Fifty-six delegates attended the First Continental Congress in 1774. They represented twelve of Britain’s thirteen North American colonies, with Georgia absent from the meeting.
The congress convened at Carpenters’ Hall in Philadelphia from September 5 to October 26, responding to the Intolerable Acts and the escalating dispute between the colonies and the British government. Participants included George Washington, John Adams, Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, John Jay, and Joseph Galloway.
The figure of 56 applies to the First Continental Congress and should not be confused with other founding-era numbers. The Second Continental Congress had a changing membership, and the U.S. Constitution was signed by 39 delegates in 1787.
The First Continental Congress helped establish intercolonial cooperation. Its delegates agreed to a trade boycott and planned to reconvene if their grievances were not addressed, leading to the Second Continental Congress in 1775.