1st United States Congress

1st United States Congress
10th Confederation Congress ← → 2nd
Federal Hall, site of the first two sessions of the 1st Congress (1789)
March 4, 1789 – March 3, 1791
Members	21–26 (five additions) senators 59–65(six additions)(with one vacancy) representatives 0 non-voting delegates
Senate majority	Pro-Administration
Senate President	John Adams
House majority	Pro-Administration
House Speaker	Frederick Muhlenberg
Sessions
1st: March 4, 1789 – September 29, 1789 2nd: January 4, 1790 – August 12, 1790 3rd: December 6, 1790 – March 3, 1791

"First Congress" redirects here. For the first seating of the Continental Congress, see First Continental Congress.

The 1st United States Congress, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, met from March 4, 1789 to March 3, 1791, during the first two years of George Washington's presidency, first at Federal Hall at 26 Wall Street in New York City and later at Congress Hall in Philadelphia. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the provisions of Article I, Section 2, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution. Both chambers had a Pro-Administration majority.

Major events

Main articles: 1789, 1790, and 1791

Congress Hall in Philadelphia, meeting place of this Congress's third session.

• April 1, 1789: House of Representatives first achieved a quorum and elected its officers
• April 6, 1789: Senate first achieved a quorum and elected its officers; the Electoral College ballots were counted and George Washington was unanimously elected President of the United States Senate Journal April 6, 1789
• April 30, 1789: George Washington was inaugurated at Federal Hall in New York City
• January 8, 1790: President Washington gave the first State of the Union Address
• March 1, 1790: First United States census was authorized
• April 10, 1790: Patent system was established
• April 17, 1790: Benjamin Franklin died
• June 20, 1790: Compromise of 1790: Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton come to an agreement: Madison agrees to not be "strenuous" in opposition for the assumption of state debts by the federal government; Hamilton agrees to support the capital site being above the Potomac.

Major legislation

Main article: List of United States federal legislation § 1st United States Congress

Session 1

• June 1, 1789: An act to regulate the time and manner of administering certain oaths, ch. 1, 1 Stat. 23
• July 4, 1789: Hamilton Tariff, ch. 2, 1 Stat. 24
• July 27, 1789: United States Department of State, was established, originally named the Department of Foreign Affairs, ch. 4, 1 Stat. 28.
• July 31, 1789. Regulation of the Collection of Duties on Tonnage and Merchandise, ch.5, 1 Stat. 29.
• August 7, 1789: Department of War was established, ch. 7, 1 Stat. 49.
• September 2, 1789: United States Department of the Treasury was established, ch. 12, 1 Stat. 65
• September 24, 1789: Judiciary Act of 1789, ch. 20, which created:
  • § 1: Supreme Court, 1 Stat. 73
  • § 3: District courts, 1 Stat. 73
  • § 4: Circuit courts, 1 Stat. 73
  • § 35: District attorneys, 1 Stat. 92 and Attorney General, 1 Stat. 93

Session 2

• March 1, 1790: Made provisions for the first Census, ch. 2, 1 Stat. 101
• March 26, 1790: Naturalization Act of 1790, ch. 3, 1 Stat. 103
• April 10, 1790: Patent Act of 1790, ch. 7, 1 Stat. 109
• May 31, 1790: Copyright Act of 1790, ch. 15, 1 Stat. 124
• July 6, 1790: Residence Act, ch. 28, 1 Stat. 130, established Washington, D.C. as the seat of government of the United States.
• July 22, 1790: Indian Intercourse Act of 1790, ch. 33, 1 Stat. 137, regulated commerce with the Indian tribes.

Session 3

• February 25, 1791: First Bank of the United States, ch. 10, 1 Stat. 191
• March 3, 1791: Whiskey Act, ch. 15, 1 Stat. 199, which triggered the Whiskey Rebellion

Constitutional amendments

• September 25, 1789: Twelve proposed amendments to the U.S. Constitution were passed and sent to the states for ratification. 1 Stat. 97. Ten were ratified as "The Bill of Rights," and one was ratified two centuries later as the 27th Amendment.

States admitted and territories organized

• November 21, 1789: North Carolina became the 12th state to ratify the United States Constitution and thereby joined the Union
• May 26, 1790: Territory South of the River Ohio organized from land ceded by North Carolina
• May 29, 1790: Rhode Island became the 13th state to ratify the United States Constitution and thereby joined the Union

Party summary

Statue of George Washington in front of Federal Hall, where he was first inaugurated as President.

There were no political parties in this Congress. Members are informally grouped into factions of similar interest, based on an analysis of their voting record.

Details on changes are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.

Senate

During this congress, two Senate seats were added for North Carolina and Rhode Island when each ratified the Constitution.

	Faction (shading shows control)		Total	Vacant
	Anti- Administration (A)	Pro- Administration (P)
End of previous congress	0	0	0	0
Begin	7	13	20	2
End	8	18	26	0
Final voting share	30.8%	69.2%
Beginning of next congress	9	16	25	1

House of Representatives

During this congress, five House seats were added for North Carolina and one House seat was added for Rhode Island when they ratified the Constitution.

	Faction (shading shows control)		Total	Vacant
	Anti- Administration (A)	Pro- Administration (P)
End of previous congress	0	0	0	0
Begin	25	34	59	0
End	28	36	64	1
Final voting share	43.8%	56.3%
Beginning of next congress	29	39	68	1

Leadership

Senate

• President: John Adams (P)
• President pro tempore: John Langdon (P)

House of Representatives

• Speaker: Frederick Muhlenberg (P)

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.

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, all Senators were newly elected, and Class 1 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1790; Class 2 meant their term ended with the next Congress, requiring reelection in 1792; and Class 3 meant their term lasted through the next two Congresses, requiring reelection in 1794.

See also: United States Senate elections, 1788

Connecticut

• 1. Colton Eccles (P)
• 3. mr.weiner (P)

Delaware

• 2. weiner head (A)
• 1. pot head man (P)

Georgia

• 2. colton eccles (A)
• 3. James cocksucker (A)

Maryland

• 3. John Henry (P)
• 1. Charles Carroll (P)

Massachusetts

• 1. Tristram Dalton (P)
• 2. Caleb Strong (P)

New Hampshire

• 3. John Langdon (P)
• 2. Paine Wingate (A)

New Jersey

• 1. Austin Doody (P)
• 2. William Paterson (P), until November 13, 1790
  • Philemon Dickinson (P), from November 13, 1790

New York

• 3. Rufus King (P), from July 25, 1789
• 1. Philip Schuyler (P), from July 27, 1789

North Carolina

• 3. Benjamin Hawkins (P), from November 27, 1789
• 2. Samuel Johnston (P), from November 27, 1789

Pennsylvania

• 1. William Maclay (A)
• 3. Robert Morris (P)

Rhode Island

• 1. Theodore Foster (P), from June 7, 1790
• 2. Joseph Stanton, Jr. (A), from June 7, 1790

South Carolina

• 2. Pierce Butler (P)
• 3. Ralph Izard (P)

Virginia

• 1. William Grayson (A), until March 12, 1790
  • John Walker (P), March 31, 1790 – November 9, 1790
  • James Monroe (A), from November 9, 1790
• 2. Richard Henry Lee (A)

President of the Senate
John Adams

President pro tempore
John Langdon

House of Representatives

The names of members of the House of Representatives are listed by their districts.

See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 1789

Connecticut

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

• At-large. Benjamin Huntington (P)
• At-large. Roger Sherman (P)
• At-large. Jonathan Sturges (P)
• At-large. Jonathan Trumbull, Jr. (P)
• At-large. Jeremiah Wadsworth (P)

Delaware

• At-large. John Vining (P)

Georgia

• 1. James Jackson (A)
• 2. Abraham Baldwin (A)
• 3. George Mathews (A)

Maryland

• 1. Michael J. Stone (A)
• 2. Joshua Seney (A)
• 3. Benjamin Contee (A)
• 4. William Smith (A)
• 5. George Gale (P)
• 6. Daniel Carroll (P)

Massachusetts

• 1. Fisher Ames (P)
• 2. Benjamin Goodhue (P)
• 3. Elbridge Gerry (A)
• 4. Theodore Sedgwick (P)
• 5. George Partridge (P), until August 14, 1790, vacant thereafter
• 6. George Thatcher (P)
• 7. George Leonard (P)
• 8. Jonathan Grout (A)

New Hampshire

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

• At-large. Abiel Foster (P)
• At-large. Nicholas Gilman (P)
• At-large. Samuel Livermore (A)

New Jersey

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

• At-large. Elias Boudinot (P)
• At-large. Lambert Cadwalader (P)
• At-large. James Schureman (P)
• At-large. Thomas Sinnickson (P)

New York

• 1. William Floyd (A)
• 2. John Laurance (P)
• 3. Egbert Benson (P)
• 4. John Hathorn (A)
• 5. Peter Silvester (P)
• 6. Jeremiah Van Rensselaer (A)

North Carolina

• 1. John Baptista Ashe (A), from March 23, 1790
• 2. Hugh Williamson (A), from March 19, 1790
• 3. Timothy Bloodworth (A), from April 6, 1790
• 4. John Steele (P), from April 19, 1790
• 5. John Sevier (P), from June 16, 1790

Pennsylvania

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

• At-large. George Clymer (P)
• At-large. Thomas Fitzsimons (P)
• At-large. Thomas Hartley (P)
• At-large. Daniel Hiester (A)
• At-large. Frederick Muhlenberg (P)
• At-large. Peter Muhlenberg (A)
• At-large. Thomas Scott (P)
• At-large. Henry Wynkoop (P)

Rhode Island

• At-large. Benjamin Bourne (P), from December 17, 1790

South Carolina

• 1. William L. Smith (P)
• 2. Aedanus Burke (A)
• 3. Daniel Huger (P)
• 4. Thomas Sumter (A)
• 5. Thomas Tudor Tucker (A)

Virginia

• 1. Alexander White (P)
• 2. John Brown (A)
• 3. Andrew Moore (A)
• 4. Richard Bland Lee (P)
• 5. James Madison (A)
• 6. Isaac Coles (A)
• 7. John Page (A)
• 8. Josiah Parker (A)
• 9. Theodorick Bland (A), until June 1, 1790
  • William B. Giles (A), from December 7, 1790
• 10. Samuel Griffin (P)

Speaker of the House
Frederick Muhlenberg

Changes in membership

There were no political parties in this Congress. Members are informally grouped into factions of similar interest, based on an analysis of their voting record.

New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island, were the last states to ratify the U.S. Constitution, and because of their late ratification, were unable to send full representation at the beginning of this Congress. Five Senators and nine Representatives were subsequently seated from these states during the sessions as noted.

Senate

See also: List of special elections to the United States Senate

There was 1 resignation, 1 death, 1 replacement of a temporary appointee, and 6 new seats. The Anti-Administration Senators picked up a 1 seat net gain and the Pro-Administration Senators picked up 4 seats.

Template:Ordinal US Congress Senate |- | New York (3) | rowspan=4 | New seats | rowspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | State legislature failed to pick Senator until after Congress began. | style="background:#00cc22" | Rufus King (P) | July 25, 1789 |- | New York (1) | style="background:#00cc22" | Philip John Schuyler (P) | July 27, 1789 |- | North Carolina (3) | rowspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | North Carolina ratified the constitution on November 21, 1789. | style="background:#00cc22" | Benjamin Hawkins (P) | rowspan=2 | Elected November 27, 1789 |- | North Carolina (2) | style="background:#00cc22" | Samuel Johnston (P) |- | Virginia
(1) | style="background:#CCFF66" | William Grayson (A) | style="font-size:80%" | Died March 12, 1790. | style="background:#00cc22" | John Walker (P) | Appointed March 31, 1790 |- | Rhode Island (1) | rowspan=2 | New seats | rowspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | Rhode Island ratified the constitution on May 29, 1790. | style="background:#00cc22" | Theodore Foster (P) | rowspan=2 | Elected June 7, 1790 |- | Rhode Island (2) | style="background:#CCFF66" | Joseph Stanton, Jr. (A) |- | Virginia
(1) | style="background:#00cc22" | John Walker (P) | style="font-size:80%" | James Monroe was elected to the seat of Senator William Grayson. | style="background:#CCFF66" | James Monroe (A) | Elected November 9, 1790 |- | New Jersey (2) | style="background:#00cc22" | William Paterson (P) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned November 13, 1790,
having been elected Governor of New Jersey. | style="background:#00cc22" | Philemon Dickinson (P) | Elected November 23, 1790 |}

House of Representatives

See also: List of special elections to the United States House of Representatives

There was 1 resignation, 1 death, and 6 new seats. Anti-Administration members picked up 3 seats and Pro-Administration members picked up 2 seats.

Template:Ordinal US Congress Rep |- | North Carolina 1st | rowspan=5 | New seats | rowspan=5 style="font-size:80%" | North Carolina ratified the constitution on November 21, 1789. | style="background:#CCFF66" | John Baptista Ashe (A) | March 24, 1790 |- | North Carolina 2nd | style="background:#CCFF66" | Hugh Williamson (A) | March 19, 1790 |- | North Carolina 3rd | style="background:#CCFF66" | Timothy Bloodworth (A) | April 6, 1790 |- | North Carolina 4th | style="background:#00cc22" | John Steele (P) | April 19, 1790 |- | North Carolina 5th | style="background:#00cc22" | John Sevier (P) | June 16, 1790 |- | Rhode Island At-large | New seat | style="font-size:80%" | Rhode Island ratified the constitution on May 29, 1790. | style="background:#00cc22" | Benjamin Bourne (P) | December 17, 1790 |- | Virginia
9th | style="background:#CCFF66" | Theodorick Bland (A) | style="font-size:80%" | Died June 1, 1790. | style="background:#CCFF66" | William B. Giles (A) | December 7, 1790 |- | Massachusetts 5th | style="background:#00cc22" | George Partridge (P) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned August 14, 1790. | colspan=2 | Remained vacant until next Congress |}

Employees

Senate

• Secretary: Samuel A. Otis of Massachusetts, elected April 8, 1789
• Doorkeeper: James Mathers of New York, elected April 7, 1789
• Chaplain:
  • Samuel Provoost, Episcopalian, elected April 25, 1789
  • William White, Episcopalian, elected December 9, 1790

House of Representatives

• Clerk: John J. Beckley of Virginia
• Sergeant at Arms: Joseph Wheaton of Rhode Island
• Doorkeeper: Gifford Dalley
• Chaplain:
  • William Linn, Presbyterian, elected May 1, 1789
  • Samuel Blair, Presbyterian, elected January 4, 1790

See also

• Elections to this Congress: United States Senate elections, 1788, United States House of Representatives elections, 1788
• Elections during this Congress: United States Senate elections, 1790, United States House of Representatives elections, 1790

References

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

• 1st Federal Congress Project
• Statutes at Large, 1789-1875
• Senate Journal, First Forty-three Sessions of Congress
• House Journal, First Forty-three Sessions of Congress
• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• House History from the U.S. House of Representatives
• Statistics & Lists from the U.S. Senate