51st United States Congress
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The Fifty-first United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1889 to March 3, 1891, during the first two years of the administration of U.S. President Benjamin Harrison.
The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Tenth Census of the United States in 1880. Both chambers had a Republican majority.
[edit] Dates of sessions
- Special session of the Senate: March 4, 1889 – April 2, 1889
- First session: December 2, 1889 – October 1, 1890
- Second session: December 1, 1890 – March 2, 1891, a lame duck session
Previous: 50th Congress • Next: 52nd Congress
[edit] Party summary
North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Washington, Idaho, and Wyoming were newly admitted to the Union and first represented as states in this Congress.
The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this Congress, and includes members from vacancies and newly admitted states, when they were first seated. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.
TOTAL members: 88 |
TOTAL members: 332 |
[edit] Leadership
- Senate
- Vice President of the United States (President of the Senate):
- President pro tempore of the Senate:
- John J. Ingalls, Republican of Kansas, first elected in this Congress March 7, 1889.
- Charles F. Manderson, Republican of Nebraska, elected March 2, 1891.
- House of Representatives
- Speaker of the House
- Thomas B. Reed, Republican of Maine, elected December 2, 1889.
[edit] Major events
- Main article: Events of 1889; Events of 1890; Events of 1891
[edit] States admitted and territories organized
- November 2, 1889 — North Dakota was admitted as a state.
- November 2, 1889 — South Dakota was admitted as a state.
- November 8, 1889 — Montana was admitted as a state.
- November 11, 1889 — Washington was admitted as a state.
- May 2, 1890 — Oklahoma Territory was organized.
- July 3, 1890 — Idaho was admitted as a state.
- July 10, 1890 — Wyoming was admitted as a state.
[edit] Major legislation
- July 2, 1890 — Sherman Antitrust Act, ch. 647, 26 Stat. 209
- July 14, 1890 — Sherman Silver Purchase Act, ch. 708, 26 Stat. 289
- October 1, 1890 — McKinley Tariff, ch. 1244, 26 Stat. 567
- 1891 — Forest Reserve Act of 1891
- March 3, 1891 — Land Revision Act of 1891
The Congress was dominated by the Republican Party. It was responsible for a number of pieces of landmark legislation, many of which asserted the authority of the federal government.
Emboldened by their success in the elections of 1888, the Republicans enacted virtually their entire platform during their first 303-day session, including a measure that provided American Civil War veterans with generous pensions and expanded the list of eligible recipients to include noncombatants and the children of veterans. Grover Cleveland had vetoed a similar bill in 1887. It was criticized as the "Billion Dollar Congress'" for its lavish spending and, for this reason it incited drastic reversals in public support that led to Cleveland's reelection in 1892.
Other important legislation passed into law by the Congress included the McKinley tariff, authored by Representative, and future President, William McKinley; the Sherman Antitrust Act, which prohibited business combinations that restricted trade; and the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, which required the U.S. government to mint silver. The last two were concessions to Western farmer interests in exchange for support of the tariff and would become central tenets of the Populist Party later in the decade. They were authored by Senator John Sherman.
The Fifty-first Congress was also responsible for passing the Land Revision Act of 1891, which created the national forests. Harrison authorized America's first forest reserve in Yellowstone, Wyoming, the same year.
Other bills were discussed but failed to pass, including two significant pieces of legislation focused on ensuring African Americans the right to vote. Henry Cabot Lodge sponsored a so-called Force Bill that would have established federal supervision of Congressional elections so as to prevent the disfranchisement of southern blacks. Henry W. Blair sponsored the Blair Education Bill, which advocated the use of federal aid for education in order to frustrate southern whites employing literacy tests to prevent blacks from registering to vote.
[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: 51st United States Congress - political parties
- See also: 51st United States Congress - State Delegations
- See also: United States House elections, 1888
[edit] Senate
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 in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1892; Class 2 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1894; and Class 3 meant their term ended in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1890.
- See also: Category:United States Senators
- See also: Category:United States Congressional Delegations by state
[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.
- See also: Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives
- See also: Category:United States Congressional Delegations by state
[edit] Changes in membership
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of the first session of this Congress.
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[edit] Officers
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[edit] Notes
- ^ Both 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
- Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress
- U.S. House of Representatives: House History
- U.S. Senate: Statistics and Lists
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