You probably think George Washington was the first person to lead this country. Everyone does. It’s the standard answer on every third-grade social studies quiz and the centerpiece of basically every July 4th trivia game. But the truth is a little messier than that. If you look at the technicalities of how the American government actually formed, there were several presidents of the US before Washington who held the title while the ink was still drying on the very idea of the United States.
They weren't "Presidents of the United States" in the way we think of Joe Biden or Donald Trump today. They didn't live in the White House. They didn't have Air Force One. Honestly, they didn't even have a permanent capital city to sit in. But they were the "Presidents of the United States in Congress Assembled."
Without them, Washington would have had nothing to preside over.
The Continental Congress and the Forgotten Leaders
The misunderstanding starts with the Articles of Confederation. Before we had the Constitution we use today, the colonies were loosely held together by a document that was, frankly, kind of a disaster. It made the central government incredibly weak. There was no executive branch. No federal courts. No way to force states to pay taxes.
However, someone had to chair the meetings.
Peyton Randolph was the first. In 1774, he took the gavel for the First Continental Congress. If you’re being a stickler for dates, he’s technically the "first" president of a unified colonial body. But he wasn't leading a country yet; he was leading a protest. The colonies were still British. They were just really, really mad about it.
Then you have the heavy hitters like John Hancock. You know him for the massive signature on the Declaration of Independence, but he actually served as President of the Continental Congress from 1775 to 1777. He was the one managing the room while the colonies officially broke up with King George III. Was he a president? Yes. Was he "the" President? Not by the 1789 definition.
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Who Were the Presidents of the US Before Washington?
Once the Articles of Confederation were ratified in 1781, the role became a bit more official. This is where the real "forgotten" list begins.
Samuel Huntington was the first to serve under the ratified Articles. He was followed by Thomas McKean, and then John Hanson. If you spend enough time in Maryland, you’ll hear people swear up and down that John Hanson was the "real" first president. There’s even a bronze statue of him in the U.S. Capitol’s Statuary Hall.
Hanson’s term was significant because he was the first to serve a full one-year term under the fully ratified Articles. He dealt with the fallout of the Revolutionary War, handled the massive debt, and essentially tried to keep a group of bickering states from falling apart. It was a thankless job. He hated it so much that he tried to resign multiple times due to poor health, but Congress wouldn't let him leave.
The Names You Never Hear
After Hanson, the revolving door continued:
- Elias Boudinot (He signed the preliminary peace treaty with Great Britain).
- Thomas Mifflin (He accepted George Washington’s resignation as Commander-in-Chief).
- Richard Henry Lee.
- John Hancock (again, though he was too sick to actually show up much).
- Nathaniel Gorham.
- Arthur St. Clair.
- Cyrus Griffin.
Griffin was the last one. He resigned in 1788 when it became clear that the Articles of Confederation were failing and the new Constitution was going to change everything.
Why We Don't Count Them
It sounds like a conspiracy, right? Why would history books "hide" ten or fourteen men who held the title?
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It’s not a conspiracy. It’s a definition problem.
The presidents of the US before Washington were essentially presiding officers. Think of them more like the Speaker of the House or a Prime Minister in a system where the monarch has no power. They couldn't veto laws. They couldn't command the army. They were basically the moderators of a very long, very stressful business meeting.
When George Washington took the oath in 1789, the job description changed entirely. The Constitution created a "Unitary Executive." This meant Washington had actual, independent power. He wasn't just a guy sitting at the head of a table; he was the head of a branch of government.
The John Hanson "First President" Debate
Let's talk about the John Hanson myth for a second. It’s a popular "fun fact" that pops up in bar trivia. The argument is that because the "United States" officially became a legal entity under the Articles in 1781, and Hanson was the first to serve a full term under those Articles, he is the true first president.
Historians like Gregory Stiverson have spent years debunking the idea that Hanson was somehow "snubbed" by history. Hanson was important, sure. But he had no power. He couldn't even hire a secretary without permission from Congress. Comparing John Hanson to George Washington is like comparing the chairman of a local HOA to the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. They both have the title "President," but the scope is worlds apart.
Still, it’s a bit sad that these men are relegated to footnotes. They were the ones who kept the lights on while the country was figuring out its identity. They handled the diplomacy, the early land disputes, and the crushing debt of the Revolution.
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What Really Happened in 1789
When the Constitution was ratified, the old system just... stopped. There wasn't a big closing ceremony for the old Congress. It just sort of fizzled out because people stopped showing up. They were all too busy getting ready for the new government.
Cyrus Griffin, the final president before the transition, is a great example of this. He presided over a Congress that often couldn't even get a quorum. States weren't sending delegates. Nobody cared about the old way anymore. They were waiting for Washington.
The shift from the presidents of the US before Washington to the modern presidency was the moment America stopped being a collection of thirteen small countries and started being a single nation.
Why This Matters Today
Understanding this period helps you realize that the United States wasn't a finished product the moment the British left. It was a messy, failed experiment for a long time.
If you want to dive deeper into this, don't just look at Wikipedia. Look at the Journals of the Continental Congress. You can find them digitized through the Library of Congress. Reading the actual minutes of their meetings reveals a group of men who were terrified that the whole American project was about to collapse.
Actionable Next Steps for History Buffs
If you’re interested in seeing where this history actually lived, here is what you should do next:
- Visit Annapolis, Maryland: The Maryland State House served as the nation's capital from 1783 to 1784. It’s the place where the Treaty of Paris was ratified. You can stand in the room where the "pre-Washington" presidents actually worked.
- Read "The Perils of Peace" by Thomas Fleming: This book does an incredible job of explaining just how chaotic the years between Yorktown and Washington's inauguration really were. It gives these forgotten presidents the credit they deserve for managing the chaos.
- Search the Library of Congress Digital Collections: Look for the "Papers of the Continental Congress." You can see the actual letters written by men like Elias Boudinot and John Hanson as they struggled to fund the government.
- Check your local currency: You won't find these guys on the $1 or $20 bill, but many of them appear on commemorative medals and local state stamps.
Knowing about the presidents of the US before Washington doesn't take anything away from Washington himself. If anything, it makes his achievement more impressive. He took a job that was previously a powerless, administrative nightmare and turned it into the most powerful office in the world.
The next time someone tells you Washington was the first president, you can smile, be "that guy," and tell them about the ten men who came before him. Just don't expect them to be happy about it at the dinner table.