September 23, 2026

Lancaster Review

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How Well Do You Know the Lancaster County History?

Capital Day Trivia

On September 27, 1777, Lancaster was the capital of the United States for one day. This year Lancaster is celebrating Capital Day. So we have a 7-question quiz about Lancaster’s role as the nations capital and life in Lancaster at that time.

Who called the Continental Congress to order in Lancaster's courthouse on September 27, 1777?(Required)
Why did Congress leave Lancaster after a single session?(Required)
The courthouse where Congress met stood in the center of town. What marks that spot today?(Required)
Days before Congress arrived, George Washington wrote to John Hancock asking him to gather what from Lancaster and the surrounding countryside?(Required)
Which famous British officer spent time in Lancaster as a prisoner of war, free to move around town?(Required)
The Susquehanna River town of Wright's Ferry changed its name to Columbia. Why?(Required)
The Senate deadlocked 9 to 9 on a motion to move the capital from the Susquehanna to Germantown instead. Who cast the tie-breaking vote?(Required)