United States Congressional Serial Set

In the "Notes upon the foreign treaties of the United States," prepared by Hon. J. C. Bancroft Davis, and republished in the volume of Treaties and Conventions concluded between the United States and other Powers, Senate Executive Document No. 47, Forty-eighth Congress, second session, is given, in concise form, the history of the conduct of the foreign affairs of the United States up to the time of the establishment of the Department of State. From these notes the following statement has been gathered:

On the 29th of November, 1775, Congress appointed a "Committee of Secret Correspondence," whose duty it would be to correspond with the friends of the colonies in other parts of the world. From the date of the appointment of this committee until the autumn of 1781, the management of the foreign affairs of the country was in the hands of committees of Congress. Robert R. Livingston, of New York, was then appointed "their Secretary of Foreign Affairs," and took the oath of office on the 20th of October, 1781. Livingston resigned in June, 1783, and Elias Boudinot, the President of Congress, acted officially as Secretary in the interim.

General Thomas Mifflin was chosen President of Congress on the 3d of November, 1783, at the beginning of a new Congress, and as such succeeded to Boudinot as ad interim Secretary. John Jay was elected Secretary May 24, 1784, but did not qualify until December 21, 1784, and he remained the Secretary of Foreign Affairs until the adoption of the Federal Constitution. On September 15, 1789, the President approved "An act to provide for the safe-keeping of the acts, records, and seal of the United States, and for other purposes," in the first section of which it was provided "that the Executive Department denominated the Department of Foreign Affairs shall hereafter be denominated the Department of State, and the principal officer therein. shall be called the Secretary of State." Jefferson was appointed Secretary of State September 26, 1789, but did not enter upon the duties of his office until March 21, 1790. Jay, notwithstanding he had been selected to be Chief Justice, continued to fill the office of Secretary until Jefferson entered upon its duties, although never commissioned as such under the new government."

a "Compilation of treaties in force 1899."