United States: Presidents of Congress: 1774-1789 |
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| President of Congress [1] | |
| 5 Sep 1774 - 22 Oct 1774 | Peyton Randolph |
| 22 Oct 1774 - 26 Oct 1774 | Henry Middleton |
| 26 Oct 1774 - 10 May 1775 | dissolution period [2] |
| 10 May 1775 - 24 May 1775 | Peyton Randolph |
| 24 May 1775 - 29 Oct 1777 | John Hancock |
| 29 Oct 1777 - 1 Nov 1777 | office vacant [3] |
| 1 Nov 1777 - 9 Dec 1778 | Henry Laurens |
| 10 Dec 1778 - 28 Sep 1779 | John Jay |
| 28 Sep 1779 - 10 Jul 1781 | Samuel Huntington |
| 10 Jul 1781 - 4 Nov 1781 | Thomas McKean |
| 5 Nov 1781 - 3 Nov 1782 | John Hanson |
| 4 Nov 1782 - 2 Nov 1783 | Elias Boudinot |
| Chairman of Congress [4] | |
| 3 Nov 1783 - 12 Dec 1783 | Daniel Carroll |
| President of Congress | |
| 3 Nov 1783 - 31 Oct 1784 | Thomas Mifflin [5] |
| 1 Nov 1784 - 30 Nov 1784 | office vacant |
| 30 Nov 1784 - 6 Nov 1785 | Richard Henry Lee |
| 7 Nov 1785 - 23 Nov 1785 | office vacant |
| Chairman of Congress [6] | |
| 23 Nov 1785 - 12 May 1786 | David Ramsay |
| 13 May 1786 - 15 May 1786 | office vacant |
| 15 May 1786 - 5 Jun 1786 | Nathaniel Gorham |
| President of Congress | |
| 6 Jun 1786 - 5 Nov 1786 | Nathaniel Gorham |
| 6 Nov 1786 - 2 Feb 1787 | office vacant |
| 2 Feb 1787 - 4 Nov 1787 | Arthur St. Clair |
| 5 Nov 1787 - 22 Jan 1788 | office vacant |
| 22 Jan 1788 - 2 Nov 1788 | Cyrus Griffin |
| 3 Nov 1788 - 2 Mar 1789 | office vacant |
| | |
| [1] | Also in official use (after 1 Mar 1781): President of the United States in Congress Assembled. |
| [2] | Office of the President of Congress ceases to exist upon the dissolution of the first "Continental" Congress 26 Oct 1774 and is not restored until 10 May 1775 when the second "Continental" Congress meets. |
| [3] | Designated substitute without formal appointment to the office: secretary of Congress Charles Thomson. |
| [4] | Pending the taking office by Thomas Mifflin. |
| [5] | Chairman of the Committee of the States * |
| 4 Jun 1784 - 19 Aug 1784 Samuel Hardy | |
| * Pending the resumption of office by Thomas Mifflin who ceases to exercise his duties 3 Jul 1784 in accordance with a Congressional resolution of 1 Jun 1784; Congress goes into recess delegating its authority to the Committee of the States and fails to reconvene until a newly-elected Congress meets 1 Nov 1784. | |
| [6] | Pending the taking office by John Hancock, who does not enter upon duties. |
Last update: 08 May 2025