September 27: Lancaster becomes the Nation’s Capital

On September 27, 1777, Lancaster briefly became the nation’s capital when members of the Continental Congress fled Philadelphia and convened in the courthouse at what is now Penn Square. Today, we celebrate the Red Rose City’s exciting moment in history; however, in 1777, it was a time of fear and uncertainty. Delegates—each facing the hangman’s noose for treason if captured—along with other refugees, crowded into Lancaster while British forces were just a few days’ march away.

Let’s look at the sequence of events that led up to this defining moment for Lancaster.

September 11, 1777

On September 11, the Battle of Brandywine occurs. This pivotal engagement near Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, was part of the British campaign to capture Philadelphia, then the seat of the Continental Congress.

The battle saw General George Washington’s forces face off against British General Sir William Howe in a contest that would become one of the longest and largest battles of the American Revolutionary War.
Washington’s army of around 11,000 men positioned itself along Brandywine Creek, intending to block the British advance toward Philadelphia. With a force of about 15,000, Howe executed a strategic flanking maneuver. While Washington expected a frontal assault, Howe divided his forces, sending a large contingent northward to cross the creek at unguarded fords, surprising the American right flank. The Americans put up a determined defense, but the overwhelming British force eventually broke their lines, forcing a retreat. In the aftermath of that fight, an estimated 1,100 patriots were either killed, wounded, or captured.

September 14, 1777

Congress decided they would reconvene in Lancaster, approximately 68 miles due West, if forced to leave Philadelphia.

They also decided that all “public papers” and other important documents should be moved to Lancaster if Congress had to leave Philadelphia. These items included the Declaration of Independence and the Liberty Bell, which many feared the British would melt down into cannonballs.

John Adams, future second president and current member of Congress, wrote to his wife, Abigail, that these congressional papers were more valuable than all of Congress combined.

September 18, 1777

Following the adjournment of Congress on September 18, 1777, Continental Congress President John Hancock received an urgent letter from Colonel Alexander Hamilton, George Washington’s Aide–de–camp. In it, Hamilton warned that the British forces were poised to invade Philadelphia and stressed that Congress must “immediately without fail” evacuate the city, as the British could potentially strike that very night.

It is important to keep in mind that anyone caught by the British who had signed the Declaration of Independence would have been hanged for treason.

Here are the contents of that letter:

If Congress have not yet left Philadelphia, they ought to do it immediately without fail, for the enemy have the means of throwing a party this night into the city. I just now crossed the valleyford, in doing which a party of the enemy came down & fired upon us in the boat by which means I lost my horse. One man was killed and another wounded. The boats were abandon’d & will fall into their hands. I did all I could to prevent this but to no purpose.

September 19, 1777

In his diary, dated September 19, 1777, Adams wrote that he was woken at 3 am by a Mr. Lovell, who informed him that some members of Congress had left shortly after midnight due to the arrival of Hamilton’s letter. Click here to read Adams’ original diary entry.

Adams and Henry Merchant (the Rhode Island delegate) quickly got up, sent for their horses, gathered their belongings, and rode off to catch up with the others. They stopped for breakfast in Bristol, where many members of Congress had already gathered. Many in the group decided to take the Newtown Road to Reading.

Adams and most of the delegates from New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island continue to Trenton, New Jersey.

September 21-26, 1777

Then, in a letter dated September 30, 1777, to his wife, Adams detailed the route he took with Merchant to Lancaster (and eventually York, PA). Adams provides additional information in his diary with entries from September 22 and 25. Click here to read the original letter.

On the morning of September 21, they departed from Trenton and made their way to Quakertown, where they spent the night. The following day, September 22, they traveled through Easton to reach Bethlehem. By September 24, they rode from Bethlehem, passing through Allentown, and stopped for the night at a tavern 18 miles outside of Reading. The next day, September 25, they continued through Reading. Adams arrived in Lancaster on or before September 27.

Fun Fact. It wasn’t just the Founding Fathers who traveled through Allentown. Fearing that Philadelphia’s bells might be melted down to create weapons for the British army, a group of residents devised a plan to secretly remove them—11 in total—including the most famous, the Liberty Bell, then known as the Pennsylvania State House Bell. Under heavy guard and hidden in a hay wagon, the bells were transported to a distant settlement for safekeeping. They chose Allentown, where the bells were concealed beneath the floor of Zion’s Reformed Church. There, they remained safely hidden until the British evacuated Philadelphia in June 1778.

Not everyone arrived in Lancaster on the same day; instead, they trickled in gradually. Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts arrived on September 24, followed by Cornelius Harnett of North Carolina and John Hancock of Massachusetts on September 25. Revolutionary diarist and Lancaster native Christopher Marshall, who lived at 215 East Orange Street, recorded Hancock’s arrival in his diary on Thursday, September 25, 1777: “Came into town President Hancock and some others of the Delegates.”

September 27, 1777

Meeting in the courthouse at what is today Penn Square, the Journals of the Continental Congress provide a detailed report of what business was conducted in Lancaster. The following was recorded:

A letter of the 15th from General Gates, at the heights above Behman’s; of the 15th from Colonel Gist, at Christiana Bridge; one, of the 16th, from Colonel Gibson, at Alexandria; one, of the 23rd, from General Washington, at Pottsgrove, were read.

A letter from General Conway was read and referred to the Board of War.

A letter from Colonel G. Morgan, at Pittsburgh, with several papers enclosed, was read and referred to the Board of War.

A letter from Baron de Kalb to Colonel R(ichard), H(enry) Lee, was read and referred to the Board of War.

A letter, of the 16th, from Joseph Trumbull, was read and referred to the Board of Treasury.

Resolved, That the Board of War be directed to cooperate with General Washington in devising and carrying into execution the most effectual measures for supplying the Army with fire-arms, shoes, blankets, stockings, provisions, and other necessaries; and that, in executing this business, these collections be confined, as much as circumstances will admit, to persons of disaffected and equivocal characters.

Resolved, That the Treasury Board direct the treasurer, with all his papers, forms, etc., to repair to the town of York, in Pennsylvania.

Adjourned to York-town, there to meet on Tuesday next, at 10 o’clock.

Who was present in Lancaster?

Unfortunately, no roll call vote was recorded during the Lancaster session, making it challenging to determine who was present. However, a list of attendees can be reconstructed using Edmund C. Burnett’s edited volume, Letters of Members of the Continental Congress, Vol. 2: July 5, 1776, to December 31, 1777. Members of the Continental Congress present at the September 27, 1777 Lancaster session were as follows:

• Connecticut: Eliphalet Dyer, Richard Law, and William Williams.
• Georgia: Nathan Brownson and George Walton.
• Maryland: Charles Carroll of Carrollton and Samuel Chase.
• Massachusetts: John Adams, Samuel Adams, Elbridge Gerry, John Hancock (President), and James Lovell.
• New Hampshire: Nathaniel Folsom.
• New York: James Duane and William Duer.
• North Carolina: Thomas Burke, Cornelius Harnett, and John Penn.
• Pennsylvania: Robert Morris and Daniel Roberdeau.
• Rhode Island: Henry Marchant.
• South Carolina: Thomas Heyward, Jr., Henry Laurens, and Arthur Middleton.
• Virginia: Benjamin Harrison, Joseph Jones, Francis Lightfoot Lee, and Richard Henry Lee.

Lancaster’s George Ross, a Continental Congress member and Declaration of Independence signer, was absent from the meeting, likely serving elsewhere on a congressional committee.

Why didn’t Congress take a direct route to Lancaster?

Congress’s circuitous route to Lancaster from Bristol (a town 22 miles northeast of Philadelphia), adding approximately 100 miles to the journey, was to avoid British forces. Heading west, directly to Lancaster, would have brought members of Congress dangerously close to the advancing Redcoat Army.

Why Lancaster?

With the British advancing from the south, returning to Baltimore, which had served as the capital from December 20, 1776, to February 27, 1777, was no longer an option. A strong British presence in New Jersey and New York made heading north equally impossible, leaving Lancaster—the largest and oldest inland city in the Colonies—as the only viable choice.

Where did they stay?

There is no definitive record of where the distinguished visitors stayed during their brief time in Lancaster. However, it is highly likely that many of them lodged at the White Swan Hotel, run by Colonel Matthias Slough, located at the southeast corner of Penn Square. Other nearby establishments, such as Colonel Adam Reigart’s Grape Hotel, situated on the west side of North Queen Street near the Square, likely also accommodated some of the guests.

Why did they leave Lancaster?

Congress didn’t stay in Lancaster long-term for two key reasons: the town was neither large enough nor secure enough. New York delegate James Duane addressed the space issue in a letter to Governor George Clinton dated October 3, 1777, stating, “Lancaster they found crowded and in other respects exceptionable.” The town was already packed with refugees from the Philadelphia region, likely making it difficult for Congress members to find suitable accommodations.

Security was also a pressing concern, as over 15,000 enemy troops were just a three-day march away. Recognizing the need for a safer location, Congress moved westward again. With the mile-wide Susquehanna River serving as a natural defense, York provided much greater protection.

Three days later, Congress met in York on Tuesday, September 30, 1777. The Capital remained in York for nine months until the British finally abandoned Philadelphia, and the Continental Congress was able to return to Philadelphia’s Independence Hall on July 2, 1778.

Resources

• Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789 Volume 8 (1777)
• From Alexander Hamilton to John Hancock, [18 September 1777]
• John Adams to Abigail Adams, 30 September 1777
• John Adams diary 28, 6 February – 21 November 1777
• The meeting of the Continental Congress in Lancaster
• Letters of Members of the Continental Congress, Vol. 2: July 5, 1776, to December 31, 1777 by Edmund C. Burnett
• The Liberty Bell Museum…in Allentown!
• Extracts from the diary of Christopher Marshall : kept in Philadelphia and Lancaster, during the American Revolution, 1774-1781 / edited by William Duane

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