Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania


The Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania comprised the executive branch of the Pennsylvania State government between 1777 and 1790. It was headed by a president and a vice-president. The best-known member of the Council was Benjamin Franklin, who also served as its sixth president.

1776 Constitution

The 1776 Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was framed by a constitutional convention called at the urging of the Continental Congress. The convention began work in Philadelphia on July 15, 1776—less than two weeks following adoption of the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution was adopted September 28 of the same year. The document included both A Declaration of the Rights of the Inhabitants of the Commonwealth and a Plan or Frame of Government. The latter includes 47 sections, several of which deal with the formation and function of the Supreme Executive Council.
Section 3: "The supreme executive power shall be vested in a president and council."
Section 19: "For the present the supreme executive council of this state shall consist of twelve persons chosen in the following manner..."
The city of Philadelphia and the eleven counties existing at that time each elected a representative to sit on the Council. These eleven counties were Philadelphia, Chester, Bucks, Lancaster, York, Cumberland, Berks, Northampton, Bedford, Northumberland, and Westmoreland. Seats were added for Washington, Fayette, Franklin, Montgomery, Dauphin, Luzerne, Huntingdon, and Allegheny as those counties were established.
Counsellors were elected to three-year terms; the terms were staggered so that one third would be contested each year. The president and vice-president of the Council were chosen from those twelve counsellors, elected to one-year terms by an annual joint ballot of the Council and the General Assembly, usually held in November.
Section 20: The Council and its president were given power to
Additionally:
The 1776 Constitution stipulated that the Council meet at the same time and location as the General Assembly. In practice, the Council sat year-round: there was no formal cycle of sessions and no specific date for the start of term of counsellors or council officers.
The Supreme Executive Council formally convened March 4, 1777. The first president and vice-president were elected the following day. The Council sat in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia, now known as Independence Hall. It met in what had been the Governor's Council Chamber during British rule. The Executive Council, along with the General Assembly, moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania ahead of the British occupation of Philadelphia in the fall of 1777—the last meeting in Philadelphia took place on September 23 and the first in Lancaster on October 1. The Council returned to Philadelphia June 26, 1778.
The Council was replaced by a single governor on December 21, 1790.

Presidents of Council

Seven men served as president of the Supreme Executive Council. Several figure prominently in the history of Pennsylvania, but none more so than Dr. Benjamin Franklin. His presidency was one of his last acts of public service, and he died less than two years after leaving office. Franklin was also the longest-serving president, having held the office for slightly over three years. There is some question about the de facto end of his term, suggesting that the aging Franklin was not actively involved in affairs of state toward the end of his presidency. The shortest term was that of George Bryan, who served as acting president for just over six months. Although these men may be referred to properly as Presidents of Pennsylvania their office is analogous to the modern office of governor, and they are often included in lists of those who have held the latter title. Presidents and vice-presidents were styled His Excellency.

Legacy

The neighborhood of South Philadelphia contains a series of east-west streets named in honor of Pennsylvania's presidents and early governors. Moving south on South 25th Street are Wharton, Reed and Dickinson Streets. Moore Street, out of sequence, follows after two intervening streets. There is no Franklin Street in the immediate neighborhood, probably because there already was a North Franklin Street on the west side of Franklin Square, these being two of the numerous memorials to Franklin already in Philadelphia. Moore is followed by Mifflin Street, McKean Street, and Snyder Street. Wharton Street borders , although it is not clear if the park is named after Thomas Wharton or another member of his prominent family. Dickinson College and the Dickinson School of Law, both in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, were named after John Dickinson.

Vice-Presidents of Council

Similarly, the office of Vice-President of Pennsylvania is analogous to the modern office of Lieutenant Governor. Of the ten men who held the office, two succeeded to the presidency. The longest vice-presidential term was that of George Bryan; he served over two and a half years, although he also served as de facto acting president for six months concurrent with his vice-presidential term. The shortest term was that of Matthew Smith, who served for twelve days in October 1779.

"Acting" presidents

At least one source credits four vice-presidents with having served as acting presidents:
With the exception of Bryan, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania makes no such distinction, and its listing of the state's early governors includes neither Potter, Biddle, nor Redick.. None of these men was given the title of acting president during his time in office—each continued to be addressed as Vice-President and was titled Acting President only after the fact.
During George Bryan's "term" as acting president, the office of president was, in fact, vacant—Thomas Wharton died May 23, 1778, and an election to choose his successor was not held until December 1—due perhaps to the Council's evacuation to Lancaster during that time. At over seven months, Bryan's tenure was such that today he is considered a full-fledged governor by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The situations of the three other "acting presidents" is less clear, although there are some similarities. In each instance the president was replaced—or due to be replaced—as his county's Counsellor before the completion of his term as President. For example, Redick's supposed acting presidency spanned the final three weeks of Dr. Franklin's presidential term. Franklin's three-year term as counsellor from the City of Philadelphia was to expire on or around October 17, 1788—two weeks before the conclusion of his final one-year presidential term on October 31. The 1776 Constitution is not specific on the matter, but as the president and vice-president were chosen from among the members of the Council, it appears that most presidents chose to leave that office, or were replaced, prior to the expiration of their term as counsellor, rather than have an executive preside over a body of which he was no longer a member. Thus, these "acting presidencies" may have spanned the period between the de facto end of one presidency and the formal election of a successor. Franklin, for instance, was succeeded as counsellor for the City of Philadelphia by Samuel Miles on October 20, but his presidency officially did not end until November 5. If Franklin did indeed continue to exercise the office during those final weeks not only would he have been presiding beyond the end of his term as counsellor but also beyond the three-year term limit established by the 1776 Constitution. The official minutes of the Council contain no indication that the president in any of these situations had formally left, relinquished or been removed from office; nonetheless during these periods the president was absent from council meetings, which were thus overseen by the vice-president. This suggests that any "interim administration" was established quietly and "off the record".
A similar situation occurred at the end of Joseph Reed's presidency. Reed was succeeded as counsellor from Philadelphia County by John Bayard on October 16, 1781 but ostensibly remained president until William Moore took office on November 15. Yet no claims of an "acting presidency" have been made for Moore, who held the Vice-Presidency during this interim period, immediately prior to his election as president.
Similarly, Charles Biddle appears to have retained the Vice-Presidency—at least officially—even after leaving his seat on the Council. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania reports that Biddle's vice-presidential term extended to October 31, 1787, at which time Peter Muhlenberg succeeded him in that office. However, Biddle's term as counsellor from Berks County ended eighteen days earlier, on October 13, when he was succeeded in that office by James Read. Furthermore, Biddle was elected secretary of the Council on October 23, a clerical position that likely would not have been assumed by one who was also an officer of the Council and a high state official.

Leadership elections

The first election of a president and vice-president of Pennsylvania took place March 5, 1777, the day after the Council first convened. Thereafter, leadership elections took place in the fall, generally in November, following the popular election in which counsellors and Assemblymen were elected by eligible citizens. Routine elections involved a joint ballot of the Council and the General Assembly. Several other elections were held to fill vacancies resulting from resignation; these involved only a vote by the Council rather than a joint ballot with the Assembly. More often than not, records do not list contenders or vote tallies, saying simply that a particular gentleman was duly elected president and another vice-president. Presidents and vice-presidents were elected to one-year terms. They could be reelected, but their term as president or vice-president could not extend beyond the end of their three-year term as counsellor.

Discrepant dates and the oath of office

Throughout the history of the Council it was standard practice for newly elected presidents and vice-presidents to take office immediately upon election. However, there were a few instances in which an individual did not take the oath of office until the day following his election. Section 40 of the 1776 Constitution stipulates: "Every officer, whether judicial, executive or military, in authority under this commonwealth, shall take the following…oath of office before he enters on the execution of his office," meaning that an individual could not assume the duties of his office before taking the necessary oath. Cross referencing the election dates above with the preceding listings of terms in office will thus reveal several slight discrepancies, all resulting from a delayed administration of the oath:
No reasons for the delays are noted in the minutes of the Council. Neither set of dates involved a conflict with the sabbath. There were other instances that involved reelections of men who had already been sworn into office at the start of their previous term and which thus caused no delay. These are not noted here.

Counsellors

Counsellors were elected to represent each county in Pennsylvania as well as the city of Philadelphia. They were elected to three-year terms. Many served less than a full three, while others appear to have served slightly more. The Council sat year-round and there was no specific date set for the start of a session or of any counsellor's term. Rather, new counsellors appear to have begun their terms whenever they were able to reach Philadelphia following their elections. The general election at that time was held on the second Tuesday in October and most counsellors took office in late October or in November. In most instances it is easy to fix the date on which a particular counsellor's term began, as the Minutes of the Council will note that on a particular date a particular gentleman was administered the oath and admitted to his seat. Many counsellors had sporadic attendance, and several were absent for a year or more at a time. This was particularly true of representatives from the distant western counties, although the phenomenon was certainly not limited to those gentlemen. Some counsellors simply sat out the last several months of their terms, their names disappearing from the Minutes by late summer or early autumn. Thus, the following list of counsellors generally notes only the day on which each began his term; unless indicated otherwise it is assumed that each term extended to the beginning of the next, regardless of the incumbent's actual attendance. Counsellors were accorded the title of Esquire.

Term limits

With the Council set to be dissolved in December 1790, a provision of the new state constitution allowed counsellors and council officers whose terms would have expired that autumn to remain in office until December 21, rather than hold elections for new counsellors who would sit for only one or two months. Also, a review of the dates on which a particular county's counsellors began their terms will reveal several instances in which more than three years elapsed between the start of successive terms. It is uncertain whether the seat technically became vacant after exactly three years or if the incumbent's term extended to the start of his successor's, even if this meant exceeding the three-year term limit imposed by the 1776 Constitution.

List of counsellors

City of Philadelphia
  1. George Bryan
  2. William Moore
  3. James Irvine
  4. Benjamin Franklin
  5. Samuel Miles
Philadelphia County
  1. Joseph Wharton
  2. Joseph Reed
  3. John Bayard
  4. John Dickinson
  5. Henry Hill
  6. Thomas Mifflin
Chester County
  1. John Mackey
  2. Dr. Joseph Gardner
  3. John McDowell
  4. Evan Evans
  5. Richard Willing
Bucks County
  1. Joseph Hart
  2. Gen. John Lacey Jr.
  3. George Wall Jr.
  4. Samuel Dean
  5. Amos Gregg
Lancaster County
  1. John Hubley
  2. John Bailey
  3. Col. Matthew Smith
  4. James Cunningham
  5. Samuel John Atlee
  6. John Whitehill
  7. George Ross
York County
  1. Jason Edgar
  2. James Ewing
  3. Mr. Thompson
  4. James Ewing
  5. Richard McCallister
  6. Andrew Bellmeyer
  7. Samuel Edie
Cumberland County
  1. Jonathan Hoge
  2. James McLene
  3. Robert Whitehill
  4. John Buyers
  5. Jonathan Hoge
  6. Frederick Watt
Berks County
  1. Jacob Morgan
  2. James Read
  3. Sebastian Levan
  4. Charles Biddle
  5. James Read
Northampton County
  1. George Taylor
  2. Jacob Arndt
  3. John VanCampen
  4. Stephen Balliot
  5. Robert Trail
  6. Jonas Hartzell
Bedford County
  1. Thomas Urie
  2. John Piper
  3. Isaac Meason
  4. seat vacant approximately one year due to election irregularities
  5. George Woods
  6. James Martin
Northumberland County
  1. Capt. John Hambright
  2. Brig. Gen. James Potter
  3. John Boyd
  4. William McClay
  5. William Wilson
Westmoreland County
  1. John Proctor
  2. Thomas Scott
  3. Christopher Hayes
  4. Bernard Dougherty
  5. John Baird
  6. William Findley
Washington County
  1. Dorsey Pentecost
  2. Gen. John Neville
  3. David Redick
  4. Henry Taylor
Fayette County
  1. John Woods
  2. John Smilie
  3. Nathaniel Breading
Franklin County
  1. James McLene
  2. Abraham Smith
Montgomery County
  1. Daniel Hiester
  2. Peter Muhlenberg
  3. Zebulon Potts
Dauphin County
  1. William Brown
  2. Christopher Kucher
Luzerne County
  1. Nathan Dennison
  2. Lord Butler
Huntingdon County
  1. John Cannon
  2. Benjamin Elliott
Allegheny County
  1. Dr. John Wilkins Jr.

    1790 Constitution

A constitutional convention was called in 1789 and a new state constitution was adopted the following year. The 1790 Constitution did away with the Supreme Executive Council and vested supreme executive power in the office of governor. On December 21, 1790 Thomas Mifflin, the last President of Pennsylvania, took office as the state's first governor. The executive branch of the state government has been headed by a governor since that time. The 1790 Constitution made no provision for a lieutenant governor. Upon the death or resignation of the governor the office would be assumed by the Speaker of the State Senate. The office of lieutenant governor was created by the 1873 State Constitution and first occupied in 1875.