President Joseph Reed, of the Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania—without a civil war—signs the Abolition Act, providing for the gradual termination of slavery in the State.
[restored 8/7/2021]
Subsequent Events:
Authority:
Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776, Declaration of Rights, Article I
avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/pa08.asp
References:
“Chronology of Events, 1774-1804,” from The Debate on the Constitution, two volumes, Bernard Bailyn, ed., (New York: Library of America, 1992), 2:1035.
Calvin D. Linton, ed. The Bicentennial Almanac: 200 Years of America, 1776-1976, (Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, 1977), 28.
Current U.s. National Debt:
