Who Was the First President of the USA

Who was the first president of the United States of America?

One hint: it was not George Washington. He was the first president - and a great one at that - after the adoption of the Constitution in 1787. This was 11 years after the formation of the country.

There were several presidents of the United States under the Articles of Confederation - the predecessor document to the Constitution.

So, again, who was the first president of the United States of America?

Unless you are a history buff and already know the answer, get on Wikipedia and find out, and then answer.

Quakertrucker

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Daniel1120 · 26-30, M

I want to say it was John Adams

Quakertrucker · 70-79, M

@Daniel1120

John Adams, with many other founding fathers, was certainly an important person in the formation of the nation.

He was not the first president under the Articles of Confederation, however. He and his son, John Quincy Adams were both president after the adoption of the Constitution.

The president under the Articles was a weak office, and no one served over a year - with many serving substantially shorter terms.

You will find somewhat different lists depending on the source, showing between 10 and 14 presidents under the Articles.

None of the presidents under the Articles were later elected president under the constitution. There are, however, several well-known men who served as president in the first 11 years of the nation's history - among them John Hancock, Henry Laurens, John Jay, Richard Henry Lee, and Peyton Randolph.

Peyton Randolph was the first president of the United States of America under the Articles of Confederation, and was the only person to serve two terms - terms that were non-consecutive.

Study up on our history people.

Quakertrucker

Daniel1120 · 26-30, M

@Quakertrucker it was actually John Hansen. Just googled it.

SW-User

@Quakertrucker No.

Quakertrucker · 70-79, M

@Daniel1120

One list I saw showed Samuel Huntington first, while two lists showed Peyton Randolph, so I went with the majority opinion.

I did not see a list showing John Hansen as first, but all three lists I looked at did show him as serving as president under the Articles.

In any case, George Washington was not the first president of the United States of America - just the first president under the Constitution.

Thanks for getting involved and doing the research!

Quakertrucker