North Carolina General Assembly of 1777

1st North Carolina General Assembly (1777)
5th Provincial Congress 1778
Tryon Palace recreated in the 1950s, seized by the patriots and used as the first seat of government
Overview
Legislative bodyNorth Carolina General Assembly
JurisdictionNorth Carolina, United States
Meeting placeNew Bern, North Carolina
Term1777
North Carolina Senate
Members39 Senators (38 counties, one district)
SpeakerSamuel Ashe
ClerkJames Green, Jr.
North Carolina House of Commons
Members76 Representatives from 38 counties, 6 from districts
SpeakerAbner Nash
ClerkBenjamin Exum
Sessions
1stApril 7, 1777 – May 9, 1777
2ndNovember 15, 1777 – December 24, 1777

The North Carolina General Assembly of 1777 met in two sessions in New Bern, North Carolina, from April 7 to May 9, 1777, and from November 15 to December 24, 1777. This was the first North Carolina legislature elected after the last provincial congress wrote the first North Carolina Constitution. This assembly elected Richard Caswell as the state's first constitutional governor (he had been serving as acting governor by action of the provincial congress).[1][2][3][4][5][6]

Each of the 38 counties of North Carolina were authorized to elect one senator and two representatives to the House of Commons. In addition, six boroughs (also called districts) elected one House member each. An additional district, Washington District, had one senator and no representative in the House of Commons. Washington District comprised the lands that later became part of Tennessee in 1789. It was referred to as a District in 1776 and 1777 and Washington County after 1777.[1][2]

  1. ^ a b Connor, R.D.D. (1913). A Manual of North Carolina (PDF). Raleigh: North Carolina Historical Commission. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  2. ^ a b Wheeler, John Hill (1874). "The Legislative Manual and Political Register of the State of North Carolina". google.com. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  3. ^ Lewis, J.D. "North Carolina State House 1777". The American Revolution in North Carolina. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  4. ^ Lewis, J.D. "North Carolina State Senators 1777". The American Revolution in North Carolina. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  5. ^ Norris, David A. (2006). "North Carolina Capitals, Colonial and State". NCPedia.org. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  6. ^ Cheney, John L. Jr. (1974). North Carolina Government, 1585–1974.