Frederick Muhlenberg | |
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| 1st and 3rd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives | |
| In office December 2, 1793 – March 4, 1795 | |
| Preceded by | Jonathan Trumbull Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Jonathan Dayton |
| In office April 1, 1789 – March 4, 1791 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Jonathan Trumbull Jr. |
| 1stDean of the United States House of Representatives | |
| In office March 4, 1789 – March 4, 1797 | |
| Preceded by | Title established |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Hartley George Thatcher |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania | |
| In office March 4, 1789 – March 4, 1797 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Blair McClenachan (2nd) |
| Constituency | At-large (1789–1791) 2nd district (1791–1793) At-large (1793–1795) 2nd district (1795–1797) |
| 3rd Speaker of thePennsylvania House of Representatives | |
| In office November 3, 1780 – 1783 | |
| Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives | |
| In office 1780–1783 | |
| Delegate from Pennsylvania to theContinental Congress | |
| In office 1779–1780 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg (1750-01-01)January 1, 1750 Trappe, Pennsylvania, British America |
| Died | June 4, 1801(1801-06-04) (aged 51) Lancaster, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Resting place | Woodward Hill Cemetery |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican (1795–1801) Anti-Administration (1791–1795) Federalist Party (before 1791) |
| Relatives | Muhlenberg family |
| Alma mater | University of Halle |
| Profession | Minister of religion |
| Signature |  |
| Official name | Frederick A. C. Muhlenberg (1750–1801) |
| Type | Roadside |
| Designated | April 12, 2008[1] |
| Location | 151 W Main St., Trappe, across from strip mall |
Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg (/ˈmjuːlɪnbɜːrɡ/; January 1, 1750 – June 4, 1801) was an Americanminister andpolitician who was the firstspeaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1789 to 1791 and again from 1793 to 1795. Muhlenberg served as the firstdean of the United States House of Representatives as well. A member of theFederalist Party, he was delegate to the Pennsylvania state constitutional convention and amember of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania and aLutheran pastor by profession, Muhlenberg was born inTrappe, Pennsylvania. His home, known asthe Speaker's House, is now a museum and is currently undergoing restoration to restore its appearance during Muhlenberg's occupancy.[2]
Muhlenberg was born inTrappe, Pennsylvania, the son of Anna Maria (Weiser) andHeinrich Melchior Mühlenberg. His father, an immigrant fromGermany, was considered the founder of theLutheran Church inNorth America. His maternal grandfather was Pennsylvania German colonial leaderConrad Weiser. His brother,Peter, was a general in theContinental Army and his brother Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst was a botanist.[3]
In 1763, together with his brothersJohn Peter Gabriel andGotthilf Henry Ernst, he attended theLatina at theFranckesche Stiftungen[4] inHalle, Germany. In 1769, he attended theUniversity of Halle, where he studiedtheology.
On October 25, 1770, Muhlenberg was ordained by thePennsylvania Ministerium as a minister of theLutheran Church. He preached inStouchsburg, Pennsylvania, andLebanon, Pennsylvania, from 1770 to 1774, and inNew York City from 1774 to 1776. When theBritish Army entered New York at the onset of theAmerican Revolutionary War, he felt obligated to leave, and returned to Pennsylvania. He moved toNew Hanover Township, and was a pastor there and inOley andNew Goshenhoppen until August 1779.[5]
Muhlenberg was a member of theContinental Congress in 1779 and 1780, and served in thePennsylvania House of Representatives from 1780 to 1783. He was elected itsspeaker on November 3, 1780.[6] He was a delegate to and chairman of the Pennsylvania state constitutional convention in 1787 called to ratify theFederal Constitution. He was the first signer of theBill of Rights.[7]
He served as amember of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania in the first and the three succeeding United States Congresses (March 4, 1789 – March 4, 1797). Muhlenberg was also the firstspeaker of the United States House of Representatives. In August 1789, he cast the deciding vote for the location of the nation's new capital. He did not seek renomination as speaker in 1796. On April 29, 1796, as chairman of theCommittee of the Whole, he cast the deciding vote for the laws necessary to carry out theJay Treaty.[8]
In 1794, during Muhlenberg's second tenure as Speaker, the House voted 42–41 against a proposal to translate some of the new country's laws intoGerman. Muhlenberg, who himself abstained from the vote, commented later that "the faster the Germans become Americans, the better it will be."[9] Even though he never cast a vote against the translation bill, alegend developed in whichMuhlenberg was responsible for preventing the adoption of German as an official language of the United States.[9]
According to another discredited legend, Muhlenberg also suggested that the title of the president of the United States should be "Mr. President," instead of "His High Mightiness" or "His Elected Majesty," asJohn Adams had suggested.[10]
Muhlenberg was the Federalist candidate in the1793 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, losing to incumbentThomas Mifflin.[11][12]
Muhlenberg was president of the council of censors of Pennsylvania, and was appointed receiver general of the Pennsylvania Land Office on January 8, 1800, serving until his death inLancaster, Pennsylvania, on June 4, 1801.[13]
On October 15, 1771, Muhlenberg married Catherine Schaeffer, the daughter of wealthyPhiladelphia sugar refiner David Schaeffer. They had seven children.[14]
On June 4, 1801, Muhlenberg died inLancaster, Pennsylvania, at age 51. He was interred inWoodward Hill Cemetery in Lancaster.[6]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Muhlenberg, John Peter Gabriel".Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
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Speakers of the unicameralPennsylvania General Assembly (1776–1790) | ||
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