John Hanson: First President?

                    Who was the first President of the United States? George Washington, of course. Under the ratified Articles of Confederation, better known as the Constitution, George Washington became the nation's first President. However, when considering that the U.S. was a struggling country during the Revolution, and that there were two different drafts of a Constitution, it would be a valid question to ask who was in charge when the rough draft of the Articles of Confederation were in place. The answer to that question is a man named John Hanson.
                  John Hanson was a merchant from Maryland during the eighteenth century. Needless to say, he was very involved in the War for Independence. He was elected to the Continental Congress--the nation's first congress--and then went on to sign the first Articles of Confederation. Under the Articles of Confederation, he was elected President of Congress, and because of this he has been called the first President of the United States of America.
                As President, Hanson accomplished many tasks that are largely unknown to be to his credit. During his term the Post Office was established. The Foreign, Finance, War, and Marine Departments were created. (These were later the Departments of State, Treasury, Defense and Navy) Hanson was personally commended by George Washington for his work. Hanson ordered Benjamin Franklin to take a loan from France. Hanson appointed the first Postmaster of the United States.
               These are only a few of his accomplishments.  There are rumors that John Hanson was the first black president, that his roots were really African American. Needless to say, those rumors are not rooted in any fact, and John Hanson was not African American.
              It is strange, to say the least, that so many people have never even heard of John Hanson.  
He was the First President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation. Even if his position as President is to be disputed, it cannot be argued that John Hanson was a patriot who did his very best to contribute to the country that he loved.


- The Liberty Belle

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