The office of governor or supreme executive was held from 1638 to 1081 by 13 indi viduals; from the accession of William Penn, 1681. to Sept., 1776, 26 administrations mark the proprietary government; during the revolution 6 persons held the office of president of the supreme executive council from 1776 to 1791; and the following have been governor's under the constitution of the state: 1791, Thomas Mifflin; 1799. Thomas McKean; 1808, Simon Snyder; 1817, Win. Finley; 1820, Joseph Mester; 1823, John A. Shulze; 1829, George Wolf: 1835, Joseph Bitner: 1839. David B. Porter; 1845; Francis It. Strunk; 1848, William F. Johnson; 1852, William Bigler; 1855, James Pollock; 1858, Wm. F. Packer; 1861, Andrew G. Curtin; 1867. John W. Geary; 1873, John F. Hartranft; 1879, Henry M. Hoyt. Philadelphia was the seat of government throughout the proprietary period (with the exception of a short interval). The capital was removed to Lancaster in 1790, and remained there until 1812, when Harrisburg was selected as the permanent capital. The corner-stone of the capitol was laid May 31, 181.9.
The land of•the province, although granted by royal charter, was bought by Penn, the proprietc.ry government, and the state, of the Indians in six successive purchases: "the walking purchase" on the Delaware in 1682; the s.e. section of the province in 1726; a section running from Pike to Dauphin co. in 1749; a tract extending from Northumber land to the southern boundary in 1758; an enormous tract from the u.e. to the s.w. extremities of the province in 1768; and the whole n.•. section by state commissioners in 1785. Lands obtained by the Indian treaty of 1768 were offered at per 100 acres, and one penny per acre per annum quit-rent; sonic of the richest coal land was offered at that price. The settlement of the western country began about 1784, in which year there were at Pittsburg four lawyers and two doctors, but no minister of religion. Ten years later the population was still below 500. The triangular tract of land bounded n.w. by lake Erie was purchased in 1788 from the United States, and the settlement of that part of the state was subsequent to that year. The whisky rebellion, 170-94, was caused by
a law of congress, passed in excise duties on spirits distilled in the United States. The tumultuous opposition to it was especially violent in western Pennsylvania. and attended by great disorders, .which led president Washington to invite the military aid of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia for their suppression. The appearance of a body of 12,000 troops, led by governor Lee, was sufficient, without bloodshed, to quell the difficulty. In the war of 1812-14, commodore Oliver II. Perry, by great energy, succeeded in forming a squadron of nine vessels, numbering 54 guns and 490 men; and with that force gave battlb to the British fleet of 6 vessels, carrying 63 guns, and numbering 502 combatants, commanded by capt.. Barclay, gaining a complete victory for the American arms. The entire British fleet surrendered, and Perry announced the result in the famous dispatch: We have met the enemy and they are ours." During the rebellion the confederates made three invasions into Pennsylvania: the first was a raid, under the rebel general Stuart, who burned the railroad depot at Clmmbersburg, Oct. 10, 1862; the second, under genera] Lce, brought the whole rebel force in Virginia into the state, and culminated iu the brittle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863 (sec GETTYSBURG); the third, executed by a small force of Early's division, burnt the town of Cbambersburg. July 30, 1864. During that war, Pennsylvania furnished tlic national army with 270 regiments, and a total of 362,284 men, besides 25,000 militia for temporary service. The establishment of "soldiers' orphan schools," for the main tenance, clothing, and education, at the public charge. of the children of soldiers who fell in defense of their country, redounds to the credit of the commonwealth; the number of children thus provided exceeded 7,000; the amount spent for that purpose in 1874 was F;450,879. The national guard of Pennsylvania, commanded by a Maj.STB., numbers ten divisions, which aggregated in 1874, 19 regiments, 169 companies, 738 officers, and 8.261 enlisted men.