College Hall
College Hall and the Return to Philadelphia in 1778
After British forces evacuated Philadelphia on June 18, 1778, Congress prepared to return from York, Pennsylvania. Its resolution of June 24 directed an adjournment on Saturday, June 27, with members to meet in Philadelphia on Thursday, July 2. June 27 was the final York session. [1]
Some members assembled at the State House on July 2, but there was no quorum. They adjourned from day to day until July 7, when enough delegates were present to conduct business. College Hall provided temporary quarters because the State House had been left unfit for immediate use. The scheduled return, the gathering without a quorum, and the resumption of congressional business are distinct events. [1] [2]
The Building: From Preaching Hall to College
The College Hall used in 1778 belonged to the College of Philadelphia, a predecessor of the University of Pennsylvania. Its site was on Fourth Street near Arch Street. The building originated in 1740 as a preaching hall associated with George Whitefield and a proposed charity school. Franklin's Academy trustees acquired the unfinished property in 1750. Carpenter Robert Smith adapted it for school use, and the Academy and Charity School opened there in January 1751. The College received its charter in 1755. [3] [4]
The original Fourth Street buildings no longer survive: Penn's archives report that they had been replaced by 1845. The Academy and Charity School nevertheless continued at the site until 1877, and the University owned the property until after World War I. Readers should distinguish this vanished colonial building from Penn's present College Hall in West Philadelphia. [3]
Josiah Bartlett Describes the City's Condition
New Hampshire delegate Josiah Bartlett, in a letter dated July 13, 1778, reported that Congress was meeting in College Hall while the State House remained in poor condition. His letter describes houses used as stables, waste deposited in cellars, and destruction in the countryside north of Philadelphia. This is an eyewitness account of particular damage, rather than a comprehensive survey of every building in the city. [1]
How Long Did Congress Meet Here?
College Hall's brief congressional use is well documented, but its precise ending date is uncertain. The Library of Congress editors of Letters of Delegates to Congress explicitly state that the duration is not precisely known. Bartlett's July 13 letter confirms use on that date. The House historian's meeting-place list gives July 2 through July 13, while other chronologies use July 20. Accordingly, this page identifies the venue as July 1778, with business resuming July 7 and use documented July 13, without treating July 20 as a proved final meeting date. [2] [5]
July 9: Signing the Articles of Confederation
On July 9, 1778, delegates from eight states signed the engrossed Articles of Confederation in Philadelphia: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and South Carolina. This began the signing of the national compact already adopted by Congress at York on November 15, 1777. Signing by authorized delegates and approval by state legislatures were related but separate steps. [6] [7]
This event fell within Congress's temporary College Hall period. The congressional journal records the signing but does not identify the room, so the association with College Hall should be understood in that context. It was not the signing of the French alliance: that treaty had been signed in Paris on February 6, 1778. [6] [8]
Constitutional Significance
College Hall belongs to the history of a national government that continued working through military displacement. Its temporary use also coincided with a major step toward the first written constitution of the United States. The Articles provided for one vote per state in Congress, reserved undelegated powers to the states, and required every state to approve the compact before it took effect. Maryland's delegates completed the signing on March 1, 1781. The July 1778 signatures therefore advanced the constitutional union without bringing the Articles into force that summer. [7]
Verified Chronology
- June 18, 1778: British forces evacuate Philadelphia. [1]
- June 24: Congress resolves to adjourn June 27 and meet in Philadelphia July 2. [1]
- June 27: Congress ends its York session and orders a corrected engrossed copy of the Articles. [6]
- July 2: Members gather in Philadelphia without a quorum. [1]
- July 7: A quorum permits Congress to resume business. [2]
- July 9: Delegates from eight states sign the Articles of Confederation. [6]
- July 13: Bartlett's letter documents Congress meeting in College Hall. [1]
- March 1, 1781: Maryland's delegates sign, completing the process that brings the Articles into effect. [7]
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Sources and Notes
- U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian, Court House, York, paragraphs on the return to Philadelphia and notes 28 to 30. Cites Journals of the Continental Congress, vol. XI, p. 641 (June 24), and reproduces Bartlett's July 13 letter in part; the page does not name the letter's addressee. Its reference to the French treaty concerns an event in Paris while Congress sat at York.
- Library of Congress, Letters of Delegates to Congress, vol. 10, illustration commentary, pp. xxvi to xxvii. Describes the July 7 quorum and explicitly notes uncertainty about the length of the College Hall stay. Full volume PDF.
- University of Pennsylvania Archives, Penn's First Campus, 1749 to 1801. Building acquisition, adaptation, school opening, replacement buildings, and later property history.
- University of Pennsylvania, History of the College, and University Catalogue, 1883 to 1884, General Statement. The College charter dates to 1755; the building's origins precede the College.
- U.S. House of Representatives, History, Art & Archives, Meeting Places for the Continental and Confederation Congresses, College Hall footnote. Its July 2 to July 13 range differs from the July 20 ending previously displayed here.
- Journals of the Continental Congress, vol. XI, pp. 641 (June 24), 662 (June 27), and 677 to 678 (July 9). See also the University of Wisconsin's document collection on state ratification and signing.
- National Archives, Articles of Confederation (1777), historical introduction and transcript, especially Articles II, V, and XIII and the signatures.
- U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian, French Alliance, French Assistance, and European Diplomacy during the American Revolution, 1778 to 1782.
For students and teachers of U.S. history, this video features Stanley and Christopher Klos presenting America's Four United Republics Curriculum at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. Filmed in December 2015, this video is an informal recording by an audience member capturing a presentation attended by approximately 200 students, professors, and guests. To explore the full curriculum, [download it here].
September 5, 1774 | October 22, 1774 | |
October 22, 1774 | October 26, 1774 | |
May 20, 1775 | May 24, 1775 | |
May 25, 1775 | July 1, 1776 |
July 2, 1776 to February 28, 1781
July 2, 1776 | October 29, 1777 | |
November 1, 1777 | December 9, 1778 | |
December 10, 1778 | September 28, 1779 | |
September 29, 1779 | February 28, 1781 |
March 1, 1781 to March 3, 1789
March 1, 1781 | July 6, 1781 | |
July 10, 1781 | Declined Office | |
July 10, 1781 | November 4, 1781 | |
November 5, 1781 | November 3, 1782 | |
November 4, 1782 | November 2, 1783 | |
November 3, 1783 | June 3, 1784 | |
November 30, 1784 | November 22, 1785 | |
November 23, 1785 | June 5, 1786 | |
June 6, 1786 | February 1, 1787 | |
February 2, 1787 | January 21, 1788 | |
January 22, 1788 | January 21, 1789 |
United States in Congress Assembled (USCA) Sessions
USCA | Session Dates | USCA Convene Date | President(s) |
First | 03-01-1781 to 11-04-1781* | 03-02-1781 | |
Second | 11-05-1781 to 11-03-1782 | 11-05-1781 | |
Third | 11-04-1782 to 11-02-1783 | 11-04-1782 | |
Fourth | 11-03-1783 to 10-31-1784 | 11-03-1783 | |
Fifth | 11-01-1784 to 11-06-1785 | 11-29-1784 | |
Sixth | 11-07-1785 to 11-05-1786 | 11-23-1785 | |
Seventh | 11-06-1786 to 11-04-1787 | 02-02-1787 | |
Eighth | 11-05-1787 to 11-02-1788 | 01-21-1788 | |
Ninth | 11-03-1788 to 03-03-1789** | None | None |
* The Articles of Confederation was ratified by the mandated 13th State on February 2, 1781, and the dated adopted by the Continental Congress to commence the new United States in Congress Assembled government was March 1, 1781. The USCA convened under the Articles of Confederation Constitution on March 2, 1781.** On September 14, 1788, the Eighth United States in Congress Assembled resolved that March 4th, 1789, would be commencement date of the Constitution of 1787's federal government thus dissolving the USCA on March 3rd, 1789.
Philadelphia | Sept. 5, 1774 to Oct. 24, 1774 | |
Philadelphia | May 10, 1775 to Dec. 12, 1776 | |
Baltimore | Dec. 20, 1776 to Feb. 27, 1777 | |
Philadelphia | March 4, 1777 to Sept. 18, 1777 | |
Lancaster | September 27, 1777 | |
York | Sept. 30, 1777 to June 27, 1778 | |
Philadelphia | July 2, 1778 to June 21, 1783 | |
Princeton | June 30, 1783 to Nov. 4, 1783 | |
Annapolis | Nov. 26, 1783 to Aug. 19, 1784 | |
Trenton | Nov. 1, 1784 to Dec. 24, 1784 | |
New York City | Jan. 11, 1785 to Nov. 13, 1788 | |
New York City | October 6, 1788 to March 3,1789 | |
New York City | March 3,1789 to August 12, 1790 | |
Philadelphia | Dec. 6,1790 to May 14, 1800 | |
Washington DC | November 17,1800 to Present |
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