49th United States Congress

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49th United States Congress
48th ←
→ 50th
USCapitol1906.jpg
United States Capitol (1906)

March 4, 1885 – March 4, 1887
Members76 senators
325 representatives
8 non-voting delegates
Senate MajorityRepublican
Senate PresidentThomas A. Hendricks (D)
(until November 25, 1885)
Vacant
(from November 25, 1885)
House MajorityDemocratic
House SpeakerJohn Carlisle (D)
Sessions
Special: March 4, 1885 – April 2, 1885
1st: December 7, 1885 – August 5, 1886
2nd: December 6, 1886 – March 3, 1887

The 49th 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, 1885, to March 4, 1887, during the first two years of Grover Cleveland's first presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Tenth Census of the United States in 1880. The Senate had a Republican majority, and the House had a Democratic majority.

Major events[]

First presidential inauguration of Grover Cleveland, March 4, 1885, on the East Portico of the U.S. Capitol. "Fellow-Citizens: In the presence of this vast assemblage of my countrymen I am about to supplement and seal by the oath which I shall take the manifestation of the will of a great and free people…."[1]
  • March 4, 1885: Grover Cleveland became President of the United States
  • November 25, 1885: Vice President Thomas A. Hendricks died

Major legislation[]

  • January 19, 1886: Presidential Succession Act of 1886, ch. 4, 24 Stat. 1
  • February 3, 1887: Electoral Count Act, ch. 90, 24 Stat. 373
  • February 4, 1887: Interstate Commerce Act, ch. 104, 24 Stat. 379
  • February 8, 1887: Indian General Allotment Act ("Dawes Act"), ch. 119, 24 Stat. 388
  • March 2, 1887: Agricultural Experiment Stations Act of 1887
  • March 2, 1887: Hatch Act of 1887, ch. 314, 24 Stat. 440
  • March 3, 1887: Tucker Act, ch. 359, 24 Stat. 505
  • March 3, 1887: Edmunds–Tucker Act, ch. 397 24 Stat. 635

Party summary[]

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.

Senate[]

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Readjuster
(RA)
Republican
(R)
End of previous congress 36 2 38 76 0
Begin 34 2 37 73 3
End 40 760
Final voting share 44.7% 2.6% 52.6%
Beginning of next congress 36 1 38 75 1

House of Representatives[]

House seats by party holding plurality in state
  80+% to 100% Democratic
  80+% to 100% Republican
  60+% to 80% Democratic
  60+% to 80% Republican
  Up to 60% Democratic
  Up to 60% Republican
Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Readjuster
(RA)
Greenback
(GB)
Republican
(R)
Other
End of previous congress 197 4 2 113 7[a] 323 2
Begin 181 1 1 140 0 323 2
End 180 138 3205
Final voting share 56.3% 0.3% 0.3% 43.1% 0.0%
Beginning of next congress 168 0 1 150 5 324 1

Leadership[]

Senate[]

  • President: Thomas A. Hendricks (D), until November 25, 1885; vacant thereafter
  • President pro tempore: John Sherman (R), December 7, 1885 – February 26, 1887
    • John J. Ingalls (R), from February 26, 1887
  • Republican Conference Chairman: George F. Edmunds
  • Democratic Caucus Chairman: James B. Beck
  • Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman: Arthur Pue Gorman

House of Representatives[]

  • Speaker: John G. Carlisle (D)
  • Democratic Caucus Chairman: John Randolph Tucker
  • Republican Conference Chairman: Joseph Gurney Cannon

Members[]

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 ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1886; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1888; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1890.

House of Representatives[]

The names of members of the House of Representatives are listed by district.

Changes in membership[]

The count below reflects changes from the beginning of the first session of this Congress.

Senate[]

  • Replacements: 7
    • Democratic: 1 seat net gain
    • Republican: 1 seat net loss
    • Liberal Republican: 1 seat net loss
  • Deaths: 3
  • Resignations: 6
  • Interim appointments: 1
  • Total seats with changes: 9
State
(class)
Vacated by Reason for vacancy Subsequent Date of successor's installation
New Hampshire
(3)
Vacant Appointed to fill vacancy in term. Henry W. Blair (R) March 5, 1885
Illinois
(3)
Vacant Legislature failed to elect, with several delays in election process held from February 18 to May 19. Incumbent Logan eventually chosen to retake seat. John A. Logan (R) May 19, 1885
Oregon
(3)
Vacant Failure to elect. John H. Mitchell (R) November 18, 1885
Arkansas
(2)
Augustus H. Garland (D) Resigned March 6, 1885, after being appointed United States Attorney General. Successor was elected. James H. Berry (D) March 20, 1885
Delaware
(1)
Thomas F. Bayard (D) Resigned March 6, 1885, after being appointed United States Secretary of State. Successor was elected. George Gray (D) March 18, 1885
Mississippi
(2)
Lucius Q. C. Lamar II (D) Resigned March 6, 1885, after being appointed United States Secretary of the Interior. Successor was appointed and subsequently elected. Edward C. Walthall (D) March 9, 1885
California
(1)
John F. Miller (R) Died March 8, 1886. Successor was appointed. George Hearst (D) March 23, 1886
Tennessee
(1)
Howell E. Jackson (D) Resigned April 14, 1886, after being appointed judge for the United States Circuit Court for the Sixth Circuit. Successor was appointed. Washington C. Whitthorne (D) April 16, 1886
California
(1)
George Hearst (D) Successor was elected August 4, 1886. Abram Williams (R) August 4, 1886
New Hampshire
(2)
Austin F. Pike (R) Died October 8, 1886. Successor was appointed. Person C. Cheney (R) November 24, 1886
Illinois
(3)
John A. Logan (R) Died December 26, 1886. Successor was elected. Charles B. Farwell (R) January 19, 1887

House of Representatives[]

  • Replacements: 11
    • Democratic: 2 seat net gain
    • Republican: 2 seat net loss
  • Deaths: 8
  • Resignations: 7
  • Contested election: 1
  • Total seats with changes: 16
District Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date successor seated
Pennsylvania 19th Vacant Elected to finish term of Rep. William A. Duncan resigned during previous congress John A. Swope (D) November 3, 1885
Arkansas 3rd Vacant Elected to finish term of Rep. James K. Jones resigned during previous congress Thomas C. McRae (D) December 7, 1885
New York 8th Samuel S. Cox (D) Resigned May 20, 1885, after being appointed Minister to the Ottoman Empire Timothy J. Campbell (D) November 3, 1885
Illinois 5th Reuben Ellwood (R) Died July 1, 1885 Albert J. Hopkins (R) December 7, 1885
Wisconsin 5th Joseph Rankin (D) Died January 24, 1886 Thomas R. Hudd (D) March 8, 1886
Louisiana 2nd Michael Hahn (R) Died March 15, 1886 Nathaniel D. Wallace (D) December 9, 1886
New York 9th Joseph Pulitzer (D) Resigned April 10, 1886 Samuel S. Cox (D) November 2, 1886
Maryland 3rd William H. Cole (D) Died July 8, 1886 Harry W. Rusk (D) November 2, 1886
New York 15th Lewis Beach (D) Died August 10, 1886 Henry Bacon (D) December 6, 1886
New York 28th John Arnot Jr. (D) Died November 20, 1886 Vacant until next Congress
Wisconsin 8th William T. Price (R) Died December 6, 1886 Hugh H. Price (R) January 18, 1887
New York 12th Abraham Dowdney (D) Died December 10, 1886 Vacant until next Congress
New York 10th Abram Hewitt (D) Resigned December 30, 1886, after being elected Mayor of New York Vacant until next Congress
North Carolina 5th James W. Reid (D) Resigned December 31, 1886 Vacant until next Congress
New Jersey 3rd Robert S. Green (D) Resigned January 17, 1887, after being elected Governor of New Jersey Vacant until next Congress
Rhode Island 2nd William A. Pirce (R) Seat declared vacant January 25, 1887, due to election irregularities Charles H. Page (D) February 21, 1887

Committees[]

Lists of committees and their party leaders, for members (House and Senate) of the committees and their assignments, go into the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of the article and click on the link (5 links), in the directory after the pages of terms of service, you will see the committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and after the committee pages, you will see the House/Senate committee assignments in the directory, on the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.

Senate[]

  • (Select) (Chairman: Daniel W. Voorhees; Ranking Member: Justin S. Morrill)
  • Agriculture and Forestry (Chairman: Warner Miller; Ranking Member: James Z. George)
  • Appropriations (Chairman: William B. Allison; Ranking Member: John A. Logan)
  • Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate (Chairman: John P. Jones; Ranking Member: Zebulon B. Vance)
  • Civil Service and Retrenchment (Chairman: Joseph R. Hawley; Ranking Member: Daniel W. Voorhees)
  • Claims (Chairman: Austin F. Pike; Ranking Member: Howell E. Jackson)
  • Coast Defenses (Chairman: Joseph N. Dolph; Ranking Member: Samuel B. Maxey)
  • Commerce (Chairman: Samuel J.R. McMillan; Ranking Member: Matt W. Ransom)
  • (Select)
  • (Select)
  • District of Columbia (Chairman: John J. Ingalls; Ranking Member: Isham G. Harris)
  • Education and Labor (Chairman: Henry W. Blair; Ranking Member: Wilkinson Call)
  • Engrossed Bills (Chairman: Eli Saulsbury; Ranking Member: William B. Allison)
  • Enrolled Bills (Chairman: Thomas M. Bowen; Ranking Member: Alfred H. Colquitt)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Isham G. Harris; Ranking Member: John C. Spooner)
  • (Chairman: Dwight M. Sabin; Ranking Member: Wade Hampton)
  • (Select)
  • (Chairman: Shelby M. Cullom; Ranking Member: James B. Beck)
  • Finance (Chairman: Justin S. Morrill; Ranking Member: Daniel W. Voorhees)
  • (Chairman: Thomas W. Palmer; Ranking Member: John T. Morgan)
  • Foreign Relations (Chairman: John Sherman; Ranking Member: John T. Morgan)
  • Indian Affairs (Chairman: Henry L. Dawes; Ranking Member: Samuel B. Maxey)
  • (Select)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Shelby M. Cullom; Ranking Member: N/A)
  • Judiciary (Chairman: George F. Edmunds; Ranking Member: William M. Evarts)
  • Library (Chairman: William J. Sewell; Ranking Member: Daniel W. Voorhees)
  • Manufactures (Chairman: Harrison H. Riddleberger; Ranking Member: Alfred H. Colquitt)
  • Military Affairs (Chairman: John A. Logan; Ranking Member: Charles F. Manderson)
  • Mines and Mining (Chairman: Henry M. Teller; Ranking Member: Wade Hampton)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Charles H. Van Wyck; Ranking Member: Francis M. Cockrell)
  • Naval Affairs (Chairman: J. Donald Cameron; Ranking Member: John R. McPherson)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Samuel B. Maxey; Ranking Member: Benjamin Harrison)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Joseph R. Hawley; Ranking Member: Johnson N. Camden)
  • Patents (Chairman: J. Donald Cameron; Ranking Member: Johnson N. Camden)
  • Pensions (Chairman: John I. Mitchell; Ranking Member: Howell E. Jackson)
  • Post Office and Post Roads (Chairman: Omar D. Conger; Ranking Member: Samuel B. Maxey)
  • (Select)
  • Printing (Chairman: Charles F. Manderson; Ranking Member: Arthur P. Gorman)
  • Private Land Claims (Chairman: Matt W. Ransom; Ranking Member: George F. Edmunds)
  • Privileges and Elections (Chairman: George F. Hoar; Ranking Member: Eli Saulsbury)
  • Public Buildings and Grounds (Chairman: William Mahone; Ranking Member: John T. Morgan)
  • Public Lands (Chairman: Preston B. Plumb; Ranking Member: John T. Morgan)
  • Railroads (Chairman: Philetus Sawyer; Ranking Member: Joseph E. Brown)
  • (Chairman: James F. Wilson; Ranking Member: John E. Kenna)
  • Revolutionary Claims (Chairman: Charles W. Jones; Ranking Member: Samuel J.R. McMillan)
  • Rules (Chairman: William P. Frye; Ranking Member: Isham G. Harris)
  • Tariff Regulation (Select)
  • Tenth Census (Select) (Chairman: Eugene Hale; Ranking Member: Richard Coke)
  • Territories (Chairman: Benjamin Harrison; Ranking Member: Matthew C. Butler)
  • Transportation Routes to the Seaboard (Chairman: Nelson W. Aldrich; Ranking Member: Randall L. Gibson)
  • Whole
  • Woman Suffrage (Select) (Chairman: Francis M. Cockrell; Ranking Member: Thomas W. Palmer)

House of Representatives[]

  • Accounts (Chairman: John T. Spriggs; Ranking Member: George E. Adams)
  • (Select)
  • Agriculture (Chairman: William H. Hatch; Ranking Member: Presley T. Glass)
  • Alcoholic Liquor Traffic (Select) (Chairman: James E. Campbell; Ranking Member: Truman A. Merriman)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Poindexter Dunn; Ranking Member: Charles C. Comstock)
  • Appropriations (Chairman: Samuel J. Randall; Ranking Member: William L. Wilson)
  • Banking and Currency (Chairman: James F. Miller; Ranking Member: John E. Hutton)
  • Claims (Chairman: William M. Springer; Ranking Member: William H. Sowden)
  • Coinage, Weights and Measures (Chairman: Richard P. Bland; Ranking Member: William D. Bynum)
  • Commerce (Chairman: John H. Reagan; Ranking Member: Alfred B. Irion)
  • District of Columbia (Chairman: John S. Barbour; Ranking Member: John T. Heard)
  • Education (Chairman: D. Wyatt Aiken; Ranking Member: Peter P. Mahoney)
  • Elections (Chairman: Henry G. Turner; Ranking Member: Benton J. Hall)
  • Enrolled Bills (Chairman: William H. Neece; Ranking Member: Adoniram J. Holmes)
  • Expenditures in the Interior Department (Chairman: James B. Weaver; Ranking Member: Charles N. Brumm)
  • Expenditures in the Justice Department (Chairman: Eustace Gibson; Ranking Member: Seth L. Milliken)
  • Expenditures in the Navy Department (Chairman: John M. Taylor; Ranking Member: Jonathan H. Rowell)
  • Expenditures in the Post Office Department (Chairman: Seaborn Reese; Ranking Member: Zachary Taylor)
  • Expenditures in the State Department (Chairman: Risden T. Bennett; Ranking Member: Joseph A. Scranton)
  • Expenditures in the Treasury Department (Chairman: Robert Lowry; Ranking Member: Michael Hahn)
  • Expenditures in the War Department (Chairman: Thomas A. Robertson; Ranking Member: Frederick A. Johnson)
  • Expenditures on Public Buildings (Chairman: Lewis Beach; Ranking Member: Augustus H. Pettibone)
  • Foreign Affairs (Chairman: Perry Belmont; Ranking Member: William H. Crain)
  • Indian Affairs (Chairman: Olin Wellborn; Ranking Member: James H. Ward)
  • Invalid Pensions (Chairman: Courtland C. Matson; Ranking Member: John S. Pindar)
  • Judiciary (Chairman: John R. Tucker; Ranking Member: Risden T. Bennett)
  • Labor (Chairman: John J. O'Neill; Ranking Member: William H. Crain)
  • (Chairman: J. Floyd King; Ranking Member: William Dawson)
  • Manufactures (Chairman: George D. Wise; Ranking Member: John S. Pindar)
  • Mileage (Chairman: John H. Rogers; Ranking Member: Ambrose A. Ranney)
  • Military Affairs (Chairman: Edward S. Bragg; Ranking Member: Charles M. Anderson)
  • Militia (Chairman: Nicholas Muller; Ranking Member: Barnes Compton)
  • Mines and Mining (Chairman: Martin L. Clardy; Ranking Member: Frederick G. Barry)
  • Naval Affairs (Chairman: Hilary A. Herbert; Ranking Member: Joseph D. Sayers)
  • (Chairman: James W. Throckmorton; Ranking Member: James D. Richardson)
  • Patents (Chairman: Charles L. Mitchell; Ranking Member: William H.H. Cowles)
  • (Chairman: Nathaniel B. Eldredge; Ranking Member: John E. Hutton)
  • Post Office and Post Roads (Chairman: James H. Blount; Ranking Member: Frederick G. Barry)
  • Printing (Chairman: Ethelbert Barksdale; Ranking Member: John M. Farquhar)
  • Private Land Claims (Chairman: John E. Halsell; Ranking Member: Robert S. Green)
  • Public Buildings and Grounds (Chairman: Samuel Dibble; Ranking Member: Thomas D. Johnston)
  • Public Lands (Chairman: Thomas R. Cobb; Ranking Member: Thomas Chipman McRae)
  • Railways and Canals (Chairman: Robert H. M. Davidson; Ranking Member: James N. Pidcock)
  • Revision of Laws (Chairman: William C. Oates; Ranking Member: John B. Hale)
  • Rivers and Harbors (Chairman: Albert S. Willis; Ranking Member: John M. Glover)
  • Rules (Chairman: John G. Carlisle; Ranking Member: Thomas B. Reed)
  • Standards of Official Conduct
  • Territories (Chairman: William D. Hill; Ranking Member: William Dawson)
  • War Claims (Chairman: George W. Geddes; Ranking Member: James W. Reid)
  • Ways and Means (Chairman: William R. Morrison; Ranking Member: William C.P. Breckinridge)
  • Whole

Joint committees[]

  • Conditions of Indian Tribes (Special)
  • The Library (Chairman: Otho R. Singleton; Vice Chairman: Charles O'Neill)
  • Printing

Caucuses[]

  • Democratic (House)
  • Democratic (Senate)

Employees[]

Legislative branch agency directors[]

  • Architect of the Capitol: Edward Clark
  • Librarian of Congress: Ainsworth Rand Spofford
  • Public Printer of the United States: Sterling P. Rounds, until 1886
    • Thomas E. Benedict, starting 1886

Senate[]

House of Representatives[]

  • Chaplain: (Episcopalian), until December 7, 1885
    • William H. Milburn (Methodist), elected December 7, 1885
  • Doorkeeper: , elected December 7, 1885
  • Clerk: John B. Clark Jr.
  • Clerk at the Speaker's Table:
  • Postmaster:
  • Reading Clerks: Thomas S. Pettit (D) and (R)
  • Sergeant at Arms: John P. Leedom

Notes[]

  1. ^ Independent, Independent Democratic, Independent Republican, and Anti-Monopoly

See also[]

  • United States elections, 1884 (elections leading to this Congress)
    • 1884 United States presidential election
    • United States Senate elections, 1884
    • United States House of Representatives elections, 1884
  • United States elections, 1886 (elections during this Congress, leading to the next Congress)
    • United States Senate elections, 1886
    • United States House of Representatives elections, 1886

References[]

  1. ^ "THE 25th PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION / Grover Cleveland / March 4, 1885". United States Congress Joint Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Archived from the original on July 5, 2021. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  • 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.

External links[]

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