GW in Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress. He wrote two letters today. The first was to the “Officers of the Five Virginia Independent Companies,” from Fairfax, Prince William, Fauquier, Spotsylvania, and Richmond. GW informed the officers that he could no longer serve as their field commander due to his appointment as General and Commander-in-Chief of the American troops. He urged the officers to keep the militiamen disciplined and well-supplied with ammunition in case they were called into service.

The second letter was to John Augustine Washington, GW’s brother who lived at Bushfield in Westmoreland County, Va., and was an officer in the Westmoreland Independent Company. He informed Washington of how many men were in the Continental army, the amount of funds raised to support it, and the men who were appointed to be Major General in the army. He hoped that Washington would help keep GW’s wife Martha’s spirits up.

John Adams wrote a letter notifying GW that three committees of Congress were going to be created: the Committee on the State of the Province, the Committee of Safety, and the Committee of Supplies. He recommended to GW various men to fill these positions and that of GW’s aides-de-camp and secretary.