1st New York State Legislature

The 4th Provincial Congress of the Colony of New York convened at White Plains on July 9, 1776, and declared the independence of the State of New York. The next day the delegates re-convened as the "Convention of Representatives of the State of New-York" and on August 1 a committee was appointed to prepare a State Constitution. The New York Constitution was adopted by the Convention on April 20, 1777, and went into force immediately, without ratification by popular vote.

The State Senators were elected on general tickets in the senatorial districts, and were then divided into four classes. Six senators each drew lots for a term of 1, 2, 3 or 4 years and, beginning at the following election in April 1778, every year one fourth of the State Senate seats came up for election to a four-year term.^[1]

Assemblymen were elected countywide on general tickets to a one-year term, the whole assembly being renewed annually.

On May 8, 1777, the Constitutional Convention appointed the senators from the Southern District, and the assemblymen from Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond and Suffolk counties—the area which was under British control—and determined that these appointees serve in the Legislature until elections could be held in those areas, presumably after the end of the American Revolutionary War. Vacancies among the appointed members in the Senate should be filled by the Assembly, and vacancies in the Assembly by the Senate.

The State Legislature met in Kingston, the seat of Ulster County. The State Senate met first on September 9, 1777, at the home of Abraham Van Gaasbeck, now known as Senate House, the Assembly met first on the next day at the Bogardus Tavern.^[2] At the approach of the British army, the State Legislature dispersed on October 7, and reconvened in Poughkeepsie on January 5, 1778, possibly at a house now known as Clinton House.^[3]

• The Southern District (9 seats) consisted of Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond, Suffolk and Westchester counties.
• The Middle District (6 seats) consisted of Dutchess, Orange and Ulster counties.
• The Eastern District (3 seats) consisted of Charlotte, Cumberland and Gloucester counties.^[4]
• The Western District (6 seats) consisted of Albany and Tryon counties.

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the Constitutional Convention who continued as members of the Legislature.

District	image	State Senators	Term drawn	Notes
Southern		Isaac Roosevelt*	1 year	appointed by Constitutional Convention
		John Morin Scott*	1 year	appointed by Constitutional Convention; elected to the Council of Appointment; from March 13, 1778, also Secretary of State of New York
		John Jones	2 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention; resigned on February 26, 1778, due to ill health
		Richard Morris		on March 4, 1778, appointed by the State Assembly, in place of Jones
		Jonathan Lawrence*	2 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention
		Lewis Morris*	2 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention
		William Floyd	3 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention
		William Smith*	3 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention
		Pierre Van Cortlandt*	3 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention; elected Temporary President of the State Senate; then elected Lt. Gov. to fill vacancy,[5] and took office on June 30, 1778
		Philip Livingston*	4 years	appointed by Constitutional Convention; died June 12, 1778
Middle		Henry Wisner*	1 year
		Jonathan Landon*	2 years
		Zephaniah Platt*	2 years
		Arthur Parks*	3 years
		Levi Pawling	4 years
		Jesse Woodhull	4 years	elected to the Council of Appointment
Eastern		William Duer*	1 year
		John Williams*	3 years
		Alexander Webster*	4 years	elected to the Council of Appointment
Western		Isaac Paris*	1 year
		Abraham Yates Jr.*	1 year	elected to the Council of Appointment
		Dirck W. Ten Broeck	2 years
		Anthony Van Schaick	3 years
		Jellis Fonda	4 years
		Rinier Mynderse	4 years

• Clerk: Robert Benson
• Sergeant-at-Arms: Stephen Hendrickson, elected March 11, 1778
• Doorkeeper and Messenger: Victor Bicker