38th New York State Legislature
38th New York State Legislature | |||
The Old State Capitol (1879) | |||
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Duration: July 1, 1814 – June 30, 1815 | |||
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President of the State Senate: | Lt. Gov. John Tayler (Dem.-Rep.) | ||
Temporary President of the State Senate: | |||
Speaker of the State Assembly: | Samuel Young (Dem.-Rep.) | ||
Members: | 32 Senators 112 Assemblymen | ||
Senate Majority: | Democratic-Republican (26-6) | ||
Assembly Majority: | Democratic-Republican (62-35) | ||
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Sessions | |||
1st: September 26 – October 24, 1814 2nd: January 31 – April 18, 1815 | |||
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The 38th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from September 26, 1814, to April 18, 1815, during the eighth year of Daniel D. Tompkins's governorship, in Albany.
Background
Under the provisions of the New York Constitution of 1777, amended by the Constitutional Convention of 1801, 32 Senators were elected on general tickets in the four senatorial districts for four-year terms. They were divided into four classes, and every year eight Senate seats came up for election. Assemblymen were elected countywide on general tickets to a one-year term, the whole Assembly being renewed annually.
In 1797, Albany was declared the State capital, and all subsequent Legislatures have been meeting there ever since. In 1799, the Legislature enacted that future Legislatures meet on the last Tuesday of January of each year unless called earlier by the governor.
State Senator John Tayler had been elected Lieutenant Governor of New York in 1813, leaving a vacancy in the Eastern District.
At this time the politicians were divided into two opposing political parties: the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans.[1]
Elections
The State election was held from April 26 to 28, 1814. Senator Philetus Swift (Western D.) was re-elected. Darius Crosby (Southern D.), Moses I. Cantine (Middle D.), George Tibbits (Eastern D.), Bennett Bicknell, Chauncey Loomis, John I. Prendergast (all three Western D.); and Assemblyman William Ross (Middle D.) were also elected to full terms in the Senate. Guert Van Schoonhoven (Eastern D.) was elected to fill the vacancy. Tibbits was a Federalist, the other eight were Democratic-Republicans.
Sessions
The Legislature met at the Old State Capitol in Albany on September 26, 1814, to enact legislation concerning the War against Great Britain; and adjourned on October 24.
Samuel Young (Dem.-Rep.) was elected Speaker with 61 votes against 35 for James Emott (Fed.). Aaron Clark (Dem.-Rep.) was elected Clerk of the Assembly with 60 votes against 37 for James Van Ingen (Fed.). At the end of this session, Jesse Buel was appointed by the Legislature to succeed Solomon Southwick as State Printer.
The Legislature met for the regular session on January 31, 1815; and adjourned on April 18.
On January 31, the Dem.-Rep. Assembly majority elected a new Council of Appointment which removed almost all Federalist office-holders.
On February 7, the Legislature elected State Senator Nathan Sanford (Dem.-Rep.) to succeed Obadiah German (Dem.-Rep.) as U.S. Senator from New York.
On April 8, 1815, the Legislature re-apportioned the Assembly districts, increasing the total number of assemblymen from 112 to 126.
On April 17, 1815, the Legislature re-apportioned the Senate districts: Dutchess, Putnam and Rockland Co. (and 1 seat) were transferred from the Middle to the Southern District; Albany Co. from the Eastern, and Chenango, Otsego and Schoharie Co. from the Western (and 3 seats) were transferred to the Middle District; Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Co. (and 3 seats) were transferred from the Western to the Eastern District. It was however too late to use this new apportionment at the State election held later this month.
State Senate
Districts
- The Southern District (5 seats) consisted of Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond, Suffolk and Westchester counties.
- The Middle District (7 seats) consisted of Dutchess, Orange, Ulster, Columbia, Delaware, Rockland, Greene, Sullivan and Putnam counties.
- The Eastern District (8 seats) consisted of Washington, Clinton, Rensselaer, Albany, Saratoga, Essex, Montgomery, Franklin, Schenectady and Warren counties.
- The Western District (12 seats) consisted of Herkimer, Ontario, Otsego, Tioga, Onondaga, Schoharie, Steuben, Chenango, Oneida, Cayuga, Genesee, Seneca, Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Allegany, Broome, Madison, Niagara, Cortland, Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties.
Note: There are now 62 counties in the State of New York. The counties which are not mentioned in this list had not yet been established, or sufficiently organized, the area being included in one or more of the abovementioned counties.
Members
The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. William Ross changed from the Assembly to the Senate.
District | Senators | Term left | Party | Notes |
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Southern | Nathan Sanford* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | until March 21, 1815, also United States Attorney for the District of New York; on February 7, 1815, elected to the U.S. Senate |
Elbert H. Jones* | 2 years | Federalist | resigned on March 6, 1815 | |
Peter W. Radcliff* | 2 years | Federalist | ||
Jonathan Dayton* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment | |
Darius Crosby | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Middle | Erastus Root* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | |
William Taber* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Martin Van Buren* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | from February 17, 1815, also New York Attorney General | |
Lucas Elmendorf* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment | |
Samuel G. Verbryck* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Moses I. Cantine | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
William Ross* | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Eastern | Elisha Arnold* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | |
Kitchel Bishop* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Ruggles Hubbard* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment; from April 20, 1815, also Sheriff of New York County | |
Guert Van Schoonhoven | 1 year | Dem.-Rep.[2] | elected to fill vacancy, in place of John Tayler | |
Gerrit Wendell* | 2 years | Federalist | ||
James Cochran* | 3 years | Federalist | ||
Samuel Stewart* | 3 years | Federalist | ||
George Tibbits | 4 years | Federalist | ||
Western | Casper M. Rouse* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | |
Russell Attwater* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Francis A. Bloodgood* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Archibald S. Clarke* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Henry Hager* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Henry Bloom* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Perley Keyes* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | from December 9, 1814, also Collector of Customs at Sackett's Harbor | |
Farrand Stranahan* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment | |
Bennett Bicknell | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Chauncey Loomis | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Philetus Swift* | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
John J. Prendergast | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Employees
- Clerk: John F. Bacon
State Assembly
Districts
Note: There are now 62 counties in the State of New York. The counties which are not mentioned in this list had not yet been established, or sufficiently organized, the area being included in one or more of the abovementioned counties.
Assemblymen
The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued as members of this Legislature.
District | Assemblymen | Party | Notes |
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Albany | Harmanus Bleecker* | Federalist | |
Sylvester Ford | |||
Jesse Tyler | Federalist | ||
John D. Winne | or John L. Winne*? | ||
Allegany and Steuben |
Daniel Cruger* | Dem.-Rep. | |
Broome | Asa Leonard | ||
Cattaraugus, Chautauqua and Niagara |
Joseph McClure | ||
Cayuga | John H. Beach | Dem.-Rep. | |
Silas Bowker* | |||
Barnabas Smith | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Chenango | John Guthrie | ||
Thompson Mead | |||
Robert Monell | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Clinton and Franklin |
Robert Platt | Federalist | |
Columbia | Henry Livingston | Federalist | |
Augustus Tremain | |||
Jacob R. Van Rensselaer* | Federalist | until February 16, 1815, also Secretary of State of New York | |
Elisha Williams* | Federalist | ||
Cortland | Samuel G. Hathaway | Dem.-Rep. | |
Delaware | Robert Clark | Dem.-Rep. | |
Asahel E. Paine | |||
Dutchess | John Beadle | Federalist | |
Joel Benton | Federalist | ||
William A. Duer* | Federalist | ||
James Emott* | Federalist | ||
James Grant | Federalist | ||
Essex | Reuben Sanford | Dem.-Rep. | |
Genesee | Isaac Sutherland | ||
Greene | James Gale | Federalist | |
Martin G. Van Bergen | |||
Herkimer | Jonas Cleland* | Dem.-Rep. | |
Aaron Hackley, Jr.* | Dem.-Rep. | ||
John McCombs | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Jefferson | Ethel Bronson* | Federalist | |
(Mark Hopkins)[3] | Federalist | or vacant? | |
Kings | Teunis Schenck | Dem.-Rep. | |
Lewis | Ela Collins | Dem.-Rep. | from March 15, 1815, also District Attorney of the 8th District |
Madison | David Beecher | ||
Windsor Coman | |||
John Mattison | |||
Montgomery | Solomon Diefendorf | ||
John Eisenlord | |||
Alexander St. John | |||
John Shuler | |||
Alvah Southworth | |||
New York | Charles Baldwin | ||
Francis Cooper | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Jacob Drake | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Ogden Edwards | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Isaac Pierson | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Peter Sharpe | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Joseph Smith | |||
Peter Stagg | |||
Samuel Torbett | |||
George Warner | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Augustus Wright | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Oneida | Theodore Hill | ||
John Lay | |||
James Lynch* | Federalist | ||
Rufus Pettibone | |||
John Storrs | Federalist | ||
Onondaga | Hezekiah L. Granger | Dem.-Rep. | |
James Porter | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Ontario | Peter Allen | Dem.-Rep. | |
John Price | |||
James Roseburgh | |||
Ira Selby | |||
David Sutherland* | |||
Orange | Hezekiah Belknap | ||
Edward Ely | |||
James Finch Jr. | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Benjamin Woodward | |||
Otsego | Nathaniel Fenton | Dem.-Rep. | |
Lemuel Fitch | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Arunah Metcalf | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Robert Roseboom | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Putnam | David Knapp | ||
Queens | Stephen Carman* | Federalist | |
Daniel Kissam* | Federalist | ||
Solomon Wooden | |||
Rensselaer | David Allen | Federalist | |
Henry A. Lake | Federalist | ||
Jacob A. Ten Eyck | Federalist | ||
Zebulon Scriven | Federalist | ||
Richmond | Jesse Oakley | Federalist | |
Rockland | Peter S. Van Orden* | Dem.-Rep. | |
St. Lawrence | David A. Ogden | Federalist | |
Saratoga | Benjamin Cowles | ||
Howel Gardner | |||
Richard Ketchum | |||
Samuel Young* | Dem.-Rep. | elected Speaker | |
Schenectady | Ezekiel Sexton | Dem.-Rep. | |
John Victory | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Schoharie | William C. Bouck* | Dem.-Rep. | |
William Dietz* | |||
Seneca | David Woodcock | Dem.-Rep. | |
Suffolk | John P. Osborn | Dem.-Rep. | |
Tredwell Scudder | Dem.-Rep. | ||
John Wells | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Sullivan and Ulster |
Wessel Broadhead | ||
Darius Martin | |||
David Staples | |||
Thomas Van Gaasbeck | |||
Tioga | Caleb Baker* | Dem.-Rep. | |
Warren and Washington |
John Gale | Dem.-Rep. | |
Henry Mattison | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Nathaniel Pitcher | Dem.-Rep. | ||
John Richards | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Isaac Sargent | Dem.-Rep. | ||
Westchester | Benjamin Isaacs | Federalist | |
Peter J. Munro | Federalist | ||
William Requa | Federalist | ||
Employees
- Clerk: Aaron Clark
- Sergeant-at-Arms: Thomas Donnelly
- Doorkeeper: Benjamin Whipple
Notes
- ↑ The Anti-Federalists called themselves "Republicans." However, at the same time, the Federalists called them "Democrats" which was meant to be pejorative. After some time both terms got more and more confused, and sometimes used together as "Democratic Republicans" which later historians have adopted (with a hyphen) to describe the party from the beginning, to avoid confusion with both the later established and still existing Democratic and Republican parties.
- ↑ Van Schoonhoven was an old Federalist, but was nominated by the Anti-Clintonians to oppose Solomon Southwick who had himself nominated as a Clintonian and Federalist. Apparently, most Federalists voted for Van Schoonhoven who defeated Southwick.
- ↑ The Civil List mentions only Bronson, but the election result shows Hopkins as second most voted.
Sources
- The New York Civil List compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858) [see pg. 108f for Senate districts; pg. 122 for senators; pg. 148f for Assembly districts; pg. 189f for assemblymen]
- The History of Political Parties in the State of New-York, from the Ratification of the Federal Constitution to 1840 by Jabez D. Hammond (4th ed., Vol. 1, H. & E. Phinney, Cooperstown, 1846; pages 375-400)
- Partial election result Assembly, Clinton and Franklin Co. at project "A New Nation Votes", compiled by Phil Lampi, hosted by Tufts University Digital Library [gives only votes from Clinton Co.]
- Election result Assembly, Cortland Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Dutchess Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Greene Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Herkimer Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Kings Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Lewis Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Onondaga Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Otsego Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Rensselaer Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Rockland Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Schenectady Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Schoharie Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result Assembly, Suffolk Co. at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Partial election result Senate, Southern D. at project "A New Nation Votes" [gives only votes of Kings and Suffolk Co.]
- Partial election result Senate, Middle D. at project "A New Nation Votes" [gives only votes of Dutchess, Greene and Rockland Co.)
- Partial election result Senate, Eastern D. at project "A New Nation Votes" [gives only votes of Albany, Clinton, Rensselaer and Schenectady Co.]
- Partial election result Senate, Western D. at project "A New Nation Votes" [gives only votes of Cortland, Herkimer, Jefferson, Onondaga, Otsego and Schoharie Co.]
- Election result, Speaker at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result, Assembly Clerk at project "A New Nation Votes"
- Election result, Council of Appointment at project "A New Nation Votes"