The First Virginia General Assembly convened from October 7, 1776, to December 21, 1776, in regular session.[1] This session took place while the Second Continental Congress was still in session.
| 1st Virginia General Assembly | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 1845 engraving based on drawings of the second capitol at Williamsburg | |||
| Overview | |||
| Legislative body | Virginia General Assembly | ||
| Meeting place | Virginia Capitol, Williamsburg, Virginia | ||
| Term | October 7, 1776 – December 21, 1776 | ||
| Senate | |||
| Members | 24 | ||
| Speaker | Archibald Cary | ||
| House of Delegates | |||
| Members | 128 | ||
| Speaker | Edmund Pendleton | ||
| Sessions | |||
| |||
Major events
edit- December 25, 1776: George Washington lead about 2,400 soldiers across the Delaware River to launch a surprise attack on the British Army at Trenton, New Jersey.
- December 26, 1776: George Washington and his army surprised about 1,500 Hessian auxiliaries at the Battle of Trenton and took over 900 prisoners.
Sessions
edit- 1st Regular session: October 7, 1776 – December 21, 1776
Leaders
editSenate leadership
edit- Speaker of the Senate: Archibald Cary
Assembly leadership
edit- Speaker of the Assembly: Edmund Pendleton
Members
editMembers of the Senate
editMembers of the Senate of Virginia for the First Virginia General Assembly:[1]
| Class | Counties | Senator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amelia, Chesterfield, & Cumberland | Archibald Cary | |
| Brunswick, Lunenburg, & Mecklenburg | John Jones | ||
| Charles City, James City, & New Kent | John Armistead | ||
| Henrico, Goochland, & Louisa | Thomas Mann | ||
| Augusta & Dunmore | Sampson Mathews | ||
| Lancaster, Richmond, & Northumberland | Richard Mitchell | Election was ruled invalid October 25, 1776. | |
| 2 | Isle of Wight, Surry, & Prince George | Theodorick Bland | |
| Charlotte, Halifax, & Prince Edward | Paul Carrington | ||
| Gloucester & Middlesex | Warner Lewis | ||
| Spotsylvania, Orange, & Culpeper | Edward Stevens | ||
| Loudoun & Fauquier | William Ellzey | ||
| Frederick, Berkeley, & Hampshire | Robert Rutherford | ||
| 3 | Dinwiddie, Southampton, & Sussex | David Mason | |
| Botetourt & Fincastle | William Christian | ||
| Hanover & Caroline | Thomas Lomax | ||
| Essex, King William, & King and Queen | George Brook | ||
| Prince William & Fairfax | Henry Lee | ||
| West Augusta | David Rogers | ||
| 4 | Accomac & Northampton | Isaac Smith | |
| Princess Anne, Norfolk, & Nansemond | James Holt | ||
| Buckingham, Albemarle, & Amherst | William Cabell | ||
| Bedford & Pittsylvania | Edmund Winston | Election was ruled invalid October 9, 1776. | |
| Elizabeth City, Warwick, & York | David Jameson | Resigned to join the Governor's privy council December 1776. | |
| Westmoreland, Stafford, & King George | Thomas Ludwell Lee |
Members of the House of Delegates
editMembers of the Virginia House of Delegates for the First Virginia General Assembly:[1]
| County | Delegate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Accomac | Southey Simpson | |
| James Henry | ||
| Albemarle | Charles Lewis | |
| Thomas Jefferson | ||
| Amelia | John Tabb | |
| John Winn | ||
| Amherst | Joseph Cabell | |
| Gabriel Penn | ||
| Augusta | Thomas Lewis | |
| Samuel McDowell | ||
| Bedford | John Talbot | |
| Charles Lynch | ||
| Berkeley | Philip Pendleton | |
| Thomas Hite | ||
| Botetourt | John Bowyer | |
| Patrick Lockhart | ||
| Brunswick | Frederick Maclin | |
| Henry Tazewell | ||
| Buckingham | Charles Patteson | |
| John Cabell | ||
| Caroline | Edmund Pendleton | |
| James Taylor | ||
| Charles City | William Acrill | |
| Samuel Harwood | ||
| Benjamin Harrison | Departed during October, elected delegate to Congress. | |
| Charlotte | Thomas Read | |
| Chesterfield | John Bolling | |
| Benjamin Watkins | ||
| Culpeper | Birkett Davenport | |
| French Strother | ||
| Cumberland | John Mayo | |
| William Fleming | ||
| Dinwiddie | John Banister | |
| Bolling Starke | ||
| Dunmore | Abraham Bird | |
| John Tipton | ||
| Elizabeth City | Wilson Miles Cary | |
| Henry King | ||
| Essex | Meriwether Smith | |
| James Edmondson | ||
| Fairfax | John West Jr. | |
| George Mason | ||
| Fauquier | Martin Pickett | |
| James Scott | ||
| Fincastle | Arthur Campbell | |
| William Russell | ||
| Frederick | James Wood | |
| Isaac Zane | ||
| Gloucester | Lewis Burwell | |
| Mann Page | ||
| Goochland | John Woodson | |
| Tarlton Fleming | ||
| Halifax | Nathaniel Terry | |
| Micajah Watkins | ||
| Hampshire | James Mercer | |
| Abraham Hite | ||
| Hanover | Garland Anderson | |
| John Syme | ||
| Henrico | Nathaniel Wilkinson | |
| Richard Adams | ||
| Isle of Wight | John S. Wills | |
| Charles Fulgham | ||
| James City | Robert C. Nicholas | |
| William Norvell | ||
| King and Queen | Thomas Coleman | |
| William Lyne | ||
| King George | Joseph Jones | |
| William Fitzhugh | ||
| King William | Carter Braxton | |
| Richard Squire Taylor | ||
| Lancaster | Jesse Ball | |
| James Gordon | ||
| Loudoun | Francis Peyton | |
| Josiah Clapham | ||
| Louisa | George Meriwether | |
| Thomas Johnson | ||
| Lunenburg | David Garland | |
| Lodowick Farmer | ||
| Mecklenburg | Joseph Speed | |
| Bennett Goode | ||
| Middlesex | Edmund Berkeley | |
| James Montague | ||
| Nansemond | Willis Riddick | |
| William Cowper | ||
| New Kent | William Clayton | |
| Armistead Russell | ||
| Norfolk | Matthew Godfrey | |
| John Wilson | ||
| Northampton | Nathaniel L. Savage | |
| George Savage | ||
| Northumberland | Rodham Kenner | |
| John Cralle | ||
| Orange | James Madison | |
| William Moore | ||
| Pittsylvania | Benjamin Lankford | |
| Robert Williams | ||
| Prince Edward | William Watts | |
| William Booker | ||
| Prince George | Richard Bland | Died October 26, 1776. |
| Peter Poythress | Resigned due to illness October 17, 1776. | |
| Edmund Ruffin | ||
| Prince William | Cuthbert Bullitt | |
| Jesse Ewell | ||
| Princess Anne | William Robinson | |
| John Thoroughgood | ||
| Richmond | Hudson Muse | |
| Charles M. Carty | ||
| Southampton | Edwin Gray | |
| Henry Taylor | ||
| Spotsylvania | Mann Page | |
| George Thornton | ||
| Stafford | Charles Carter | |
| William Brent | ||
| Surry | Allen Cocke | |
| Nicholas Faulcon | ||
| Sussex | Henry Gee | |
| Gray Judkins | ||
| Warwick | William Harwood, Jr. | |
| Richard Cary | ||
| West Augusta | John Harvie | |
| Charles Simms | ||
| Westmoreland | Richard Henry Lee | |
| John A. Washington | ||
| York | Corbin Griffin | |
| William Digges | ||
| Williamsburg | Joseph Prentis | |
| Norfolk Borough | William Roscow | |
| Wilson Curle |
Employees
edit- Senate Clerk: John Pendleton Jr.
- House Clerk: John Tazewell
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Swem, Earl G.; Williams, John W., eds. (1918). A Register of the General Assembly of Virginia, 1776–1918, and of the Constitutional Conventions. Commonwealth of Virginia. pp. 1–3. Retrieved December 29, 2021.