Fairfax County Resolves:
- John Fell: (1721-1798)
- William Few, Jr.: (1748-1828)
- The Henry Fite House:
- William Fitzhugh: (1741-1809)
- Thomas Fitzsimons: (1741-1811)
- William Fleming: (1736-1824)
- William Floyd: (1734-1821)
- Nathaniel Folsom: (1726-1790)
- James Forbes: (1731-1780)
- The Department of Foreign Affairs:
- Uriah Forrest: (1756-1805)
- Abiel Foster: (1735-1806)
- Relations with France:
- Benjamin Franklin: (1706-1790)
- The "Franklin Draft" of the Articles of Confederation:
- Fraunces Tavern:
- Frederick Frelinghuysen: (1753-1804)
- The French Arms Tavern:
- George Frost: (1720-1796)
G
- Christopher Gadsden: (1724-1805)
- Joseph Galloway: (1731-1803)
- Leonard Gansevoort: (1751-1810)
- John Gardner: (1747-1808)
- Joseph Gardner: (1752-1794)
- David Gelston: (1744-1828)
- George William Frederick, King George III of Great Britain and Ireland: (1738-1820)
- George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville: (1716-1785)
- Elbridge Gerry: (1744-1814)
- John Lewis Gervais: (1741-1798)
- William Gibbons: (1726-1800)
- John Taylor Gilman: (1753-1828)
- Nicholas Gilman: (1755-1814)
- Robert Goldsborough: (1733-1788)
- Mary Katherine Goddard: (1738-1816)
- Nathaniel Gorham: (1738-1796)
- William Grayson: (1740-1790)
- Great Seal of the United States:
- Cyrus Griffin: (1748-1810)
- James Gunn: (1753-1801)
- Button Gwinnett: (1735-1777)
H
- John Habersham: (1754-1799)
- Joseph Habersham: (1751-1815)
- John Hall: (1729-1797)
- Lyman Hall: (1724-1790)
- Alexander Hamilton: (1757-1804)
- John Hancock: (1737-1793)
- Edward Hand: (1744-1802)
- John Hanson: (1715-1783)
- Samuel Hardy: (1758-1785)
- John Haring: (1739-1809)
- Cornelius Harnett: (1723-1781)
- Benjamin Harrison : (1726-1791)
- William Harrison, Jr.: (1750-1812)
- John Hart: (1713-1779)
- The Hartford Convention:
- John Harvie: (1742-1807)
- Benjamin Hawkins: (1754-1816)
- Jonathan J. Hazard: (1731-1812)
- William Hemsley: (1736-1812)
- James Henry: (1731-1804)
- John Henry, Jr. : (1750-1798)
- Patrick Henry: (1736-1799)
- William Henry: (1729-1786)
- Joseph Hewes: (1730-1779)
- Thomas Heyward, Jr.: (1746-1809)
- Stephen Higginson: (1743-1828)
- Whitmell Hill: (1743-1797)
- Michael Hillegas, Jr.: (1728-1804)
- James Hillhouse: (1754-1832)
- William Hillhouse: (1728-1816)
- William Hindman: (1743-1822)
- Samuel Holten: (1738-1816)
- William Hooper: (1742-1790)
- Esek Hopkins: (1718-1802)
- Stephen Hopkins: (1707-1785)
- Francis Hopkinson: (1737-1791)
- Josiah Hornblower: (1729-1809)
- Titus Hosmer: (1736-1780)
- Hospital Department of the US Continental Army:
- William Churchill Houston: (1746-1788)
- John Houstoun: (1744-1796)
- William Houstoun: (1755-1813)
- John Eager Howard: (1752-1827)
- David Howell: (1747-1824)
- Richard Howly [Howley]: (1740-1784)
- Daniel Huger: (1742-1799)
- Charles Humphreys: (1714-1786)
- Benjamin Huntington: (1736-1800)
- Samuel Huntington: (1731-1796)
- Richard Hutson: (1748-1795)
I
- Independence Hall:
- Jared Ingersoll: (1749-1822)
- The Intolerable Acts:
- William Irvine: (1741-1804)
- Ralph Izard: (1741-1804)
J
- David Jackson: (1730-1801)
- Jonathan Jackson: (1743-1810)
- John Jay: (1745-1829)
- Thomas Jefferson: (1743-1826)
- Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer: (1723-1790)
- Thomas Johnson: (1731-1819)
- William Samuel Johnson: (1727-1819)
- Samuel Johnston: (1733-1816)
- Allen Jones: (1739-1798)
- Joseph Jones, Sr.: (1727-1805)
- Noble Wimberly [Wymberley] Jones: (1723-1805)
- Samuel Jones: (1734-1819)
- Willie Jones: (1740-1801)
K
- John Kean: (1756-1795)
- Dyre Kearney: (1722-1791)
- Rufus King: (1755-1827)
- Francis Kinloch: (1755-1826)
- James Kinsey: (1731-1803)
L
- Lancaster Court House:
- John Langdon: (1741-1819)
- Woodbury Langdon: (1739-1805)
- Edward Langworthy: (1738-1802)
- John Ten Eyck Lansing, Jr.: (1754-1829)
- John Laurance: (1750-1810)
- Henry Laurens: (1724-1792)
- Richard Law: (1733-1806)
- Arthur Lee: (1740-1792)
- Francis Lightfoot Lee: (1734-1797)
- Henry Lee: (1756-1818)
- Richard Henry Lee: (1732-1794)
- Thomas Sim Lee: (1745-1819)
- William Lee: (1739-1795)
- William Legge, Second Earl of Dartmouth: (1731-1801)
- Francis Lewis: (1713-1802)
- Lexington and Concord:
- Ezra L'Hommedieu: (1734-1811)
- The Library of the Continental Congress:
- Samuel Livermore: (1732-1803)
- Philip Livingston: (1716-1778)
- Robert R, Livingston: (1746-1813)
- Walter Livingston: (1740-1797)
- William Livingston: (1723-1790)
- Edward Lloyd: (1744-1796)
- Pierse Long: (1739-1789)
- James Lovell: (1737-1814)
- Isaac Low: (1735-1791)
- John Lowell: (1743-1802)
- Loyalists:
- The Lundin Letter:
- Thomas Lynch: (1727-1776)
- Thomas Lynch, Jr.: (1749-1779)
M
- James Madison: (1751-1836)
- James Manning: (1738-1791)
- Henry Marchant: (1741-1790)
- The Massachusetts Convention:
- Massachusettensis vs. Novanglus:
- John Mathews: (1744-1802)
- Timothy Matlack: (1736-1829)
- Eleazer McComb: (1740-1798)
- Alexander McDougall: (1731-1786)
- James McHenry: (1753-1816)
- Lachlan McIntosh: (1725-1806)
- Thomas McKean: (1734-1817)
- James McLene: (1730-1806)
- The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence:
- James Mercer: (1736-1793)
- John Francis Mercer: (1759-1821)
- Samuel Meredith: (1741-1817)
- Arthur Middleton: (1742-1787)
- Henry Middleton: (1717-1784)
- Thomas Mifflin: (1744-1800)
- Nathan Miller: (1743-1790)
- Nathaniel Mitchell: (1753-1814)
- Stephen Mix Mitchell: (1743-1835)
- The Model Treaty:
- James Monroe: (1758-1831)
- John Montgomery: (1722-1808)
- Reverend Joseph Montgomery: (1733-1794)
- William Montgomery: (1736-1816)
- Cadwalader Morris: (1741-1795)
- Gouverneur Morris: (1752-1816)
- Lewis Morris: (1726-1798)
- Robert Morris: (1735-1806)
- John Morton: (1725-1777)
- Isaac Motte: (1738-1795)
- Daniel Mowry, Jr. : (1729-1806)
- Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg: (1750-1801)
N
- Abner Nash: (1740-1786)
- Nassau Hall, Princeton, New Jersey:
- Native Americans and Their Relations with the Continental Congress:
- Thomas Nelson, Jr.: (1738-1789)
- New York City, City Hall:
- The Nicola Affair:
- The Nonexportation Agreement of 1774:
- The Nonimportation Agreement of 1774:
- Frederick North, Lord North, Second Earl of Guilford: (1732-1792)
- The Northwest Ordinance:
O
- The Olive Branch Petition:
- Henry Osborne: (1751-1800)
- Samuel Osgood: (1748-1813)
- Samuel Allyne Otis: (1740-1814)
P
- William Paca: (1740-1799)
- Mann Page: (1749-1781)
- Ephraim Paine: (1730-1785)
- Robert Treat Paine: (1731-1814)
- Thomas Paine: (1737-1809)
- The Treaty of Paris:
- John Parker: (1759-1832)
- George Partridge: (1740-1828)
- William Paterson : (1745-1806)
- John Patten: (1746-1800)
- Dr. Nathaniel Peabody: (1741-1823)
- William Peery: (1743-1800)
- Philip Pell, Jr. : (1753-1811)
- Edmund Pendleton : (1721-1803)
- Nathaniel Pendleton: (1756-1821)
- John Penn: (1741-1788)
- Richard Peters, Sr. : (1744-1828)
- Charles Pettit: (1736-1806)
- William Leigh Pierce, Jr.: (1740-1789)
- Charles Pinckney: (1757-1824)
- George Plater: (1735-1792)
- Zephaniah Platt: (1735-1805)
- Richard Potts: (1753-1808)
- The Post Office Department:
- The Powder Alarm:
- Presidents of the Continental Congress:
- The Prohibitory Act:
Q
R
- David Ramsay: (1749-1815)
- Edmund Jenings Randolph: (1753-1813)
- Peyton Randolph: (1721-1775)
- George Read: (1733-1798)
- Jacob Read: (1752-1816)
- Joseph Reed: (1741-1785)
- James Randolph Reid: (1747-1789)
- Religion and the Continental Congress:
- Samuel Rhoads: (1711-1784)
- Richard Ridgely: (1755-1824)
- Daniel Roberdeau: (1727-1795)
- Caesar Rodney: (1728-1784)
- Thomas Rodney: (1744-1811)
- John Rogers: (1723-1789)
- Jesse Root: (1736-1822)
- David Ross, Jr.: (1755-1800)
- George Ross: (1730-1779)
- Benjamin Rumsey: (1734-1808)
- Benjamin Rush: (1746-1813)
- Edward Rutledge: (1749-1800)
- John Rutledge: (1739-1800)
S
- James Schureman: (1756-1824)
- Philip John Schuyler: (1733-1804)
- Gustavus Scott: (1753-1800)
- John Morin Scott: (1730-1784)
- Dr. Nathaniel Scudder: (1733-1781)
- James Searle: (1730-1797)
- The Secret Journal of the Continental Congress:
- Theodore Sedgwick: (1746-1813)
- Joshua Seney: (1756-1798)
- Jonathan Dickinson Sergeant: (1746-1793)
- William Sharpe: (1742-1818)
- Shays' Rebellion:
- Roger Sherman: (1721-1793)
- Dr. William Shippen: (1712-1801)
- John Sitgreaves: (1757-1802)
- Slavery and the Continental Congress:
- James Smith: (1713-1806)
- Jonathan Bayard Smith: (1742-1812)
- Melancton Smith: (1744-1798)
- Meriwether Smith: (1730-1790)
- Richard Smith: (1735-1803)
- Thomas Smith: (1745-1809)
- William Smith: (1728-1814)
- The Solemn League and Covenant:
- Richard Dobbs Spaight: (1758-1802)
- Joseph Spencer: (1714-1789)
- The Stamp Act Congress:
- The Stars and Stripes:
- Arthur St. Clair: (1736-1818)
- The Staten Island Conference:
- John Stevens: (1715-1792)
- Charles Stewart: (1729-1800)
- Richard Stockton: (1730-1781)
- Thomas Stone: (1743-1787)
- Jonathan Sturges: (1740-1819)
- James Sullivan: (1744-1808)
- John Sullivan: (1740-1795)
- John Swann: (1760-1793)
- James Sykes: (1725-1792)
- John Cleves Symmes: (1742-1814)
T
- George Taylor: (1716-1781)
- Edward Telfair: (1735-1807)
- Thanksgiving, Resolution by the Continental Congress:
- George Thatcher/Thacher: (1754-1824)
- Charles Thomson: (1729-1824)
- Dr. Matthew Thornton: (1714-1803)
- Matthew Tilghman: (1717-1790)
- Dr. James Tilton: (1745-1822)
- Paul Trapier: (1749-1778)
- John Treadwell: (1745-1823)
- The Treaty of Paris:
- Treaty of Alliance with France:
- Trenton, New Jersey:
- Joseph Trumbull: (1737-1778)
- Dr. Thomas Tudor Tucker: (1745-1828)
V
W
- James Wadsworth: (1730-1817)
- Jeremiah Wadsworth: (1743-1804)
- John Walker: (1744-1809)
- George Walton: (1740-1804)
- John Walton: (1738-1783)
- Artemas Ward: (1727-1800)
- Samuel Ward: (1725-1776)
- George Washington: (1731-1799)
- John Wentworth, Jr.: (1745-1787)
- Samuel Wharton: (1732-1800)
- William Whipple: (1730-1785)
- Dr. James White: (1749-1809)
- Phillips White: (1729-1811)
- Right Reverend William White: (1748-1836)
- John Williams, V: (1731-1799)
- William Williams: (1731-1811)
- Hugh Williamson: (1735-1819)
- Thomas Willing: (1731-1821)
- James Wilson: (1742-1798)
- Paine Wingate: (1739-1838)
- Henry Wisner: (1720-1790)
- John Witherspoon: (1723-1794)
- Oliver Wolcott: (1726-1797)
- Joseph Wood: (1712-1791)
- Turbutt Wright: (1741-1783)
- Henry Wynkoop: (1737-1816)
- George Wythe: (1725-1804)
Y
Z
Historical Timeline
Primary Documents
- Speech of Lord North in the House of Commons, Upon Presenting the "American Papers" to that Body: (7 March 1774)
- The General Assembly of the Colony of Rhode Island Calls for a "General Congress of Representatives" to Meet: (20 June 1774)
- John Adams Describes His Journey to the First Continental Congress: (August 1774)
- The First Prayer before the Continental Congress by the Reverend Jacob Duché: (7 September 1774)
- The "Suffolk Resolves": (9 September 1774)
- Joseph Galloway's "Plan of Union" with England to Head Off American Independence: (28 September 1774)
- Pennsylvania Delegate Joseph Galloway's Speech to the Continental Congress: (28 September 1774)
- Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress: (14 October 1774)
- The Articles of Association of the Continental Congress: (20 October 1774)
- Edmund Burke's Speech before the House of Commons on Reconciliation with the Colonies: (22 March 1775)
- The Speech of Patrick Henry on American Liberty: (23 March 1775)
- A Massachusetts Newspaper Reports on the Clash at Lexington and Concord:
- A Letter from Frederick North, Lord North, the British Prime Minister, is Received by the Continental Congress: (30 May 1775)
- Resolves Adopted by Charlotte-Town, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina: (31 May 1775)
- Declaration of the Causes and Necessities of Taking Up Arms: (6 July 1775)
- The Olive Branch Petition: (8 July 1775)
- Draft of Report by the Continental Congress on Lord North's Motion and Proposal for Reconciliation with the Colonies: (31 July 1775)
- "A Proclamation, by the King, for Suppressing Rebellion and Sedition": (23 August 1775)
- "His Majesty's Most Gracious Speech to Both Houses of Parliament, On Friday, October 27, 1775": (27 October 1775)
- Resolution of Secrecy Drafted in the Continental Congress: (9 November 1775)
- The Tory Act: (2 January 1776)
- Draft of an Address of the Continental Congress to the People of the United States: (13 February 1776)
- A Call for a National Union to be Drafted by the Continental Congress, as Editorialized in The Connecticut Journal : (8 May 1776)
- Preamble and Resolution of the Virginia Convention, 15 May 1776, Instructing the Virginia Delegates to the Continental Congress to "Propose to that Respectable Body to Declare the United Colonies Free and Independent States": (15 May 1776)
- Resolution Introduced in the Continental Congress by Delegate Richard Henry Lee of Virginia, Proposing a Declaration of Independence from Great Britain : (7 June 1776)
- Letter from the Continental Congress, Transmitting, to the States, the Proposed Articles of Confederation: (17 November 1777)
- The Articles of Confederation: (1 March 1781)
- King George III of England on "The Loss of Empire": (January/February 1783)
- John Adams Writes to Secretary for Foreign Affairs John Jay on Adams' Meeting with King George III: (2 June 1785)
- Resolution of the General Assembly of Virginia Calling for a Federal Plan for Regulating Commerce: (21 January 1786)
- Report to the Continental Congress: (21 February 1787)
Appendixes
- Appendix A: Delegates to the Continental Congress, by State:
- Appendix B: Signers of the Declaration of Independence, by Occupation:
- Appendix C: Signers of the Articles of Confederation, by State:
- Appendix D: Presidents of the Continental Congress:
- Appendix E: Places and Times of Sessions of the Continental Congress:
- Appendix F: Statistics on the Thirteen Colonies: