26th United States Congress
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The Twenty-sixth United States Congress was a meeting of the United States national legislature, comprised of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1839 to March 3, 1841, during the last two years of the administration of U.S. President Martin Van Buren.
The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Fifth Census of the United States in 1830. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.
[edit] Dates of sessions
- First session: December 2, 1839 - July 21, 1840
- Second session: December 7, 1840 - March 3, 1841 — a lame duck session
Previous congress: 25th Congress
Next congress: 27th Congress
[edit] Major events
- Main article: Events of 1839; Events of 1840; Events of 1841
[edit] Major legislation
[edit] Party summary
The count below reflects party affiliation at the beginning of the first session of this congress, with the addition of members from vacancies and newly admitted states, when they were first seated. Subsequent changes are reflected below in the "Changes in Membership" section.
[edit] Senate
- Democratic: 30 (majority)
- Whig: 22
TOTAL members: 52
[edit] House of Representatives
- Democratic: 125 (majority)
- Whig: 109
- Anti-Masonic: 6
- Conservative (Virginia): 2
TOTAL members: 242
[edit] Leadership
[edit] Senate
- Vice President of the United States (President of the Senate):
- President pro tempore of the Senate:
- William R. King, Democrat of Alabama, elected December 2, 1839.
[edit] House of Representatives
- Speaker of the House
- Robert M.T. Hunter, Democrat of Virginia, elected December 16, 1839.
[edit] Members
This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.
- See also: 26th United States Congress - Political Parties
- See also: 26th United States Congress - State Delegations
- See also: United States House election, 1838
[edit] Senate
At this time, Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six year terms with each Congress. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election. In this Congress, Class 1 meant their term began with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1844; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1840; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1842.
- Alabama
- 2. William R. King (Dem.)
- 3. Clement C. Clay (Dem.)
- Arkansas
- 2. William S. Fulton (Dem.)
- 3. Ambrose H. Sevier (Dem.)
- Connecticut
- 3. Perry Smith (Dem.)
- 1. Thaddeus Betts (Whig) …died April 7, 1840.
- Jabez W. Huntington (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy May 4, 1840.
- Delaware
- 1. Richard H. Bayard (Whig) …resigned September 19, 1839, elected to fill vacancy January 12, 1841.
- 2. Thomas Clayton (Whig)
- Georgia
- 3. Alfred Cuthbert (Dem.)
- 2. Wilson Lumpkin (Dem.)
- Illinois
- 2. John M. Robinson (Dem.)
- 3. Richard M. Young (Dem.)
- Indiana
- 3. Oliver H. Smith (Whig)
- 1. Albert S. White (Whig)
- Kentucky
- 3. Henry Clay (Whig)
- 2. John J. Crittenden (Whig)
- Louisiana
- 2. Robert C. Nicholas (Dem.)
- 3. Alexander Mouton (Dem.)
- Maine
- 2. John Ruggles (Dem.)
- 1. Reuel Williams (Dem.)
- Maryland
- 3. John S. Spence (Whig) …died October 24, 1840.
- John L. Kerr (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy January 5, 1841.
- 1. William D. Merrick (Whig)
- Massachusetts
- 1. Daniel Webster (Whig) …resigned February 22, 1841.
- Rufus Choate (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy February 23, 1841.
- 2. John Davis (Whig) …resigned January 5, 1841.
- Isaac C. Bates (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy January 13, 1841.
- Michigan
- 2. John Norvell (Dem.)
- 1. Augustus S. Porter (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy in class, January 20, 1840.
- Mississippi
- 2. Robert J. Walker (Dem.)
- 1. John Henderson (Whig)
- Missouri
- 1. Thomas H. Benton (Dem.)
- 3. Lewis F. Linn (Dem.)
- New Hampshire
- 2. Henry Hubbard (Dem.)
- 3. Franklin Pierce (Dem.)
- New Jersey
- 1. Samuel L. Southard (Whig)
- 2. Garret D. Wall (Dem.)
- New York
- 3. Silas Wright, Jr. (Dem.)
- 1. Nathaniel P. Tallmadge (Whig)
- North Carolina
- 2. Bedford Brown (Dem.) …resigned November 16, 1840.
- Willie P. Mangum (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy November 25, 1840.
- 3. Robert Strange (Dem.) …resigned November 16, 1840.
- William A. Graham (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy November 25, 1840.
- Ohio
- 3. William Allen (Dem.)
- 1. Benjamin Tappan (Dem.)
- Pennsylvania
- 3. James Buchanan (Dem.)
- 1. Daniel Sturgeon (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy in class, January 14, 1840.
- Rhode Island
- 2. Nehemiah R. Knight (Whig)
- 1. Nathan F. Dixon (Whig)
- South Carolina
- 2. John C. Calhoun (Dem.)
- 3. William C. Preston (Whig)
- Tennessee
- 2. Hugh L. White (Whig) …resigned January 13, 1840.
- Alexander O. Anderson (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy January 27, 1840.
- 1. Felix Grundy (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy in class, December 14, 1839, died December 19, 1840.
- Alfred O.P. Nicholson (Dem.) …appointed to fill vacancy December 25, 1840.
- Vermont
- 3. Samuel Prentiss (Whig)
- 1. Samuel S. Phelps (Whig)
- Virginia
- 2. William H. Roane (Dem.)
- 1. William C. Rives (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy in class, January 18, 1841.
[edit] House of Representatives
The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide on the general ticket or otherwise at-large, are preceded by an "A/L," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.
Many of the congressional district numbers are linked to articles describing the district itself. Since the boundaries of the districts have changed often and substantially, the linked article may only describe the district as it exists today, and not as it was at the time of this Congress.
- Alabama
- 1. Reuben Chapman (Dem.)
- 2. David Hubbard (Dem.)
- 3. George W. Crabb (Whig)
- 4. Dixon H. Lewis (Dem.)
- 5. James Dellet (Whig)
- Arkansas
- Connecticut
- 1. Joseph Trumbull (Whig)
- 2. William L. Storrs (Whig) …resigned in June 1840.
- William W. Boardman (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- 3. Thomas W. Williams (Whig)
- 4. Thomas B. Osborne (Whig)
- 5. Truman Smith (Whig)
- 6. John H. Brockway (Whig)
- Delaware
- Georgia [1]
- A/L. Julius C. Alford (Whig)
- A/L. Edward J. Black (Whig)
- A/L. Walter T. Colquitt (Whig) …resigned July 21, 1840.
- Hines Holt (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated February 1, 1841.
- A/L. Mark A. Cooper (Whig)
- A/L. William C. Dawson (Whig)
- A/L. Richard W. Habersham (Whig)
- A/L. Thomas B. King (Whig)
- A/L. Eugenius A. Nisbet (Whig)
- A/L. Lott Warren (Whig)
- Illinois
- 1. John Reynolds (Dem.)
- 2. Zadok Casey (Dem.)
- 3. John T. Stuart (Whig)
- Indiana
- 1. George H. Proffit (Whig)
- 2. John W. Davis (Dem.)
- 3. John Carr (Dem.)
- 4. Thomas Smith (Dem.)
- 5. James Rariden (Whig)
- 6. William W. Wick (Dem.)
- 7. Tilghman A. Howard (Dem.) …resigned August 1, 1840.
- Henry S. Lane (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- Kentucky
- 1. Linn Boyd (Dem.)
- 2. Philip Triplett (Whig)
- 3. Joseph R. Underwood (Whig)
- 4. Sherrod Williams (Whig)
- 5. Simeon H. Anderson (Whig) …died August 11, 1840.
- John B. Thompson (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- 6. Willis Green (Whig)
- 7. John Pope (Whig)
- 8. William J. Graves (Whig)
- 9. John White (Whig)
- 10. Richard Hawes (Whig)
- 11. Landaff W. Andrews (Whig)
- 12. Garrett Davis (Whig)
- 13. William O. Butler (Dem.)
- Louisiana
- 1. Edward D. White (Whig)
- 2. Thomas W. Chinn (Whig)
- 3. Rice Garland (Whig) …resigned July 21, 1840.
- John Moore (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 17, 1840.
- Maine
- 1. Nathan Clifford (Dem.)
- 2. Albert Smith (Dem.)
- 3. Benjamin Randall (Whig)
- 4. George Evans (Whig)
- 5. Virgil D. Parris (Dem.)
- 6. Hugh J. Anderson (Dem.)
- 7. Joshua A. Lowell (Dem.)
- 8. Thomas Davee (Dem.)
- Maryland [2]
- 1. John Dennis (Whig)
- 2. Phillip F. Thomas (Dem.)
- 3. John T.H. Worthington (Dem.)
- 4. James Carroll (Dem.)
- 4. Solomon Hillen, Jr. (Dem.)
- 5. William C. Johnson (Whig)
- 6. Francis Thomas (Dem.)
- 7. Daniel Jenifer (Whig)
- Massachusetts
- 1. Abbott Lawrence (Whig) …resigned September 18, 1840.
- Robert C. Winthrop (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- 2. Leverett Saltonstall (Whig)
- 3. Caleb Cushing (Whig)
- 4. William Parmenter (Dem.)
- 5. Levi Lincoln (Whig)
- 6. James C. Alvord (Whig) …died September 27, 1839, before Congress assembled.
- Osmyn Baker (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated January 14, 1840.
- 7. George N. Briggs (Whig)
- 8. William B. Calhoun (Whig)
- 9. William S. Hastings (Whig)
- 10. Henry Williams (Dem.)
- 11. John Reed (Whig)
- 12. John Quincy Adams (Whig)
- Michigan
- Mississippi [3]
- Missouri [4]
- A/L. Albert G. Harrison (Dem.) …died September 7, 1839.
- John Jameson (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 12, 1839.
- A/L. John Miller (Dem.)
- New Hampshire [5]
- A/L. Charles G. Atherton (Dem.)
- A/L. Edmund Burke (Dem.)
- A/L. Ira A. Eastman (Dem.)
- A/L. Tristram Shaw (Dem.)
- A/L. Jared W. Williams (Dem.)
- New Jersey [6]
- A/L. William R. Cooper (Dem.) …contested election, seated March 10, 1840.
- A/L. Philemon Dickerson (Dem.) …contested election, seated March 10, 1840.
- A/L. Joseph Kille (Dem.) …contested election, seated March 10, 1840.
- A/L. Joseph F. Randolph (Whig)
- A/L. Daniel B. Ryall (Dem.) …contested election, seated March 10, 1840.
- A/L. Peter D. Vroom (Dem.) …contested election, seated March 10, 1840.
- New York [7]
- 1. Thomas B. Jackson (Dem.)
- 2. James De La Montanya (Dem.)
- 3. Edward Curtis (Whig)
- 3. Moses H. Grinnell (Whig)
- 3. Josiah O. Hoffman (Whig)
- 3. James Monroe (Whig)
- 4. Gouverneur Kemble (Dem.)
- 5. Charles Johnston (Whig)
- 6. Nathaniel Jones (Dem.)
- 7. Rufus Palen (Whig)
- 8. John Ely (Dem.)
- 8. Aaron Vanderpoel (Dem.)
- 9. Hiram P. Hunt (Whig)
- 10. Daniel D. Barnard (Whig)
- 11. Anson Brown (Whig) …died June 14, 1840.
- Nicholas B. Doe (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- 12. David A. Russell (Whig)
- 13. Augustus C. Hand (Dem.)
- 14. John Fine (Dem.)
- 15. Peter J. Wagner (Whig)
- 16. Andrew W. Doig (Dem.)
- 17. David P. Brewster (Dem.)
- 17. John G. Floyd (Dem.)
- 18. Thomas C. Chittenden (Whig)
- 19. John H. Prentiss (Dem.)
- 20. Judson Allen (Dem.)
- 21. John C. Clark (Whig)
- 22. Amasa Dana (Dem.)
- 22. Stephen B. Leonard (Dem.)
- 23. Nehemiah H. Earll (Dem.)
- 23. Edward Rogers (Dem.)
- 24. Christopher Morgan (Whig)
- 25. Theron R. Strong (Dem.)
- 26. Francis Granger (Whig)
- 27. Meredith Mallory (Dem.)
- 28. Thomas Kempshall (Whig)
- 29. Seth M. Gates (Whig)
- 30. Luther C. Peck (Whig)
- 31. Richard P. Marvin (Whig)
- 32. Millard Fillmore (Whig)
- 33. Charles F. Mitchell (Whig)
- North Carolina
- 1. Kenneth Rayner (Whig)
- 2. Jesse A. Bynum (Dem.)
- 3. Edward Stanly (Whig)
- 4. Charles B. Shepard (Dem.)
- 5. James I. McKay (Dem.)
- 6. Micajah T. Hawkins (Dem.)
- 7. Edmund Deberry (Whig)
- 8. William Montgomery (Dem.)
- 9. John Hill (Dem.)
- 10. Charles Fisher (Dem.)
- 11. Henry W. Connor (Dem.)
- 12. James Graham (Whig)
- 13. Lewis Williams (Whig)
- Ohio
- 1. Alexander Duncan (Dem.)
- 2. John B. Weller (Dem.)
- 3. Patrick G. Goode (Whig)
- 4. Thomas Corwin (Whig) …resigned May 30, 1840.
- Jeremiah Morrow (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- 5. William Doan (Dem.)
- 6. Calvary Morris (Whig)
- 7. William K. Bond (Whig)
- 8. Joseph Ridgway (Whig)
- 9. William Medill (Dem.)
- 10. Samson Mason (Whig)
- 11. Isaac Parrish (Dem.)
- 12. Jonathan Taylor (Dem.)
- 13. Daniel P. Leadbetter (Dem.)
- 14. George Sweeny (Dem.)
- 15. John W. Allen (Whig)
- 16. Joshua R. Giddings (Whig)
- 17. John Hastings (Dem.)
- 18. David A. Starkweather (Dem.)
- 19. Henry Swearingen (Dem.)
- Pennsylvania [8]
- 1. Lemuel Paynter (Dem.)
- 2. John Sergeant (Whig)
- 2. George W. Toland (Whig)
- 3. Charles Naylor (Whig)
- 4. Edward Davies (Anti-Masonic)
- 4. John Edwards (Anti-Masonic)
- 4. Francis James (Anti-Masonic)
- 5. Joseph Fornance (Dem.)
- 6. John Davis (Dem.)
- 7. David D. Wagener (Dem.)
- 8. Peter Newhard (Dem.)
- 9. George M. Keim (Dem.)
- 10. William Simonton (Whig)
- 11. James Gerry (Dem.)
- 12. James Cooper (Whig)
- 13. William S. Ramsey (Dem.) …died October 17, 1840.
- Charles McClure (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 7, 1840.
- 14. William W. Potter (Dem.) …died October 28, 1839, before Congress assembled.
- George McCulloch (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 2, 1839.
- 15. David Petrikin (Dem.)
- 16. Robert H. Hammond (Dem.)
- 17. Samuel W. Morris (Dem.)
- 18. Charles Ogle (Anti-Masonic)
- 19. Albert G. Marchand (Dem.)
- 20. Enos Hook (Dem.)
- 21. Isaac Leet (Dem.)
- 22. Richard Biddle (Anti-Masonic) …resigned in 1840.
- Henry M. Brackenridge (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 10, 1840.
- 23. William Beatty (Dem.)
- 24. Thomas Henry (Anti-Masonic)
- 25. John Galbraith (Dem.)
- Rhode Island [9]
- South Carolina
- 1. Isaac E. Holmes (Dem.)
- 2. Robert B. Rhett (Dem.)
- 3. John Campbell (Dem.)
- 4. Sampson H. Butler (Dem.)
- 5. Francis W. Pickens (Dem.)
- 6. Waddy Thompson, Jr. (Whig)
- 7. James Rogers (Dem.)
- 8. Thomas D. Sumter (Dem.)
- 9. John K. Griffin (Dem.)
- Tennessee
- 1. William B. Carter (Whig)
- 2. Abraham McClellan (Dem.)
- 3. Joseph L. Williams (Whig)
- 4. Julius W. Blackwell (Dem.)
- 5. Hopkins L. Turney (Dem.)
- 6. William B. Campbell (Whig)
- 7. John Bell (Whig)
- 8. Meredith P. Gentry (Whig)
- 9. Harvey M. Watterson (Dem.)
- 10. Aaron V. Brown (Dem.)
- 11. Cave Johnson (Dem.)
- 12. John W. Crockett (Whig)
- 13. Christopher H. Williams (Whig)
- Vermont
- 1. Hiland Hall (Whig)
- 2. William Slade (Whig)
- 3. Horace Everett (Whig)
- 4. John Smith (Dem.)
- 5. Isaac Fletcher (Dem.)
- Virginia
- 1. Joel Holleman (Dem.) …resigned in 1840.
- Francis Mallory (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated January 7, 1841.
- 2. Francis E. Rives (Dem.)
- 3. John W. Jones (Dem.)
- 4. George C. Dromgoole (Dem.)
- 5. John Hill (Whig)
- 6. Walter Coles (Dem.)
- 7. William L. Goggin (Whig)
- 8. Henry A. Wise (Whig)
- 9. Robert M.T. Hunter (Whig)
- 10. John Taliaferro (Whig)
- 11. John M. Botts (Whig)
- 12. James Garland (Conservative- Virginia)
- 13. Linn Banks (Dem.)
- 14. Charles F. Mercer (Whig) …resigned December 26, 1839.
- William M. McCarty (Whig) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 26, 1839.
- 15. William Lucas (Dem.)
- 16. Green B. Samuels (Dem.)
- 17. Robert Craig (Dem.)
- 18. George W. Hopkins (Conservative- Virginia)
- 19. Andrew Beirne (Dem.)
- 20. Joseph Johnson (Dem.)
- 21. Lewis Steenrod (Dem.)
[edit] Delegates
- Florida Territory
- Iowa Territory
- A/L. William W. Chapman (Dem.) …served until October 27, 1840.
- A/L. Augustus C. Dodge (Dem.) …elected to fill vacancy, seated December 8, 1840.
- Wisconsin Territory
[edit] Changes in Membership
The counts below reflect changes from the beginning of the first session of this congress.
[edit] Senate
- deaths: 3
- resignations: 6
- interim appointments: 0
- Total seats with changes: 12
[edit] House of Representatives
- replacements: 15
- Democrats: 2 seat net loss
- Whigs: 3 seat net gain
- Anti-Masonic: 1 seat net loss
- deaths: 6
- resignations: 9
- contested elections: 5
- Total seats with changes: 20
[edit] Officers
[edit] Senate
- Secretary of the Senate:
- Asbury Dickens of North Carolina elected December 12, 1836.
- Sergeant at Arms of the Senate:
- Stephen Haight of New York, elected September 4, 1837.
- Chaplain of the Senate
- The Rev. George G. Cookman, Methodist, elected December 31, 1839.
[edit] House of Representatives
- Clerk of the House:
- Hugh A. Garland of Virginia, elected December 21, 1839.
- Sergeant at Arms of the House:
- Roderick Dorsey of Maryland, elected December 21, 1839.
- Doorkeeper of the House:
- Joseph Follansbee of Massachusetts, elected December 21, 1839.
- Postmaster of the House:
- William J. McCormick, elected December 21, 1839.
- Chaplain of the House
- The Rev. Joshua Bates, Congregationalist, elected December 2, 1839.
- The Rev. Thomas W. Braxton, Baptist, elected December 7, 1840.
[edit] Notes
- ^ all representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket
- ^ the 4th district was a plural district with two representatives
- ^ all representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket
- ^ all representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket
- ^ all representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket
- ^ all representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket
- ^ there were four plural districts, the 8th, 17th, 22nd & 23rd had two representatives each, the 3rd had four representatives
- ^ there were two plural districts, the 2nd had two representatives, the 4th had three representatives
- ^ all representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket
[edit] References
- Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: MacMillan Publishing Company.
- Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: MacMillan Publishing Company.
[edit] External links
- Statutes at Large, 1789-1875 [1]
- Senate Journal, First Forty-three Sessions of Congress [2]
- House Journal, First Forty-three Sessions of Congress [3]
- Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress [4]
- U.S. House of Representatives: Congressional History [5]
- U.S. Senate: Statistics and Lists [6]
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