Were these men America’s real first presidents?
George Washington took office eight years after the Revolutionary War ended. Who led the country before him?
Karissa WaddickEvery American knows about George Washington, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, but what about John Hanson, Elias Boudinot and Thomas Mifflin?
Some historians point to the latter three as the country’s real first presidents, despite what most people think.
Confused? Let’s rewind back to the Revolutionary era.
The nation’s War for Independence against Great Britain ended in 1781, after the king's army surrendered at the Battle of Yorktown. George Washington wasn’t elected president until 1789, after the Constitution was officially ratified.
During those eight intervening years, a series of other leaders took the helm of the country.
They were known as the “presidents of the United States in Congress Assembled” and were elected by the Continental Congress under the United States’ first governing document, the Articles of Confederation.
Marylander John Hanson was the first person elected to lead the body after all 13 colonies signed the Articles of Confederation in 1781.
So why is Washington, rather than Hanson, regarded as the first president? Here’s a deeper look at the history.
The 'forgotten first president'
As the Revolutionary War raged, members of the Continental Congress developed the Articles of Confederation as the foundation for a weak central government. They were fearful that concentrating too much power at the federal level would lead to a tyrannical government akin to Great Britain.
The framework did not include an executive branch or a judicial branch and vested all power in the Continental Congress, which came to be known as the Confederation Congress.
Hanson helped charter the Bank of North America, considered the nation's first central bank, and played a key role in developing diplomatic relationships. He also proclaimed Thursday, Nov. 28, 1782, as a day of Thanksgiving, laying the roots of the American holiday.
But Hanson otherwise had little power as the first president of the United States in Congress Assembled and was essentially a figurehead.
Jody Brumage, an archivist at Heritage Frederick, a historical association in Frederick, Maryland, where Hanson lived, hypothesized that the Articles of Confederation leaders are often overlooked in American history because the government they ruled over was “viewed as a failure.”
The founders ultimately created the Constitution after finding that a more robust federal government was necessary to unify the colonies and instill order.
“It's a very clear example of being observant and understanding when a system needed to evolve to serve a changing need,” Brumage said.
A full list of the Articles of Confederation presidents
- 1781-1782: John Hanson
- 1782-1783: Elias Boudinot
- 1783-1784: Thomas Mifflin
- 1784-1785: Richard Henry Lee
- 1785-1786: John Hancock
- 1786-1887: Nathaniel Gorham
- 1787-1788: Arthur St. Clair
- 1788-1789: Cyrus Griffin
Why wasn’t Washington chosen to lead under the Articles of Confederation?
The Articles of Confederation were ratified while Washington was still commander of the Continental Army. Washington didn’t resign his commission until December 1783, after Hanson’s one-year term ended, and was not in leadership conversations at the time.
Washington, however, was unanimously chosen as the first president under the Constitution in 1789 by presidential electors from each state, who comprised the Electoral College.
Karissa Waddick, who covers America's 250th anniversary for USA TODAY, can be reached at [email protected].