Before Washington: The Forgotten Presidents of the Revolution

When Americans picture the first President, most think only of George Washington. The general who declined a crown. The leader who stepped down after two terms. The myth of the man towers so large that few remember there were Presidents before him. Not one or two, but more than a dozen. They held the title during the Revolution and the fragile years that followed. They were not Presidents of the United States as defined by the Constitution, but they were elected leaders. They presided over Congress. They signed treaties. They helped hold the new nation together before it had real branches of government. The title was not empty.

It carried responsibilities. But it came without executive power, a cabinet, or a permanent residence. These early Presidents chaired meetings, received foreign dignitaries, and helped steer wartime decisions. Their work was procedural, symbolic, and essential. They were not heads of state in the modern sense, but they were heads of Congress during its most turbulent years. And they have been largely forgotten. Peyton Randolph was the first to hold the role in 1774. A respected Virginian, he presided over the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia. He helped unite the colonies at a moment when unity was far from guaranteed. Randolph was well liked, even-tempered, and deeply trusted. But illness cut his tenure short. He died in 1775, before the Declaration was drafted.

His name does not appear in most textbooks, but he sat at the head of the table when the colonies first came together to talk rebellion. John Hancock is better remembered, mostly for his oversized signature. But he also served as President of the Continental Congress during critical years. He oversaw the debates surrounding independence and managed communications between military and civilian leaders. His presence brought visibility. He was wealthy, bold, and willing to put his name to causes others hesitated to join. In the mural, Hancock is sometimes suggested by a sweeping hand, a paper held high, a pen ready to press down. Not all figures need their faces shown to be recognized.

Henry Laurens of South Carolina took the chair after Hancock. He managed foreign correspondence, supervised military dispatches, and spent long hours mediating political conflicts. Later, he was captured by the British while sailing on a diplomatic mission and held in the Tower of London. He remains the only American President ever imprisoned by a foreign government while in office. His story is dramatic, but rarely told. Then there is John Hanson. Elected President of the Congress under the Articles of Confederation in 1781, he is sometimes referred to as the first President of the United States. That claim is debated, but it speaks to the confusion surrounding these early roles. Hanson signed documents, commissioned officers, and served during a year when the country’s political structure was barely holding. His portrait once appeared on a commemorative coin.

His name has since faded into footnotes. These men, and several others, guided Congress through war, scarcity, and division. Their authority was limited, but their positions mattered. They helped shape what a President could become. They helped model the value of rotation, civility, and procedural legitimacy. They held the seat until something stronger could be built. Washington understood this legacy. When he took office in 1789 under the newly ratified Constitution, he did not create the role from scratch. He stepped into a space made by others. He expanded it, but he did not invent it. That continuity matters. The Revolution was not about sudden invention. It was about construction. Slowly. Carefully. In committee and by consent. In the mural, this idea lives in the posture of seated figures. A man holding a gavel. A hand raised to speak. A parchment passed from one person to another. These gestures remind us that leadership comes in many forms. Some stand tall in marble.

Others sit behind tables and carry the burden of unfinished ideas. Before Washington, there were Presidents who signed treaties, led sessions, and held the nation together by vote rather than by sword. They lacked fame, but not purpose. And while they did not lead armies, they led the conversation. That too, is a kind of power.