Declaration Chamber Here the Continental Congress sat from the date it convened, May 10, 1775, until the close of the Revolution, except when in 1776-7 it sat in Baltimore, and in 1777-8 in Lancaster and York, due to temporary occupation of Philadelphia by the British Army. Here, on June 16, 1775, George Washington accepted his appointment by Congress as General of the Continental Army. Here, on July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was adopted, and on July 9, 1778, the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union Between the States were adopted and signed. Here, on November 3, 1781, twenty-four standards, taken at the surrender of Yorktown, were laid at the feet of Congress and His Excellency, the Ambassador of France. Here, on September 17, 1787, the Constitution of the United States of America was adopted and signed.