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The Provincial Congress of New Jersey was a transitional governing body of the Province of New Jersey in the early part of the American Revolution. It first met in 1775 with representatives from all New Jersey's then-thirteen counties, to supersede the Royal Governor. In June 1776, this congress had authorized the preparation of a constitution, which was written within five days, adopted by the Provincial Congress, and accepted by the Continental Congress.

The Constitution of 1776 provided for a bicameral legislature consisting of a General Assembly with three members from each county and a legislative council with one member from each county. All state officials, including the governor, were to be appointed by the Legislature under this constitution. The Vice-President of Council would succeed the Governor, who served as the Council president, if a vacancy occurred in that office. The Provincial Congress ceased to function when the first session of the new Legislature convened on August 27, 1776, under the New Jersey State Constitution it had prepared.

1775 Sessions

The Provincial Congress met in late May, June and August in Trenton. During their sessions in the first week, they elected from their members: Hendrick Fisher as the body's President, Jonathan D. Sergeant as secretary, and William Paterson and Frederick Frelinghuysen as assistants. The members, or deputies of the Congress, were received at its first session on May 23, 1775.

Members of the Provincial Congress

At Independence Hall in Philadelphia in 1776, three Provincial Congress deputies, Abraham Clark, John Hart, and Reverend John Witherspoon, signed the Declaration of Independence, becoming of the nation's 53 Founding Fathers.

• X = Attended Session
• N = Elected but did not attend Session

See also

• Colonial government in the Thirteen Colonies (Council and Assembly)
• Provincial Congress
• New Jersey Legislature

References

Notes

1. "The New Jersey Constitution of 1776". Retrieved December 17, 2006. See also: New Jersey Legislature#Before the Legislature and the Constitution of 1776.
2. ^ "New Jersey Legislature, Historical Information". Retrieved August 12, 2009. See also: New Jersey Legislature#Before the Legislature and the Constitution of 1776.
3. State of New Jersey. Extracts from the Journal of Proceedings of the Provincial Congress of New Jersey, held at Trenton in the Months of May, June and August 1775. Burlington, New Jersey: Issac Collins. (1775) Woodbury, New Jersey: Joseph Sailer (1835) : 3-5.
4. "List of Deputies who attended in May and June" in Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Trenton: Naar, Day & Naar, 1879), 169–170.
5. "List of Deputies who attended the Session in the Month of August" in Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Trenton: Naar, Day & Naar, 1879), 183–184.
6. "List of Deputies who attended this Session" (October 1775) in Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Trenton: Naar, Day & Naar, 1879), 197.
7. "A List of the Deputies Returned to Serve in Congress" (31 January - 2 March 1776) in Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Trenton: Naar, Day & Naar, 1879), 325–326.
8. "Name of the Deputies" (10 June - 21 August 1776) in Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Trenton: Naar, Day & Naar, 1879), 445–446.
9. supra, 198–99
10. ^ Supra 198–199

Further reading

• Kemmerer, Donald L. (1940). Path to Freedom, The Struggle for Self Government in Colonial New Jersey 1703-1776. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
• McCormick, Richard P. (1964, 1970). New Jersey from Colony to State, 1609-1789. 1st Edition-Princeton: Van Nostrand; 2nd Edition—New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press.

External links

• Historical Information. New Jersey Legislature official website

• Provincial Congress of New Jersey
• Government of New Jersey
• New Jersey in the American Revolution
• Colonial government in America
• 1775 establishments in New Jersey
• 1776 disestablishments in New Jersey
• Defunct unicameral legislatures