Mount Vernon Conference
Encyclopedia
The Mount Vernon Conference was a meeting of delegates from Virginia
and Maryland
at George Washington
's home at Mount Vernon
, Virginia in March 1785. It preceded the Annapolis Convention
of the following year and was a precursor of the 1787 Philadelphia Convention
that saw the drafting of the United States Constitution
.
The conference was a meeting of Samuel Chase
, Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer
, and Thomas Stone
of Maryland and Alexander Henderson
and George Mason
of Virginia. James Madison
and Edmund Randolph
were also appointed as Virginia delegates but were not informed by Virginia governor Patrick Henry
and did not attend. The delegates initially met in Alexandria, Virginia
but George Washington invited all five delegates to his nearby house at Mount Vernon. They convened there on 25 March 1785 with Washington presiding.
They were charged with dealing with issues of commerce, fishing, and navigation in the waters of the Potomac
and Pocomoke River
s and the Chesapeake Bay
which were not addressed directly by the Articles of Confederation
that regulated the 13 largely independent American states at the time or by the authorization of the Potomac Company
a year earlier which was to regulate the Potomac above the Great Falls.
The conference was a success and a report was prepared for the two state legislatures on 18 March 1785. The report contained 13 proposals known as the Mount Vernon Compact ratified by both Maryland and Virginia. It declared the Potomac, which was under Maryland's sole jurisdiction, to be a common waterway for use by Virginia as well. It also provided for reciprocal fishing rights, dividing the costs of constructing navigation aids, cooperation on defense and cases of piracy. It also called for commissioners to deal with any future problems that might arise. The Mount Vernon delegates encouraged Pennsylvania
and Delaware
to join the agreement as well.
The conference was significant as a model of interstate cooperation outside the framework of the weak Articles of Confederation. Its success encouraged James Madison
to advocate further discussion of constitutional issues facing the states. He had little to show for efforts to get Virginia's delegates in the Continental Congress
to seek expanded powers to deal with trade issues so he instead introduced a proposal in the Virginia General Assembly
to act on the suggestion of the Compact commissioners for further debate of interstate issues.
On 21 January 1786, Virginia invited all the states to attend a meeting on commercial issues that would be the ground-breaking Annapolis Convention
. In 1787, the Philadelphia Convention
further expanded cooperation to include all of the states in an effort to reform or replace the Confederation. There, Gouverneur Morris
of Pennsylvania made oblique reference to the success of the Mount Vernon Conference.
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
at George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
's home at Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon
The name Mount Vernon is a dedication to the English Vice-Admiral Edward Vernon. It was first applied to Mount Vernon, the Virginia estate of George Washington, the first President of the United States...
, Virginia in March 1785. It preceded the Annapolis Convention
Annapolis Convention (1786)
The Annapolis Convention was a meeting in 1786 at Annapolis, Maryland, of 12 delegates from five states that unanimously called for a constitutional convention. The formal title of the meeting was a Meeting of Commissioners to Remedy Defects of the Federal Government...
of the following year and was a precursor of the 1787 Philadelphia Convention
Philadelphia Convention
The Constitutional Convention took place from May 14 to September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to address problems in governing the United States of America, which had been operating under the Articles of Confederation following independence from...
that saw the drafting of the United States Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
.
The conference was a meeting of Samuel Chase
Samuel Chase
Samuel Chase was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court and earlier was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland. Early in life, Chase was a "firebrand" states-righter and revolutionary...
, Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer
Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer
Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer was a politician and a Founding Father of the United States. Born long before conflicts with Great Britain emerged, he was a leader for many years in Maryland's colonial government...
, and Thomas Stone
Thomas Stone
Thomas Stone was an American planter who signed the United States Declaration of Independence as a delegate for Maryland. He later worked on the committee that formed the Articles of Confederation in 1777...
of Maryland and Alexander Henderson
Alexander Henderson (Virginia)
Alexander Henderson was a colonial merchant, born in Glasgow, Scotland who came to Colchester, Virginia in 1756. He served in the Virginia militia during the American Revolution. He was a member of the Virginia General Assembly and a Virginia delegate to the Mount Vernon Conference in 1785 which...
and George Mason
George Mason
George Mason IV was an American Patriot, statesman and a delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention...
of Virginia. James Madison
James Madison
James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United...
and Edmund Randolph
Edmund Randolph
Edmund Jennings Randolph was an American attorney, the seventh Governor of Virginia, the second Secretary of State, and the first United States Attorney General.-Biography:...
were also appointed as Virginia delegates but were not informed by Virginia governor Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786...
and did not attend. The delegates initially met in Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
but George Washington invited all five delegates to his nearby house at Mount Vernon. They convened there on 25 March 1785 with Washington presiding.
They were charged with dealing with issues of commerce, fishing, and navigation in the waters of the Potomac
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
and Pocomoke River
Pocomoke River
The Pocomoke River stretches approximately from southern Delaware through southeastern Maryland in the United States. At its mouth, the river is essentially an arm of Chesapeake Bay, whereas the upper river flows through a series of relatively inaccessible wetlands called the Great Cypress Swamp,...
s and the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
which were not addressed directly by the Articles of Confederation
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation, formally the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, was an agreement among the 13 founding states that legally established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states and served as its first constitution...
that regulated the 13 largely independent American states at the time or by the authorization of the Potomac Company
Potomac Company
The Potomac Company was created in 1785 to make improvements to the Potomac River in order to improve its navigability. The Potomac Company built five skirting canals around the major falls...
a year earlier which was to regulate the Potomac above the Great Falls.
The conference was a success and a report was prepared for the two state legislatures on 18 March 1785. The report contained 13 proposals known as the Mount Vernon Compact ratified by both Maryland and Virginia. It declared the Potomac, which was under Maryland's sole jurisdiction, to be a common waterway for use by Virginia as well. It also provided for reciprocal fishing rights, dividing the costs of constructing navigation aids, cooperation on defense and cases of piracy. It also called for commissioners to deal with any future problems that might arise. The Mount Vernon delegates encouraged Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
to join the agreement as well.
The conference was significant as a model of interstate cooperation outside the framework of the weak Articles of Confederation. Its success encouraged James Madison
James Madison
James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United...
to advocate further discussion of constitutional issues facing the states. He had little to show for efforts to get Virginia's delegates in the Continental Congress
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....
to seek expanded powers to deal with trade issues so he instead introduced a proposal in the Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
to act on the suggestion of the Compact commissioners for further debate of interstate issues.
On 21 January 1786, Virginia invited all the states to attend a meeting on commercial issues that would be the ground-breaking Annapolis Convention
Annapolis Convention (1786)
The Annapolis Convention was a meeting in 1786 at Annapolis, Maryland, of 12 delegates from five states that unanimously called for a constitutional convention. The formal title of the meeting was a Meeting of Commissioners to Remedy Defects of the Federal Government...
. In 1787, the Philadelphia Convention
Philadelphia Convention
The Constitutional Convention took place from May 14 to September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to address problems in governing the United States of America, which had been operating under the Articles of Confederation following independence from...
further expanded cooperation to include all of the states in an effort to reform or replace the Confederation. There, Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris , was an American statesman, a Founding Father of the United States, and a native of New York City who represented Pennsylvania in the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation. Morris was also an author of large sections of the...
of Pennsylvania made oblique reference to the success of the Mount Vernon Conference.