| 15th United States Congress | |||
Brick Capitol, later used as a Civil War prison (about 1861) |
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| Duration: March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1819 | |||
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| Senate President: | Daniel D. Tompkins | ||
| Senate Pres. pro tem: | James Barbour | ||
| House Speaker: | Henry Clay | ||
| Members: | 42 Senators 185 Representatives 3 Non-voting members |
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| Senate Majority: | Democratic-Republican | ||
| House Majority: | Democratic-Republican | ||
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| Sessions | |||
| Special: March 4, 1817 – March 6, 1817 1st: December 1, 1817 – April 20, 1818 2nd: November 16, 1818 – March 3, 1819 |
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The Fifteenth 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 the Old Brick Capitol in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1817 to March 3, 1819, during the first two years of James Monroe's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Third Census of the United States in 1810. Both chambers had a Democratic-Republican majority.
The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this congress. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.
During this congress, two Senate seats were added for each of the new states of Mississippi and Illinois.
| Party (Shading shows control) |
Total | Vacant | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic- Republican (DR) |
Federalist (F) |
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| End of the previous congress | 25 | 13 | 38 | 0 |
| Begin | 25 | 13 | 38 | 0 |
| End | 28 | 12 | 40 | 2 |
| Final voting share | 70.0% | 30.0% | ||
| Beginning of the next congress | 30 | 10 | 40 | 2 |
During this congress, one House seat was added for each of the new states of Mississippi and Illinois.
| Party (Shading shows control) |
Total | Vacant | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic- Republican (DR) |
Federalist (F) |
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| End of the previous congress | 136 | 46 | 182 | 1 |
| Begin | 141 | 39 | 180 | 3 |
| End | 145 | 40 | 185 | 0 |
| Final voting share | 78.4% | 21.6% | ||
| Beginning of the next congress | 158 | 25 | 183 | 2 |
This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.
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 1820; Class 2 meant their term began with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1822; and Class 3 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1818.
The names of members of the House of Representatives are preceded by their district numbers.
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of the first session of this Congress.
| State (class) |
Former senator | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's installation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire (3) |
Jeremiah Mason (F) | Resigned June 16, 1817 | Clement Storer (DR) | Seated June 27, 1817 |
| Vermont (3) |
Dudley Chase (DR) | Resigned November 3, 1817 to become Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court | James Fisk (DR) | Seated November 4, 1817 |
| Louisiana (2) |
William C. C. Claiborne (DR) | Died November 23, 1817 | Henry Johnson (DR) | Seated January 12, 1818 |
| Mississippi (1) |
New seats | Mississippi was admitted to the Union on December 10, 1817 | Walter Leake (DR) | Installed December 10, 1817 |
| Mississippi (2) |
Thomas H. Williams (DR) | |||
| Vermont (3) |
James Fisk (DR) | Resigned January 8, 1818 to become Vermont Collector of Customs | William A. Palmer (DR) | Seated October 20, 1818 |
| Tennessee (1) |
George W. Campbell (DR) | Resigned April 20, 1818 to become Ambassador to Russia | John Eaton (DR) | Seated September 5, 1818 |
| Massachusetts (1) |
Eli P. Ashmun (F) | Resigned May 10, 1818 | Prentiss Mellen (F) | Seated June 5, 1818 |
| Georgia (2) |
George Troup (DR) | Resigned September 23, 1818 to run for Governor of Georgia | John Forsyth (DR) | Seated November 23, 1818 |
| Illinois (2) |
New seats | Illinois was admitted to the Union on December 3, 1818 | Jesse B. Thomas (DR) | Installed December 3, 1818 |
| Illinois (3) |
Ninian Edwards (DR) | |||
| Georgia (2) |
John Forsyth (DR) | Resigned February 17, 1819 to become United States Minister to Spain | Not filled until next Congress | |
| Kentucky (2) |
John J. Crittenden (DR) | Resigned March 3, 1819 at end of term | ||
| District | Vacator | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's installation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York 4th |
Vacant | Rep.-elect Henry B. Lee died before this Congress began | James Tallmadge, Jr. (DR) | Seated June 6, 1817 |
| Missouri Territory At-large |
Vacant | Seat remained vacant from March 4, 1817 to August 4, 1817 | John Scott | Seated August 4, 1817 |
| Pennsylvania 10th |
Vacant | Rep.-elect David Scott resigned before this Congress began | John Murray (DR) | Seated October 14, 1817 |
| North Carolina 7th |
Vacant | Rep.-elect Alexander McMillan died before this Congress began | James Stewart (DR) | Seated January 5, 1818 |
| South Carolina 6th |
John C. Calhoun (DR) | Resigned November 3, 1817 after being appointed United States Secretary of War | Eldred Simkins (DR) | Seated January 24, 1818 |
| Mississippi Territory At-large |
Vacant | Seat remained vacant until Mississippi was admitted to the Union December 10, 1817 | George Poindexter (DR) | Seated December 10, 1817 |
| Mississippi At-large |
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| Connecticut At-large |
Uriel Holmes (F) | Resigned sometime in 1818 | Sylvester Gilbert (DR) | Seated November 16, 1818 |
| North Carolina 11th |
Daniel Forney (DR) | Resigned sometime in 1818 | William Davidson (F) | Seated December 2, 1818 |
| Alabama Territory At-large |
Vacant | The first delegate from this new territory was not seated until January 29, 1818. | John Crowell | Seated January 29, 1818 |
| Massachusetts 20th |
Albion K. Parris (DR | Resigned February 3, 1818 | Enoch Lincoln (DR) | Seated November 4, 1818 |
| Virginia 19th |
Peterson Goodwyn (DR) | Died February 21, 1818 | John Pegram (DR) | Seated April 21, 1818 |
| Pennsylvania 6th |
John Ross (DR) | Resigned February 24, 1818 to become President Judge of Pennsylvania's 7th Judicial Circuit | Thomas J. Rogers (DR) | Seated March 3, 1818 |
| Louisiana At-large |
Thomas B. Robertson (DR) | Resigned April 20, 1818 | Thomas Butler (DR) | Seated November 16, 1818 |
| Pennsylvania 4th |
Jacob Spangler (DR) | Resigned April 20, 1818 | Jacob Hostetter (DR) | Seated November 16, 1818 |
| Pennsylvania 6th |
Samuel D. Ingham (DR) | Resigned July 6, 1818 | Samuel Moore (DR) | Seated October 13, 1818 |
| Georgia At-large |
John Forsyth (DR) | Resigned November 23, 1818 after being elected to the U.S. Senate | Robert R. Reid (DR) | Seated February 18, 1819 |
| Illinois Territory At-large |
Nathaniel Pope | Pope's term ended November 30, 1818, and the seat remained vacant until Illinois was admitted to the Union December 3, 1818 | John McLean (DR) | Seated December 3, 1818 |
| Illinois At-large |
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| North Carolina 10th |
George Mumford (DR) | Died December 31, 1818 | Charles Fisher (DR) | Seated February 11, 1819 |
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