George Bryan (1731January 27, 1791) was an Irish/American
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
businessman, and politician of the
Revolutionary era. He served as the first
vice-president of Pennsylvania (analogous to
lieutenant governor) and its second
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
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Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
(
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
) following the
Declaration of Independence
A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of th ...
from Great Britain. He was an early
abolitionist
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people.
The British ...
and sponsored the bill which helped bring about
abolition in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
. He also served as a judge of the
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Ju ...
.
Early life and family
Bryan was born at Old Bridge, Church Street,
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
in the
Kingdom of Ireland on August 11, 1731, to a merchant. He emigrated to
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
in 1752 to join a business partnership arranged by his father. That partnership soon came to an end, but Bryan went on to become a successful businessman, both as a retailer and as an importer and exporter.
He married Elizabeth Smith in 1757. Their family would number ten children. His son,
Samuel Bryan
Samuel Bryan (September 30, 1759 in Philadelphia October 6, 1821 in Chester County, Pennsylvania) was a resident of Pennsylvania and Anti-Federalist author, who wrote during the Confederation Period. Historians generally ascribe to him the lette ...
(1759–1821) was a
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
n
Anti-Federalist
Anti-Federalism was a late-18th century political movement that opposed the creation of a stronger U.S. federal government and which later opposed the ratification of the 1787 Constitution. The previous constitution, called the Articles of Con ...
author. He was inducted into the original
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
around 1758.
Politics
Bryan was an active member of the
Presbyterian Church, and during the late 1750s and early 1760s tried to mediate a conflict that had arisen between two opposing factions of that denomination during the
Great Awakening. That experience led to his involvement in local and provincial politics. After Britain's passage of the
Stamp Act in 1765, Bryan took an active role in the American opposition, joining other Philadelphia Merchants in signing the Non-Importation Agreement. This likely led to his bankruptcy in 1771.
Bryan was considered a "radical" regarding the issue of Independence, and as such is listed in the company of such men as
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...
. Bad health limited his political activities during the early 1770s, but after the adoption of the 1776
Pennsylvania Constitution
The Constitution of Pennsylvania is the supreme law within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. All acts of the General Assembly, the governor, and each governmental agency are subordinate to it. Since 1776, Pennsylvania's Constitution has undergone ...
he became an advocate of the
unicameral legislature
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
and
executive council outlined in that document. On March 5, 1777, he was elected the first Vice-President of that Council. Although it would become standard procedure for presidents and Vice-Presidents to take office immediately upon election, Bryan did not take the oath of office until the following day, March 6, and according to the State Constitution could not exercise his office until that time. Thus, his term officially began March 6, 1777. Bryan was reelected to the Vice-Presidency on November 21, 1777.
Bryan, and subsequent Vice-Presidents, may be referred to properly as ''
Vice-Governors and presidents of Pennsylvania''; however, the position is analogous to the modern office of
Lieutenant Governor, and Vice-Presidents of Council are often listed with those who have held the latter title.
Some of the anti-Federalist
letters of Centinel, primarily attributed to Bryan's son Samuel, have been attributed to Bryan himself.
President of Pennsylvania
Thomas Wharton, the first
President of Pennsylvania, died in office on May 23, 1778, in
Lancaster, Pennsylvania. (The State government had evacuated to Lancaster during
the British occupation of Philadelphia.) According to the provisions of the 1776 State Constitution Bryan assumed the duties of the late President. Some sources consider Bryan to have been merely the ''Acting'' President during the seven months that followed.
[NNDB list of Governors of Pennsylvania]
Retrieved April 17, 2007. Others—including the records of the Council itself—deny him even that title and continue to address him as simply ''Vice-President'', as he was never elected or officially elevated to the Presidency.
[''Minutes of the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania, from its organization to the termination of the Revolution. arch 4, 1777 – December 20, 1790'. Harrisburg, Pub. by the State, 1852–53. Entries for December 1, 1778 (v. XI, pp 632–634), March 5, 1777 (v. XI, pp 173–174), October 11, 1779 (v. XII, p 127).][University of Pennsylvania]
biography o
Accessed April 17, 2007. Nonetheless, perhaps due to the length of his service at the head of the Council, both the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the
National Governors Association
The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 states, territories and commonwealths. Members come to the association from across the politica ...
today recognize George Bryan as a full-fledged Governor of Pennsylvania, serving from May 23, 1778, through December 1, 1778.
[Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission]
listing o
Prior Governors of Pennsylvania
Accessed April 17, 2007.[National Governors Association]
biography fo
George Bryan
Accessed April 17, 2007.
It was under Bryan's leadership that the Council returned to Philadelphia on June 26, 1778, after almost nine months in Lancaster. On December 1, Bryan was soundly defeated in his bid to be formally elected to the Presidency, receiving only one of sixty three votes cast and losing to
Joseph Reed. However, he handily defeated Joseph Hart to retain the Vice-Presidency, winning sixty two of the sixty three votes cast for that office. Bryan remained Vice-President for almost a year, resigning the office October 11, 1779. No reason for the resignation is noted in the records of the Council.
Matthew Smith was elected to fill the vacancy and took office that same day. Bryan continued to serve on the Council for several days after leaving the Vice-Presidency, and on October 18 was succeeded by William Moore as Counsellor for the City of Philadelphia.
[
Following his service with the Executive Council, in 1780, Bryan was appointed a judge on the ]Pennsylvania Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Ju ...
. He also served in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. An early abolitionist, Bryan believed that slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
was a moral disgrace, and he authored the first legislation in history to abolish the practice. This legislation served as a model for the gradual emancipation
Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure economic and social rights, political rights or equality, often for a specifically disenfranch ...
of slaves throughout the northern colonies.
In the late 1780s, Bryan remained an ardent advocate of the unicameral legislature and executive council still in place in Pennsylvania, and he opposed adoption of the 1787 Federal Constitution largely because it created a bicameral legislature and a single executive.
University of Pennsylvania
Like most of the presidents and Vice-Presidents of Council who came after him, Bryan ''may'' have served as an ''ex officio'' member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
. University records are not clear on this issue, but it is certain that, after leaving the Vice-Presidency in 1779, Bryan was appointed a Trustee
Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to ...
in his own right, and served that body until his death in 1791. He was Treasurer of the Board from 1779 to 1788.[
]
Death
Bryan died in 1791. He is interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery
Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in the East Falls neighborhood of Philadelphia. Founded in 1836, it was the second major rural cemetery in the United States after Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston, Massachusetts.
The cemetery is ...
, Section C, Lot 13, Philadelphia PA.[Political Graveyard]
page for surnam
Retrieved April 29, 2007.
See also
* List of U.S. state governors born outside the United States
In total, 72 governors of U.S. states have been born outside the current territory of the United States. Joe Lombardo of Nevada, born in Japan, is the only current governor to have been born outside the United States. Arnold Schwarzenegger ...
References
External links
*
National Governors Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bryan, George
1731 births
1791 deaths
American abolitionists
American people of Scotch-Irish descent
American Presbyterians
American revolutionaries
Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia)
Governors of Pennsylvania
Justices of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Kingdom of Ireland emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies
Lieutenant Governors of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania state court judges
Businesspeople from Dublin (city)
People of colonial Pennsylvania
People of Pennsylvania in the American Revolution
Politicians from Philadelphia
Presbyterian abolitionists
University of Pennsylvania