Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Question: Which Pennsylvania city served as the capital of the United States for exactly one day?

Answer: Lancaster, on Sept. 27, 1777. With the British occupying Philadelphia, the Continental Congress fled west and held a single session in the Lancaster County Courthouse, then decided the Susquehanna River made a better moat and moved on to York, which held the job for nine months. Lancaster still celebrates Capital Day every Sept. 27, and a local brewery makes a Capital Day Cream Ale for the occasion.