1788 in the United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Incumbents
Federal government
- President: Cyrus Griffin (starting January 29)
- Congress of the Confederation
State governments
Events
- January 2 â Georgia ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 4th U.S. state under the new government (see History of Georgia).
- January 9 â Connecticut ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 5th U.S. state (see History of Connecticut).
- January 22 â the Continental Congress, effectively a caretaker government, elects Cyrus Griffin as its last president.
- February 1 â Isaac Briggs and William Longstreet patent the steamboat in Georgia.
- February 6 â Massachusetts ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 6th U.S. state (see History of Massachusetts).
- March 21 â Great New Orleans Fire (1788) kills 25% of the population and destroys 856 buildings, including St. Louis Cathedral and the Cabildo, leaving most of the town in ruins. At the time New Orleans was a Spanish colony that would be secretly given to France in 1800. Not until 1803 would New Orleans as part of the Louisiana Purchase become part of the United States.
- April 7 â American pioneers establish the town of Marietta (in modern-day Ohio), the first permanent American settlement outside the original Thirteen Colonies.
- April 13 â A riot, the Doctors' Mob, begins. Residents of Manhattan are angry about grave robbers stealing bodies for doctors to dissect. The rioting is suppressed on the 15th.
- April 28 â Maryland ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 7th U.S. state (see History of Maryland).
- May 23 â South Carolina ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 8th U.S. state (see History of South Carolina).
- June 21 â New Hampshire ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 9th U.S. state (see History of New Hampshire), the Constitution goes into effect.
- June 25 â Virginia ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 10th U.S. state under the new government (see History of Virginia).
- July 26 â New York ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 11th U.S. state (see History of New York).
- November 15 â Cyrus Griffin resigns as President of the Continental Congress after only two delegates arrived for the final session.
- December 15 â The first presidential election begins. This election would end on January 7th of the following year. George Washington was elected unanimously.
Ongoing
- Articles of Confederation in effect (1781â1788)
- Northwest Indian War (1785â1795)
Births
- April 14 â David Gouverneur Burnet, politician (died 1870)
- September 15 â Gerard Brandon, 4th and 6th Governor of Mississippi from 1825 till 1826 and from 1826 till 1832. (died 1850)
- September 21 â Margaret Taylor, First Lady of the United States (died 1852)
- November 8 â Jabez W. Huntington, United States Senator from Connecticut from 1840 till 1847. (died 1847)
- Date unknown â Sacagawea, interpreter and guide on the Lewis and Clark Expedition (died 1812)
Deaths
- January 9 â Benedict Swingate Calvert, judge (born 1722)
- February 28 â Thomas Cushing, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts (born 1725)
- March 29 â Charles Wesley (born 1707)
- September 14 â John Penn, founding father (born 1741)
- Thomas Adams, politician and business man (born 1730)
See also
References
External links
Media related to 1788 in the United States at Wikimedia Commons
