Governor John Langdon worked for New Hampshire to be the ninth and deciding state to ratify the Constitution. He was elected to be the first president of the United States Senate, the highest ranking office in the nation, until he informed George Washington of his election to the presidency. During George Washington's visit to Portsmouth in 1789, he noted in his diary many visits to the Langdon House. Washington writes of Portsmouth - "there are some good houses, among which Col. Langdon's may be esteemed the finest."