Continental Congressman, U.S. Congressman. An ordained Lutheran minister, he was a staunch supporter of the American Revolution, and was elected as a Delegate from Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress, serving from 1779 to 1780. He then served in the Pennsylvania State Legislature, and was head of that state's convention that ratified the United States Constitution in 1787. He was elected to represent Pennsylvania as an At-Large Delegate to the United States House of Representatives in 1789, and was one of the first Congressmen from the state. Upon the convening of the 1st Congress, he was elected by the body as Speaker of the House, the very first in United States history. He served in Congress from 1789 to 1797, representing Pennsylvania's 3rd and 4th Districts in the interim. He also served two Speaker terms, first from 1789 to 1791, and next from 1793 to 1795 (Jonathan Trumbull Jr. of Connecticut served in-between Frederick Muhlenberg's two terms). He declined to run for reelection in 1797, and died in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1801. He was the brother of Continental Army General John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, the uncle of Congressmen Henry Augustus Phillip Muhlenberg and Francis Swaine Muhlenberg, and the great-great-grandfather of namesake Congressman Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg.
Continental Congressman, U.S. Congressman. An ordained Lutheran minister, he was a staunch supporter of the American Revolution, and was elected as a Delegate from Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress, serving from 1779 to 1780. He then served in the Pennsylvania State Legislature, and was head of that state's convention that ratified the United States Constitution in 1787. He was elected to represent Pennsylvania as an At-Large Delegate to the United States House of Representatives in 1789, and was one of the first Congressmen from the state. Upon the convening of the 1st Congress, he was elected by the body as Speaker of the House, the very first in United States history. He served in Congress from 1789 to 1797, representing Pennsylvania's 3rd and 4th Districts in the interim. He also served two Speaker terms, first from 1789 to 1791, and next from 1793 to 1795 (Jonathan Trumbull Jr. of Connecticut served in-between Frederick Muhlenberg's two terms). He declined to run for reelection in 1797, and died in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1801. He was the brother of Continental Army General John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, the uncle of Congressmen Henry Augustus Phillip Muhlenberg and Francis Swaine Muhlenberg, and the great-great-grandfather of namesake Congressman Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg.
Bio by: RPD2
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