51st United States Congress

The 51st United States Congress , made up of the House and Senate , was the United States' legislature . Its legislative period lasted from March 4, 1889 to March 4, 1891. All members of the House of Representatives and a third of the senators ( Class II ) from the old 38 states were elected in the 1888 congressional elections. This resulted in a majority in both chambers for the Republican Party , which with Benjamin Harrison also provided the president. The only remaining role for the Democratic Party was in the opposition. A total of six new states were admitted to the Union in 1889 and 1890, and they were represented in Congress for the first time after elections during the legislative period. These are the states of North Dakota , South Dakota , Montana , Washington , Idaho and Wyoming . The USA now consisted of 44 states. Six more were to follow by 1959. Congress met in the American capital Washington, DC. The distribution of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1880 census .

Important events

See also 1889, 1890 and 1891

• March 4, 1889: Beginning of the legislative period of the 51st Congress. At the same time, Benjamin Harrison, who was also elected in November 1888, was introduced to his new office as US President. He replaces the Democrat Grover Cleveland .
• May 31, 1889: Over 2,200 people died (Johnstown Flood) after a dam burst in Pennsylvania .
• June 3, 1889: The first long-distance power transmission line goes into operation in Portland , Oregon . The line is approximately 14 miles (22.4 km) long.
• October 2, 1889: The first Pan-American Conference takes place in Washington DC.
• November 2, 1889: North Dakota and South Dakota are incorporated into the United States as the 39th and 40th states, respectively.
• November 8, 1889: Montana becomes the 41st US state.
• November 11: Washington becomes 42nd state.
• March 27, 1890: 76 people die in a tornado in Louisville . Over 200 people are injured.
• May 2, 1890: Oklahoma Territory founded .
• July 3, 1890: Idaho becomes the 43rd state.
• July 10, 1890: Wyoming becomes the 44th US state.
• September 25, 1890: Sequoia National Park is established
• October 1, 1890: Yosemite National Park was founded .
• November 1890: In the congress elections there are different majorities in the chambers. The Republican Party has a majority in the Senate and the Democrats do the same in the House of Representatives.
• December 29, 1890: The Wounded Knee Massacre occurs in South Dakota.

The main laws

During the session of the 51st Congress, the following federal laws were passed ( see also: Legislative procedure ):

• June 27, 1890: Dependent Pension Act
• July 2, 1890: Sherman Antitrust Act
• July 14, 1890: Sherman Silver Purchase Act
• August 30, 1890: Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act see also Morrill Acts
• October 1, 1890: McKinley Tariff
• March 3, 1891: Forest Reserve Act of 1891
• March 3, 1891: Land Revision Act of 1891
• March 3, 1891: Immigration Act of 1891
• March 3, 1891: Merchant Marine Act of 1891
• March 3, 1891: International Copyright Act of 1891

Composition according to parties

senate

• Democratic Party: 35
• Republican Party: 51
• Others (0
• Vacant: 2

Total: 88 at the end of the legislative period

House of Representatives

• Democratic Party: 152
• Republican Party: 175
• Others: 1
• Vacant: 3

Total: 331 at the end of the legislative period

There were also nine congressional delegates who were not entitled to vote

Public officials

senate

• President of the Senate : Levi P. Morton (R)
• President pro tempore : John James Ingalls (R)

House of Representatives

• House Speaker : Thomas Brackett Reed (R)

Senate members

The following senators represented their respective states in the 51st Congress:

Alabama 2. John Tyler Morgan (D) 3. James L. Pugh (D) Arkansas 2. James Henderson Berry (D) 3. James Kimbrough Jones (D) California 1. George Hearst (D) until February 28, 1891, after which the seat was vacant 3. Leland Stanford (R) Colorado 2. Edward O. Wolcott (R) 3. Henry Moore Teller (R) Connecticut 1. Joseph Roswell Hawley (R) 3. Orville H. Platt (R) Delaware 1. George Gray (D) 2. Anthony C. Higgins (R) Florida 1. Samuel Pasco (D) 3. Wilkinson Call (D) Georgia 2. Alfred H. Colquitt (D) 3. Joseph E. Brown (D) Idaho 2. George Laird Shoup (R) from December 18, 1890 3. William J. McConnell (R) from December 18, 1890 Illinois 2. Shelby Moore Cullom (R) 3. Charles B. Farwell (R) Indiana 1. David Turpie (D) 3. Daniel W. Voorhees (D) Iowa 2. James F. Wilson (R) 3. William B. Allison (R) Kansas 2. Preston B. Plumb (R) 3. John James Ingalls (R) Kentucky 2. James B. Beck (D) until May 3, 1890 John Griffin Carlisle (D) from May 26, 1890 3. Joseph Blackburn (D) Louisiana 2. Randall L. Gibson (D) 3. James B. Eustis (D) Maine 1. Eugene Hale (R) 2. William P. Frye (R) Maryland 1. Arthur Pue Gorman (D) 3. Ephraim King Wilson (D) until February 24, 1891 thereafter the seat was vacant Massachusetts 1. Henry L. Dawes (R) 2. George Frisbie Hoar (R) Michigan 1. Francis B. Stockbridge (R) 2. James McMillan (R) Minnesota 1. Cushman Kellogg Davis (R) 2. William D. Washburn (R) Mississippi 1. James Z. George (D) 2. Edward C. Walthall (D) Missouri 1. Francis Cockrell (D) 3. George Graham Vest (D)

Montana 1. Wilbur F. Sanders (R) from January 1, 1890 2. Thomas Charles Power (R) from January 1, 1890 Nebraska 1. Algernon Sidney Paddock (R) 2. Charles F. Manderson (R) Nevada 1. William M. Stewart (R) 3. John P. Jones (R) New Hampshire 2. Gilman Marston (R) until June 18, 1889 William E. Chandler (R) from June 18, 1889 3. Henry W. Blair (R) New Jersey 1. Rufus Blodgett (D) 2. John R. McPherson (D) new York 1. Frank Hiscock (R) 3. William M. Evarts (R) North Carolina 2. Matt Whitaker Ransomware (D) 3. Zebulon Baird Vance (D) North Dakota 1. Lyman R. Casey (R) from November 25, 1889 3. Gilbert A. Pierce (R) from November 21, 1889 Ohio 1. John Sherman (R) 3. Henry B. Payne (D) Oregon 2. Joseph N. Dolph (R) 3. John H. Mitchell (R) Pennsylvania 1. Matthew Quay (R) 3. James Donald Cameron (R) Rhode Island 1. Nelson W. Aldrich (R) 2. Jonathan Chace (R) until April 9, 1889 Nathan Dixon III (R) from April 10, 1889 South carolina 2. Matthew Butler (D) 3. Wade Hampton III. (D) South Dakota 2. Richard F. Pettigrew (R) from November 2, 1889 3. Gideon C. Moody (R) from November 2, 1889 Tennessee 1. William B. Bate (D) 2. Isham G. Harris (D) Texas 1. John Henninger Reagan (D) 2. Richard Coke (D) Vermont 1. George F. Edmunds (R) 3. Justin Smith Morrill (R) Virginia 1. John W. Daniel (D) 2. John S. Barbour (D) Washington 1. John Beard Allen (R) from November 20, 1889 3. Watson C. Squire (R) from November 20, 1889 West Virginia 1. Charles James Faulkner (D) 2. John E. Kenna (D) Wisconsin 1. Philetus Sawyer (R) 3. John Coit Spooner (R) Wyoming 1. Francis E. Warren (R) from November 18, 1890 2. Joseph Maull Carey (R) from November 15, 1890

Members of the House of Representatives

The following congressmen represented the interests of their respective states in the 51st Congress:

Alabama 8 constituencies 1. Richard Henry Clarke (D) 2. Hilary A. Herbert (D) 3. William C. Oates (D) 4. Louis Washington Turpin (D) until June 4, 1890 John Van McDuffie (R) from June 4, 1890 5. James E. Cobb (D) 6. John H. Bankhead (D) 7. William Henry Forney (D) 8. Joseph Wheeler (D) Arkansas 5 constituencies. 1. William H. Cate (D) until March 5, 1890 Lewis P. Featherstone (Labor Party) from March 5, 1890 2. Clifton R. Breckinridge (D) until September 5, 1890 and again from November 4, 1890 3. Thomas Chipman McRae (D) 4. John H. Rogers (D) 5. Samuel W. Peel (D) California 6 constituencies. 1. John J. De Haven (R) until October 1, 1890 Thomas J. Geary (D) from December 9, 1890 2. Marion Biggs (D) 3. Joseph McKenna (R) 4. William W. Morrow (R) 5. Thomas J. Clunie (D) 6. William Vandever (R) Colorado state wide election Hosea Townsend (R) Connecticut 4 constituencies 1. William E. Simonds (R) 2. Washington F. Willcox (D) 3. Charles A. Russell (R) 4. Frederick Miles (R) Delaware state-wide choice John B. Penington (D) Florida Two constituencies 1. Robert HM Davidson (D) 2. Robert Bullock (D) Georgia 10 constituencies 1. Rufus E. Lester (D) 2. Henry Gray Turner (D) 3. Charles Frederick Crisp (D) 4. Thomas Wingfield Grimes (D) 5. John D. Stewart (D) 6. James Henderson Blount (D) 7. Judson C. Clements (D) 8. Henry Hull Carlton (D) 9. Allen D. Candler (D) 10. George Thomas Barnes (D) Idaho state-wide election Willis Sweet (R) from October 1, 1890 Illinois 20 constituencies 1. Abner Taylor (R) 2. Frank Lawler (D) 3. William E. Mason (R) 4. George E. Adams (R) 5. Albert J. Hopkins (R) 6. Robert R. Hitt (R) 7. Thomas J. Henderson (R) 8. Charles A. Hill (R) 9. Lewis E. Payson (R) 10. Philip S. Post (R) 11. William H. Gest (R) 12. Scott Wike (D) 13. William McKendree Springer (D) 14. Jonathan H. Rowell (R) 15. Joseph Gurney Cannon (R) 16. George W. Fithian (D) 17. Edward Lane (D) 18 William St. John Forman (D) 19. Richard W. Townshend (D) until March 9, 1889 James R. Williams (D) from December 2, 1889 20. George W. Smith (R) Indiana 13 constituencies 1. William F. Parrett (D) 2. John H. O'Neall (D) 3. Jason B. Brown (D) 4. William S. Holman (D) 5. George W. Cooper (D) 6. Thomas M. Browne (R) 7. William D. Bynum (D) 8. Elijah V. Brookshire (D) 9. Joseph B. Cheadle (R) 10. William D. Owen (R) 11. Augustus N. Martin (D) 12. Charles AO McClellan (D) 13. Benjamin F. Shively (D) Iowa 11 constituencies 1. John H. Gear (R) 2. Walter I. Hayes (D) 3. David B. Henderson (R) 4. Joseph Henry Sweney (R) 5. Daniel Kerr (R) 6. John F. Lacey (R) 7. Edwin H. Conger (R) until October 3, 1890 Edward R. Hays (R) from November 4, 1890 8. James Patton Flick (R) 9. Joseph Rea Reed (R) 10. Jonathan P. Dolliver (R) 11. Isaac S. Struble (R) Kansas 7 constituencies 1. Edmund Morrill (R) 2. Edward H. Funston (R) 3. Bishop W. Perkins (R) 4. Thomas Ryan (R) until April 4, 1889 Harrison Kelley (R) from December 2, 1889 5. John Alexander Anderson (R) 6. Erastus J. Turner (R) 7. Samuel R. Peters (R) Kentucky 11 constituencies 1. William Johnson Stone (D) 2. William Thomas Ellis (D) 3. Isaac Goodnight (D) 4. Alexander B. Montgomery (D) 5. Asher G. Caruth (D) 6. John Griffin Carlisle (D) until May 26, 1890 William Worth Dickerson (D) from June 21, 1890 7. William Breckinridge (D) 8. James B. McCreary (D) 9. Thomas H. Paynter (D) 10. John Henry Wilson (R) 11. Hugh F. Finley (R) Louisiana 6 constituencies 1. Theodore Stark Wilkinson (D) 2. Hamilton D. Coleman (R) 3. Edward James Gay (D) until May 30, 1889 Andrew Price (D) from December 2, 1889 4. Newton C. Blanchard (D) 5. Charles J. Boatner (D) 6. Samuel Matthews Robertson (D) Maine 4 constituencies 1. Thomas Brackett Reed (R) 2. Nelson Dingley (R) 3. Seth L. Milliken (R) 4. Charles A. Boutelle (R) Maryland 6 constituencies. 1. Charles Hopper Gibson (D) 2. Herman Stump (D) 3. Harry Welles Rusk (D) 4. Henry Stockbridge (R) 5. Barnes Compton (D) until March 20, 1890 Sydney Mudd (R) from March 20, 1890 6. Louis E. McComas (R) Massachusetts 12 constituencies 1. Charles S. Randall (R) 2. Elijah A. Morse (R) 3. John F. Andrew (D) 4. Joseph H. O'Neil (D) 5. Nathaniel Prentiss Banks (R) 6. Henry Cabot Lodge Sr. (R) 7. William Cogswell (R) 8. Frederic T. Greenhalge (R) 9. John W. Candler (R) 10. Joseph H. Walker (R) 11. Rodney Wallace (R) 12. Francis W. Rockwell (R) Michigan 11 constituencies 1. John Logan Chipman (D) 2. Edward P. Allen (R) 3. James O'Donnell (R) 4. Julius C. Burrows (R) 5. Charles E. Belknap (R) 6. Mark S. Brewer (R) 7. Justin Rice Whiting (D) 8. Aaron T. Bliss (R) 9. Byron M. Cutcheon (R) 10. Frank W. Wheeler (R) 11. Samuel M. Stephenson (R) Minnesota 5th constituency 1. Mark H. Dunnell (R) 2. John Lind (R) 3. Darwin Hall (R) 4. Samuel Snider (R) 5. Solomon Comstock (R) Mississippi 7 constituencies 1. John Mills Allen (D) 2. James B. Morgan (D) 3. Thomas C. Catchings (D) 4. Clarke Lewis (D) 5. Chapman L. Anderson (D) 6. TR Stockdale (D) 7. Charles E. Hooker (D) Missouri 14 constituencies 1. William H. Hatch (D) 2. Charles H. Mansur (D) 3. Alexander Monroe Dockery (D) 4. Robert Wilson (D) from December 2, 1889 5. John Charles Tarsney (D) 6. John T. Heard (D) 7. Richard Henry Norton (D) 8. Frederick G. Niedringhaus (R) 9. Nathan Frank (R) 10. William Medcalf Kinsey (R) 11. Richard P. Bland (D) 12. William J. Stone (D) 13. William H. Wade (R) 14. James P. Walker (D) until July 19, 1890 Robert Henry Whitelaw (D) from November 4, 1890 Montana state-wide choice Thomas Henry Carter (R) from November 8, 1889 Nebraska 3 constituencies 1. William James Connell (R) 2. James Laird (R) until August 17, 1889 Gilbert L. Laws (R) from December 2, 1889 3. George Dorsey (R)

Nevada state-wide election Horace F. Bartine (R) New Hampshire 2 electoral divisions 1. Alonzo groove (R) 2. Orren C. Moore (R) New Jersey 7 constituencies 1. Christopher A. Bergen (R) 2. James Buchanan (R) 3. Jacob Augustus Geissenhainer (D) 4. Samuel Fowler (D) 5. Charles D. Beckwith (R) 6. Herman Lehlbach (R) 7. William McAdoo (D) New York 34 constituencies 1. James W. Covert (D) 2. Felix Campbell (D) 3. William C. Wallace (R) 4. John Michael Clancy (D) 5. Thomas F. Magner (D) 6. Frank T. Fitzgerald (D) until November 4, 1889 Charles H. Turner (D) from December 9, 1889 7. Edward J. Dunphy (D) 8. John H. McCarthy (D) until January 14, 1891, after which the seat remained vacant 9. Samuel S. Cox (D) until September 10, 1889 Amos J. Cummings (D) from November 5, 1889 10. Francis B. Spinola (D) 11. John Quinn (D) 12. Roswell P. Flower (D) 13. Ashbel P. Fitch (D) 14. William G. Stahlnecker (D) 15. Moses D. Stivers (R) 16. John H. Ketcham (R) 17. Charles J. Knapp (R) 18. John A. Quackenbush (R) 19. Charles Tracey (D) 20. John Sanford (R) 21. John H. Moffitt (R) 22. Frederick Lansing (R) 23. James S. Sherman (R) 24. David Wilber (R) by April 1, 1890 John S. Pindar (D) from November 4, 1890 25. James J. Belden (R) 26. Milton De Lano (R) 27. Newton W. Nutting (R) by October 15, 1889 Sereno E. Payne (R) from December 2, 1889 28. Thomas S. Flood (R) 29. John Raines (R) 30. Charles S. Baker (R) 31. John G. Sawyer (R) 32. John M. Farquhar (R) 33. John M. Wiley (D) 34.William G. Laidlaw (R) North Carolina 9 constituencies 1. Thomas Gregory Skinner (D) 2. Henry P. Cheatham (R) 3. Charles W. McClammy (D) 4. Benjamin H. Bunn (D) 5. John M. Brower (R) 6. Alfred Rowland (D) 7. John S. Henderson (D) 8. William HH Cowles (D) 9. Hamilton G. Ewart (R) North Dakota State Election Henry C. Hansbrough (R) from November 2, 1889 Ohio 21 constituencies 1. Benjamin Butterworth (R) 2. John A. Caldwell (R) 3. Elihu S. Williams (R) 4. Samuel S. Yoder (D) 5. George E. Seney (D) 6. Melvin M. Boothman (R) 7. Henry Lee Morey (R) 8. Robert P. Kennedy (R) 9. William C. Cooper (R) 10. William E. Haynes (D) 11. Albert C. Thompson (R) 12. Jacob J. Pugsley (R) 13. Joseph H. Outhwaite (D) 14. Charles Preston Wickham (R) 15. Charles H. Grosvenor (R) 16. James W. Owens (D) 17. Joseph D. Taylor (R) 18. William McKinley (R) 19. Ezra B. Taylor (R) 20. Martin L. Smyser (R) 21. Theodore E. Burton (R) Oregon state-wide election Binger Hermann (R) Pennsylvania 28 constituencies 1. Henry H. Bingham (R) 2. Charles O'Neill (R) 3. Samuel J. Randall (D) until April 13, 1890 Richard Vaux (D) from May 20, 1890 4. William D. Kelley (R) until January 9, 1890 John E. Reyburn (R) from February 18, 1890 5. Alfred C. Harmer (R) 6. Smedley Darlington (R) 7. Robert Morris Yardley (R) 8. William Mutchler (D) 9. David B. Brunner (D) 10. Marriott Henry Brosius (R) 11. Joseph A. Scranton (R) 12. Edwin Sylvanus Osborne (R) 13. James Bernard Reilly (D) 14. John Winebrenner Rife (R) 15. Myron Benjamin Wright (R) 16. Henry Clay McCormick (R) 17. Charles R. Buckalew (D) 18. Louis E. Atkinson (R) 19. Levi Maish (D) 20. Edward Scull (R) 21. Samuel Alfred Craig (R) 22. John Dalzell (R) 23. Thomas McKee Bayne (R) 24. Joseph Warren Ray (R) 25. Charles Champlain Townsend (R) 26. William Constantine Culbertson (R) 27. Lewis Findlay Watson (R) until August 25, 1890 Charles Warren Stone (R) from November 4, 1890 28. James Kerr (D) Rhode Island 2 electoral districts 1. Henry J. Spooner (R) 2. Warren O. Arnold (R) South Carolina 7 constituencies. 1. Samuel Dibble (D) 2. George D. Tillman (D) 3. James S. Cothran (D) 4. William H. Perry (D) 5. John J. Hemphill (D) 6. George W. Dargan (D) 7. William Elliott (D) until September 23, 1890 Thomas E. Miller (R) from September 24, 1890 South Dakota State-wide election for both MPs John Pickler (R) from November 2, 1889 * Oscar S. Gifford (R) ab dem 2. November 1889 Tennessee 10 constituencies 1. Alfred A. Taylor (R) 2. Leonidas C. Houk (R) 3. H. Clay Evans (R) 4. Benton McMillin (D) 5. James D. Richardson (D) 6. Joseph E. Washington (D) 7. Washington C. Whitthorne (D) 8. Benjamin A. Enloe (D) 9. Rice Alexander Pierce (D) 10. James Phelan (D) until January 30, 1891. Thereafter the seat was vacant Texas 11 constituencies. 1. Charles Stewart (D) 2. William Harrison Martin (D) 3. Constantine B. Kilgore (D) 4. David B. Culberson (D) 5. Silas Hare (D) 6. Joseph Abbott (D) 7. William H. Crain (D) 8. Littleton W. Moore (D) 9. Roger Q. Mills (D) 10. Joseph D. Sayers (D) 11. Samuel WT Lanham (D) Vermont 2 constituencies 1. John Wolcott Stewart (R) 2. William W. Grout (R) Virginia 10 constituencies 1. Thomas HB Browne (R) 2. George E. Bowden (R) 3. George D. Wise (D) until April 10, 1890 Edmund Waddill (R) from April 12, 1890 4. Edward Carrington Venable (D) until September 23, 1890 John Mercer Langston (R) from September 23, 1890 5. Posey G. Lester (D) 6. Paul C. Edmunds (D) 7. Charles Triplett O'Ferrall (D) 8. William Lee (D) 9. John A. Buchanan (D) 10. Henry St. George Tucker III (D) Washington state wide election John Lockwood Wilson (R) from November 20, 1889 West Virginia 4 electoral divisions 1. John O. Pendleton (D) until February 26, 1890 George W. Atkinson (R) from February 26, 1890 2. William L. Wilson (D) 3. John D. Alderson (D) 4. James M. Jackson (D) until February 3, 1890 Charles Brooks Smith (R) from February 3, 1890 Wisconsin 9 constituencies 1. Lucien B. Caswell (R) 2. Charles Barwig (D) 3. Robert M. La Follette (R) 4. Isaac W. Van Schaick (R) 5. George H. Brickner (D) 6. Charles B. Clark (R) 7. Ormsby B. Thomas (R) 8. Nils P. Haugen (R) 9. Myron McCord (R) Wyoming state-wide election Clarence Don Clark (R) from December 1, 1890

Members of the House of Representatives who are not entitled to vote:

• Arizona Territory : Marcus A. Smith (D)
• Dakota Territory : George Arthur Mathews (R) through November 2, 1889
• Idaho Territory : Fred Dubois (R) through July 3, 1890
• Montana Territory : Thomas Henry Carter (R) through November 7, 1889
• New Mexico Territory : Antonio Joseph (D)
• Oklahoma Territory : David Archibald Harvey (R) from November 4, 1890
• Utah Territory : John Thomas Caine (D)
• Washington Territory : John Beard Allen (R) through November 11, 1889
• Wyoming Territory : Joseph Maull Carey (R) through July 10, 1890

Web links

Commons : 51st United States Congress  - Collection of Images, Videos, and Audio Files

• bioguide.congress.gov (by entering 51 under Year OR Congress: you get a list of the members of the 51st Congress with a link to the official biographies; English)