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The Highest Office – Who is the First President of the United States?

Ask anyone to name the first president of the United States and “George Washington” is the likely reply. But it could be argued that in 1781 a lesser-known American, John Hanson from Maryland, became the first president. After Hanson, seven other men held that high position before Washington was elected and took office on April 30, 1789.

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The reason: although the office of president as it known today was not created until 1789, the office of “President of the United State in Congress Assembled” has existed since 1781.

The Maryland Delegate

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John Hanson was born in Charles County, Maryland, in 1721. He first attracted public notice in 1757 when he was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates, or General Assembly, where he sat until 1779, a staunch patriot, Hanson established himself as a prominent leader in the growing discontent and agitation about British rule over the Thirteen Colonies.

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Unfamiliar Face? Had George Washington not been on the scene, this face might have become as famous as his. John Hanson can lay claim to having been the first president of the United States. The portrait was by Charles William Peale.

To represent their interests, in 1774 the colonies established the Continental Congress, with delegates sent by each colony. Although reticent at first, a year later the Congress responded to the outbreak of hostilities by creating the Continental Army under the leadership of George Washington, and on July 4, 1776, issued the declaration of Independence. John Hanson was elected to the Congress as a Maryland delegate in 1779.

A Need for Unity

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Apart from conducting the war against Britain, Congress was also concerned with the creation of a federal constitution. There was a pressing need both to maintain unity between the newly independent states and to define the relative powers of the Congress and of the states themselves. A committee, with one member from each state, was created to examine the problem. In July 1776 the committee issued what became known as the Articles of Confederation. From 1781 until 1789 these 13 articles were the law of the land, until superseded by the Constitution.

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One of the articles stated that a delegate could be appointed “to preside” over the Congress. John Hanson was elected to this office on November 5, 1781. He served in the post for one year. During his tenure, peace terms with Britain were drawn up, treaties with foreign powers signed, and government department instituted.

Presiding Officer

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Although George Washington himself congratulated Hanson, stating that he held the “most important seat in the United States,” Hanson’s role, and that of the seven men who followed him, was to preside over Congress. He lacked the executive powers of the Constitution would invest in Washington and his successors, and he was powerless to enforce the measures of Congress, which were often ignored by the individual states.

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By 1786 the political weaknesses of the Articles were identified, and in 1789 the new Continental Congress had ruled the newly united states, and John Hanson, largely forgotten today, had the honor of being its first president.