Did you know that John Hanson was our first president? Don't use wikipedia it is inacurrate, read more books!

Question

As we fought for our freedom from Britain, the Founding Fathers prepared to sign the Declaration of Independence, and tried practicing anti-federalism of a confederacy of weak, central government with more power and rights to the states. They created the Confederacy of the U.S.A. under the Articles of Confederation. Hanson was President of U.S. in Congress Assembled which means the same thing. There were others before him, but he was the first to serve a one-year term and during the time we were officially considered a seperate country from England. (The very first leader was Peyton Randolph of 1st Continental Congress) G.W. & Hanson were good friends & he even congratulated him when he got elected. Hanson created the U.S. Cabinet, Great/Presidential Seal, Post Office, & declared Thanksgiving a National Holiday. But, it didn't work. Then we adopted the new U.S. Constitution & practiced federalism of a union of strong, central government under G.W.

Answer 1

Of course, you also know that Hanson's office as the presiding officer over Congress was a VERY different one from the new executive office created under the Constitution. So, though I agree that we SHOULD know more about the men who served us BEFORE the Constitution went into effect, you most admit that the debate about the "first president" LABEL is, in one sense, a quibble about words.

You must admit that there is a matter of substance here. It is evident from the fact that the drafters and ratifiers of the Constitution regarded the NEW Presidency as MUCH stronger, and that it was only the full expectation that Washington would agree to serve in this office that made many willing to go along with it. (You can hardly say they feared the 'power of the Presidency' under the Articles!)

In other words "President of the United States" does not MEAN the same thing in these two cases -- it applies to two distinctly different offices, with different powers (in a very differently structured government).

It seems to me that many who make the case for Hanson are quite aware of this. Indeed, in a sense they TRADE off it. For if you acknowledge the distinction and make it very clear, the claim is hardly so very striking after all.

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Now if we're going to be pedantic, a rather strong argument could be made for the two men who preceded Hanson (Samuel Huntington and Thomas McKean), since they DID serve after the Articles were ratified (completed March 1, 1981).
http://stanklos.com/book/Chronology/chapter1/

At any rate, I see that you do not go quite as far with the claims about Hanson as some do. You do not, for instance, say that he was "elected unanimously". (NO record of this has been put forward. It sounds like an attempt to make him parallel to Washington, who DID receive votes from ALL the electors.) Nor do you, like some, speak about Washington VOTING for him (GW was, of course, not in Congress at the time, but with his army.)

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But a few of your specific points are certainly inaccurate.

(1) The US Postal Service began in 1775 NOT 1781-2.
http://www.usps.com/postalhistory/postal_service_begins.htm

(2) "Cabinet" offices -- the way this is told seems another attempt to parallel the situation under Washington, and to suggest that HANSON created it. That's not quite what I've found. Note the following summary explanation of the origin of these offices:

"Originally, delegates to Congress were required to sit on committees. Over time, this policy evolved toward bureaucracy, first to the establishment of committees or boards that included appointed outsiders, and then to the appointment of a non-delegate as single head of each department. This secretary system outlasted the Continental Congress, and the Confederation Congress appointed a Secretary of War and Foreign Affairs, a Secretary of the Post Office, and a Secretary of Finance."
http://www.sparknotes.com/history/american/articles/section7.rhtml

Nothing about HANSON appointing these, or even that such positions originated during his year in the office.

More importantly -- what was the ROLE of these Secretaries? Did they bear the same relationship to these presidents as the Cabinet advisers of our Constitutional Presidents? Of course, there are key respects in which they COULD not, since Washington's ROLE as head of the Executive was so different.


(3) The "Thanksgiving" proclamation claim is a mistake. Hanson called for "A DAY of thanksgiving".... which is not the same as the sort of harvest feast 'later' Presidents declared. It was a common enough thing for leaders, at key times to call on people to set aside a day to give thanks after some signal victory, deliverance, etc - not annually but ad hoc. (Actually "Thanksgiving" as a "National Holiday" came MUCH later!)

(4) The "Great Seal" was NOT "created" or "established" by Hanson. This mistake seems to be based on the fact that it was finally completed and so first used while he was in office. It is well-established the Charles Thompson (Secretary of the Continental Congress) was its chief designer. (And there is no clear connection between the final date of its creation/adoption and anything to do with the "Presidency" or even to the adoption of the Articles. Congress had been working on a Great Seal design since 1776 !! It appears that this final push was prompted by the wish/need to have an agreed on seal for the peace treaty with England in September 1782.)
http://www.greatseal.com/committees/index.html
http://www.greatseal.com/committees/finaldesign/thomson.html

You also seem to be confused on the "Presidential Seal" part. This is not precisely the same as the "Great Seal" (though based on it), and was NOT created at the same time. Many say that the first known use was under Rutherford B Hayes.
http://www.heraldica.org/topics/usa/usheroff.htm
I HAVE seen reference to one that MAY have been in use in the term of John Tyler.
http://www.nps.gov/ncr/customcf/apps/eventcalendar/events/whhoevent81023359.html

But nothing so early as 1782. (Further, there is specific legislation concerning the Great Seal -- both its original adoption AND its acceptance by the new Congress** under the Constitution -- see the heradica link above.) I'd love to see earlier forms of this... since the precise form used today dates back only to 1945. If I'm understanding the images of that nps link, the inclusion of the TITLE "President of the United States" on the seal is more recent. So, if Hanson, et.al. and GW, et.al. used personal seals for important documents - "inspired by" the "Great Seal", you might CALL them "Presidential seals" based on who used them, but that does not necessarily mean there was an officially adopted "Presidential Seal" at the time.

(It appears that the Presidential use of such a seal, at least somewhat distinct from the Great Seal, and used for purposes OTHER than th specific, limited formal uses of the Great Seal, grew up over time... and only later was formally recognized.)

**Incidentally, how do you count the "FIRST Congress"?!

List of documents that qualify for the "Great Seal"
http://www.greatseal.com/committees/purpose.html

Answer 2

The United States only teaches presidents that came after we became an independent country and were under an actual constitution. Hanson and six others held the position of President of the Continental Congress.

Answer 3

What do you think all that pedantic academic methodology is for?

In part, it is to help you gather accurate information - or to help you contrast two or more differing positions.

Answer 4

Are you asking a question, or just showing off?

Answer 5

john hanson never heard of him i have heard of john hancock