Muhlenberg, Frederick Augustus Conrad, 1750-1801

<p>Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg, second son of renowned Lutheran pastor Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, was born in Trappe, Pennsylvania, on January 1, 1750. Sent with his brothers Peter and Henry to the University of Halle, Germany, in 1763, Frederick returned to America in 1770 and was ordained a Lutheran minister. On October 15, 1771, Frederick married Catherine Schaeffer, the daughter of wealthy Philadelphia sugar refiner David Schaeffer.</p>

<p>Frederick served congregations in the area of Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania, before accepting a call to New York City in 1774. With talk of revolution beginning in 1776 and fear that the British might seize New York, Muhlenberg moved with his wife and children to his parents’ home in Pennsylvania. After struggling to make ends meet without a regular call as a minister, Muhlenberg decided to enter politics and in 1779 became a member of the Continental Congress.</p>

<p>From 1780 to 1783, he was Speaker of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. When Montgomery County was established in 1784, Muhlenberg was appointed the first Recorder of Deeds and Register of Wills, in addition to serving as a justice of the peace. In 1787, Muhlenberg presided at the state convention to ratify the U.S. Constitution. Elected as a representative to the first U.S. Congress in 1789, Muhlenberg was chosen to be the first Speaker of the House. While Speaker, he also became the first signer of the Bill of Rights. Muhlenberg was elected to the next three congresses, serving again as Speaker during the Third Congress.</p>

<p>In 1796, Muhlenberg cast the tie-breaking vote as chairman of a House committee to ratify the Jay Treaty, in an effort to improve post-war British-American tensions. Muhlenberg’s vote ended his rising political career because the treaty was unpopular with many Americans, so much so that Muhlenberg was actually stabbed by his own brother-in-law over his vote. He survived the attack but was not nominated to the next congress. In 1799, he was appointed Receiver General of the Pennsylvania Land Office and moved to Lancaster, then the state capital, and lived there until his death in 1801.</p>

MUHLENBERG, FREDERICK AUGUSTUS CONRAD, (brother of John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, uncle of Francis Swaine Muhlenberg and of Henry Augustus Philip Muhlenberg, and great-great-grand uncle of Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg), a Delegate and a Representative from Pennsylvania; born in Trappe, Pa., January 1, 1750; pursued an academic course; attended the University of Halle, Germany; studied theology and was ordained by the ministerium of Pennsylvania a minister of the Lutheran Church October 25, 1770; preached in Stouchsburg and Lebanon, Pa., 1770-1774, and in New York City 1774-1776; when the British entered New York he felt obliged to leave, and returned to Trappe, Pa.; moved to New Hanover, Pa., and was pastor there and in Oley and New Goshenhoppen until August 1779; Member of the Continental Congress, 1779-1780; member of the Pennsylvania state house of representatives, 1780-1783, and its speaker, 1780-1783; delegate to and president of the Pennsylvania state constitutional convention in 1787 called to ratify the Federal Constitution; elected as a Pro-Administration candidate to the First Congress, reelected as an Anti-Administration candidate to the Second and Third Congresses, and elected as a Republican to the Fourth Congress (March 4, 1789-March 3, 1797); Speaker of the House of Representatives (First and Third Congresses); was not a candidate for renomination in 1796; president of the council of censors of Pennsylvania; receiver general of the Pennsylvania Land Office, 1800-1801; died in Lancaster, Pa., June 4, 1801; interment in Woodward Hill Cemetery.

<p>Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg (January 1, 1750 – June 4, 1801) was an American minister and politician who was the first Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A delegate to the Pennsylvania state constitutional convention and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania and a Lutheran pastor by profession, Muhlenberg was born in Trappe, Pennsylvania. His home, known as The Speaker's House, is now a museum and is currently undergoing restoration to restore its appearance during Muhlenberg's occupancy.</p>

<p>Frederick Muhlenberg was born in Trappe, Pennsylvania, the son of Anna Maria (Weiser) and Heinrich Melchior Mühlenberg. His father, an immigrant from Germany, was considered the founder of the Lutheran Church in North America. His maternal grandfather was Pennsylvania German colonial leader Conrad Weiser. His brother, Peter, was a General in the Continental Army and his brother Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst was a botanist.</p>

<p>In 1763, together with his brothers John Peter Gabriel and Gotthilf Henry Ernst, he attended the Latina at the Franckesche Stiftungen in Halle, Germany. In 1769, he attended the University of Halle, where he studied theology. He was ordained by the Pennsylvania Ministerium as a minister of the Lutheran Church on October 25, 1770. He preached in Stouchsburg, Pennsylvania, and Lebanon, Pennsylvania, from 1770 to 1774, and in New York City from 1774 to 1776. When the British entered New York at the onset of the American Revolutionary War, he felt obliged to leave and returned to Trappe. He moved to New Hanover Township, Pennsylvania and was pastor there and in Oley and New Goshenhoppen until August 1779.</p>

<p>On October 15, 1771, he married Catherine Schaeffer, the daughter of wealthy Philadelphia sugar refiner David Schaeffer. They had seven children.</p>

<p>Muhlenberg was a member of the Continental Congress in 1779 and 1780, and served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1780 to 1783. He was elected its speaker on November 3, 1780. He was a delegate to and chairman of the Pennsylvania state constitutional convention in 1787 called to ratify the Federal Constitution. He was the first signer of the Bill of Rights.</p>

<p>He served as a member 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 first Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. He did not seek renomination as Speaker in 1796. On April 29, 1796, as chairman of the Committee of the Whole, he cast the deciding vote for the laws necessary to carry out the Jay Treaty.</p>

<p>In 1794, during Muhlenberg's second tenure as Speaker, the House voted 42-41 against a proposal to translate some of the laws into German. Muhlenberg, who himself abstained from the vote, commented later, "the faster the Germans become Americans, the better it will be." Despite not having voted against the bill, a legend called the Muhlenberg Legend developed in which he was responsible for prohibiting German as an official language of the United States.</p>

<p>According to another 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", as John Adams had suggested.</p>

<p>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 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on June 4, 1801.</p>

<p>He was interred in Woodward Hill Cemetery in Lancaster. After his death, the Township of Muhlenberg, Pennsylvania, was named for him.</p>