The 15 Pre-Existing States

Which state doesn’t belong on the following list?

Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, and Virginia.

The answer is Delaware. The other 15 states existed as well-established, individual political entities before transitioning directly to statehood. These include the other original states plus Vermont, Texas, and Hawaii. California’s flag boasts of its brief independence, but it doesn’t really make the cut. Neither does Delaware, which never existed as a fully distinct colony. On the other hand, one Indian tribe has a 250-year-old historic claim to statehood that would put it at the top of the list.

Delaware

What is now the State of Delaware was granted to James Stuart, the Duke of York (and future King James II), in 1664. He gave the territory to William Penn in 1682, after which it was governed as “the lower counties on the Delaware.” It had its own legislature after 1704, but never its own governor before Independence. In form, they were two colonies sharing one governor, but the “upper counties” dominated political affairs and the governor’s attention. John Dickinson served in both legislatures, and delegates from Pennsylvania and the Lower Counties were closely aligned at the 1st Continental Congress. 

Congress urged the colonies to draw up new constitutions on June 12, 1776. William Penn’s Loyalist grandson, John Penn, was ousted as the last proprietary governor shortly after. Acting on Congress’s advice, the Lower Counties Assembly met in New Castle on June 15 to pass a Resolution of Separation. Henceforth, they would serve in the name of “the government of the Counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex Upon Delaware,” not the King of England. Cutting ties with the Crown and the proprietary governor had the combined effect of making Delaware an independent state. Pennsylvania did not object. Delaware adopted a new constitution on October 20, on which day its assembly also chose its first-ever governor. “Separation Day” is celebrated annually in New Castle.

Vermont, Texas, and Hawaii

Vermont. Initially called “New Connecticut,” Vermont existed as an independent, self-declared state from 1777 to 1791. While New Hampshire and New York argued over the territory, settlers declared independence in January 1777. They drafted a forward-looking constitution that banned adult slavery and established universal male suffrage for property holders. Though it had its own government, militia, currency, and postal system, Vermont was not recognized by the Continental Congress until it finally joined the Union as the 14th state on March 4, 1791.

Texas was part of Spanish Mexico until Mexico gained independence in 1821. American settlers flocked to the region to accept land grants, but tensions led to the Texas Revolution of 1835–1836. Following the Battle of San Jacinto, the Republic of Texas was declared on March 2, 1836. The republic operated for nearly a decade, negotiating treaties and facing ongoing threats from Mexico, before finally being admitted as the 28th state on December 29, 1845.

The Kingdom of Hawaii emerged as a unified state under King Kamehameha I in 1810. Hawaii maintained its independence for eight decades while gradually adopting Western-style governance and institutions. A coup backed by U.S.-based sugar and pineapple growers overthrew Queen Liliʻuokalani in 1893, and the islands were declared the independent Republic of Hawaii the next year. Hawaii was annexed by the United States in 1898 and became the 50th state on August 21, 1959.

California and Franklin? Not so much.

Several other “states,” “republics,” and proposed colonies came and went over the years, some of which command significant attention. These, however, cannot be called “well-established, individual political entities that transitioned directly into statehood.”

California. The “California Republic” lasted less than a month in 1846. It was proclaimed on June 14, 1846, during the War with Mexico, by American settlers who rebelled against Mexican rule. On July 9, 1846, U.S. Navy forces under Commodore John Sloat occupied Monterey and raised the U.S. flag, effectively annexing the territory. The California Republic existed for about 25 days.

Deseret. The State of Deseret was created by Mormon settlers in 1849 in what is now Utah and parts of surrounding states. The settlers drafted a constitution and organized a government with Brigham Young as governor. Congress, however, refused to recognize Deseret and created the smaller Utah Territory instead as part of the Compromise of 1850. Deseret’s provisional government helped organize settlement, law, and infrastructure in the region until territorial administration took over.

Franklin. The State of Franklin was an organized but unrecognized state in what is now eastern Tennessee. It was created in 1784 by settlers who sought to form a new state from lands ceded by North Carolina to the federal government. Building on the earlier tradition of self-governance established by the Watauga Association, Franklin organized its own government but never received recognition from Congress. North Carolina reasserted control by 1788, and Franklin’s government collapsed amid disputes with both North Carolina and the Cherokee. The territory was absorbed into the Southwest Territory and became part of the state of Tennessee in 1796.

Indian Stream. The Republic of Indian Stream existed from 1832 to 1835 in the disputed territory along the northern border of New Hampshire, claimed by both the United States and Canada. Settlers in the area, frustrated by unclear jurisdiction, organized their own government, adopting a constitution, electing officials, and establishing local courts and taxes. The republic maintained de facto independence, resolving local disputes and asserting authority without formal recognition from either nation. In 1835, New Hampshire successfully asserted control, ending the republic and formally incorporating the territory into the state.

Trans-Oconee Republic. The Trans‑Oconee Republic was a short-lived, self-declared state established in 1794 on lands west of the Oconee River in what is now Georgia. This land had been reserved for the Creek under the 1790 Treaty of New York. Founded by Revolutionary War veteran Elijah Clarke, its settlers built forts, drafted a constitution, and elected officers. Their challenge to both state and federal authority ended in September 1794, when the Georgia militia and federal pressure forced them to surrender, dismantle their settlements, and abandon the attempt at independence. The territory they occupied was fully reintegrated into Georgia after the republic's collapse.

West Florida. “West Florida” existed twice, first as a British colony adjacent to East Florida from 1763 to 1783. This colony reverted to Spain after the Revolution. The Republic of West Florida existed briefly in 1810 on lands along the Gulf Coast, covering parts of what are now Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. American settlers, frustrated by Spanish rule, rebelled, declared independence, and established a constitution. The republic lasted about three months before U.S. forces annexed the territory. 

The Other State of Delaware

A catalogue of pre-Independence and pre-U.S. administration political entities that did not evolve into states would be nearly endless, including early colonies like Roanoke and Plymouth; the North American colonies of Spain, France, Holland, Sweden, and Russia; and every Indian Tribe that occupied what is now the United States. 

One Indian Tribe, however, is owed special mention. The Delaware (Lenape) Tribe was the first to negotiate peace with the new United States after negotiations at Fort Pitt in 1778. They took their English-language name from the river along which they had once lived. At Fort Pitt, Congressional negotiators Andrew and Thomas Lewis “agreed” with the their Delaware counterparts (White Eyes, Captain Pipe, and John Killbuck) that “should it for the future be found conducive for the mutual interest of both parties to invite any other tribes who have been friends to the interest of the United States, to join the present confederation, and to form a state whereof the Delaware nation shall be the head, and have a representation in Congress.” 

The provision was presumably included because the Delaware wanted it.  The odds of a Delaware/Lenape state were slim, however, and the window for acting on it was very brief. The Lewises hedged with a proviso stipulating that “nothing contained in this article [was] to be considered as conclusive until it meets with the approbation of Congress.” Lachlan McIntosh, the Continental general at Fort Pitt, attempted to implement the treaty’s provisions, but he had too few troops. Both sides violated the pact through action and inaction. Other agreements have since superseded the treaty, and the Delaware have never attempted to organize a state. Had the Delaware somehow succeeded in achieving statehood, the state would undoubtedly have qualified as “a preexisting, individual political entity transitioning directly to statehood.” In fact, it would have been the oldest one on the list.

Postscript

Though statehood was never considered, a similar promise was made to the Cherokee in 1835 in the Treaty of New Echota. It was made with a minority faction of the tribe, but this agreement also served as the legal basis for the removals during the Trail of Tears. The treaty stipulated that the Cherokee “shall be entitled to a delegate in the House of Representatives … whenever Congress shall make provision for the same.” Congress has never acted to seat a Cherokee delegate, though tribal advocates have pursued it. Several delegates from U.S. territories like Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (in that case called a “commissioner”) participate in House deliberations but cannot vote.

​GABRIEL NEVILLE is the author of The Last Men Standing: The 8th Virginia Regiment in the American Revolution.