my-server
← Wiki Redirected from 26th Congress

26th United States Congress

The 26th 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, 1839, to March 4, 1841, during the third and fourth years of Martin Van Buren's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1830 United States census. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.

Major events

Major legislation

Party summary

Senate

House of Representatives

Leadership

Senate

House of Representatives

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed by class, and representatives are listed by district.

Skip to House of Representatives, below

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 began with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1844; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1840; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1842.

Alabama

2. William R. King (D)
3. Clement C. Clay (D)

Arkansas

2. William S. Fulton (D)
3. Ambrose H. Sevier (D)

Connecticut

1. Thaddeus Betts (W), until April 7, 1840
: Jabez W. Huntington (W), from May 4, 1840
3. Perry Smith (D)

Delaware

1. Richard H. Bayard (W), until September 19, 1839
: Richard H. Bayard (W), from January 12, 1841
2. Thomas Clayton (W)

Georgia

2. Wilson Lumpkin (D)
3. Alfred Cuthbert (D)

Illinois

2. John M. Robinson (D)
3. Richard M. Young (D)

Indiana

1. Albert S. White (W)
3. Oliver H. Smith (W)

Kentucky

2. John J. Crittenden (W)
3. Henry Clay (W)

Louisiana

2. Robert C. Nicholas (D)
3. Alexander Mouton (D)

Maine

1. Reuel Williams (D)
2. John Ruggles (D)

Maryland

1. William D. Merrick (W)
3. John S. Spence (W), until October 24, 1840
: John L. Kerr (W), from January 5, 1841

Massachusetts

1. Daniel Webster (W), until February 22, 1841
: Rufus Choate (W), from February 23, 1841
2. John Davis (W), until January 5, 1841
: Isaac C. Bates (W), from January 13, 1841

Michigan

1. Augustus S. Porter (W), from January 20, 1840
2. John Norvell (D)

Mississippi

1. John Henderson (W)
2. Robert J. Walker (D)

Missouri

1. Thomas H. Benton (D)
3. Lewis F. Linn (D)

New Hampshire

2. Henry Hubbard (D)
3. Franklin Pierce (D)

New Jersey

1. Samuel L. Southard (W)
2. Garret D. Wall (D)

New York

1. Nathaniel P. Tallmadge (W), from January 14, 1840
3. Silas Wright Jr. (D)

North Carolina

2. Bedford Brown (D), until November 16, 1840
: Willie P. Mangum (W), from November 25, 1840
3. Robert Strange (D), until November 16, 1840
: William A. Graham (W), from November 25, 1840

Ohio

1. Benjamin Tappan (D)
3. William Allen (D)

Pennsylvania

1. Daniel Sturgeon (D), from January 14, 1840
3. James Buchanan (D)

Rhode Island

1. Nathan F. Dixon (W)
2. Nehemiah R. Knight (W)

South Carolina

2. John C. Calhoun (D)
3. William C. Preston (W)

Tennessee

1. Felix Grundy (D), November 19, 1839 – December 19, 1840
: Alfred O. P. Nicholson (D), from December 25, 1840
2. Hugh Lawson White (W), until January 13, 1840
: Alexander O. Anderson (D), from February 26, 1840

Vermont

1. Samuel S. Phelps (W)
3. Samuel Prentiss (W)

Virginia

1. William C. Rives (W), from January 18, 1841
2. William H. Roane (D)

House of Representatives

The names of representatives are preceded by their district numbers.

Alabama

. Reuben Chapman (D)
. David Hubbard (D)
. George W. Crabb (W)
. Dixon H. Lewis (D)
. James Dellet (W)

Arkansas

. Edward Cross (D)

Connecticut

. Joseph Trumbull (W)
. William L. Storrs (W), until June ???, 1840
: William W. Boardman (W), from December 7, 1840
. Thomas W. Williams (W)
. Thomas B. Osborne (W)
. Truman Smith (W)
. John H. Brockway (W)

Delaware

. Thomas Robinson Jr. (D)

Georgia

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

. Julius C. Alford (W)
. Edward J. Black (W)
. Walter T. Colquitt (W), until July 21, 1840
: Hines Holt (W), from February 1, 1841
. Mark A. Cooper (W)
. William C. Dawson (W)
. Richard W. Habersham (W)
. Thomas Butler King (W)
. Eugenius A. Nisbet (W)
. Lott Warren (W)

Illinois

. John Reynolds (D)
. Zadok Casey (D)
. John T. Stuart (W)

Indiana

. George H. Proffit (W)
. John W. Davis (D)
. John Carr (D)
. Thomas Smith (D)
. James Rariden (W)
. William W. Wick (D)
. Tilghman A. Howard (D), until July 1, 1840
: Henry S. Lane (W), from August 3, 1840

Kentucky

. Linn Boyd (D)
. Philip Triplett (W)
. Joseph R. Underwood (W)
. Sherrod Williams (W)
. Simeon H. Anderson (W), until August 11, 1840
: John B. Thompson (W), from December 7, 1840
. Willis Green (W)
. John Pope (W)
. William J. Graves (W)
. John White (W)
. Richard Hawes (W)
. Landaff W. Andrews (W)
. Garrett Davis (W)
. William O. Butler (D)

Louisiana

. Edward D. White (W)
. Thomas W. Chinn (W)
. Rice Garland (W), until July 21, 1840
: John Moore (W), from December 17, 1840

Maine

. Nathan Clifford (D)
. Albert Smith (D)
. Benjamin Randall (W)
. George Evans (W), until March 3, 1841
. Virgil D. Parris (D)
. Hugh J. Anderson (D)
. Joshua A. Lowell (D)
. Thomas Davee (D)

Maryland

The 4th district was a plural district with two representatives.

. John Dennis (W)
. Philip F. Thomas (D)
. John T. H. Worthington (D)
. James Carroll (D)
. Solomon Hillen Jr. (D)
. William Cost Johnson (W)
. Francis Thomas (D)
. Daniel Jenifer (W)

Massachusetts

. Abbott Lawrence (W), until September 18, 1840
: Robert C. Winthrop (W), from November 9, 1840
. Leverett Saltonstall I (W)
. Caleb Cushing (W)
. William Parmenter (D)
. Levi Lincoln Jr. (W)
. James C. Alvord (W), until September 27, 1839
: Osmyn Baker (W), from January 14, 1840
. George N. Briggs (W)
. William B. Calhoun (W)
. William S. Hastings (W)
. Henry Williams (D)
. John Reed Jr. (W)
. John Quincy Adams (W)

Michigan

. Isaac E. Crary (D)

Mississippi

Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

. Albert G. Brown (D)
. Jacob Thompson (D)

Missouri

Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

. Albert G. Harrison (D), until September 7, 1839
: John Jameson (D), from December 12, 1839
. John Miller (D)

New Hampshire

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

. Charles G. Atherton (D)
. Edmund Burke (D)
. Ira A. Eastman (D)
. Tristram Shaw (D)
. Jared W. Williams (D)

New Jersey

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

. William R. Cooper (D)
. Philemon Dickerson (D)
. Joseph Kille (D)
. Joseph F. Randolph (W)
. Daniel B. Ryall (D)
. Peter D. Vroom (D)

New York

There were four plural districts, the 8th, 17th, 22nd & 23rd had two representatives each, the 3rd had four representatives.

. Thomas B. Jackson (D)
. James De la Montanya (D)
. Edward Curtis (W)
. Moses H. Grinnell (W)
. Ogden Hoffman (W)
. James Monroe (W)
. Gouverneur Kemble (D)
. Charles Johnston (W)
. Nathaniel Jones (D)
. Rufus Palen (W)
. John Ely (D)
. Aaron Vanderpoel (D)
. Hiram P. Hunt (W)
. Daniel D. Barnard (W)
. Anson Brown (W), until June 14, 1840
: Nicholas B. Doe (W), from December 7, 1840
. David A. Russell (W)
. Augustus C. Hand (D)
. John Fine (D)
. Peter J. Wagner (W)
. Andrew W. Doig (D)
. David P. Brewster (D)
. John G. Floyd (D)
. Thomas C. Chittenden (W)
. John H. Prentiss (D)
. Judson Allen (D)
. John C. Clark (W)
. Amasa Dana (D)
. Stephen B. Leonard (D)
. Nehemiah H. Earll (D)
. Edward Rogers (D)
. Christopher Morgan (W)
. Theron R. Strong (D)
. Francis Granger (W)
. Meredith Mallory (D)
. Thomas Kempshall (W)
. Seth M. Gates (W)
. Luther C. Peck (W)
. Richard P. Marvin (W)
. Millard Fillmore (W)
. Charles F. Mitchell (W)

North Carolina

. Kenneth Rayner (W)
. Jesse A. Bynum (D)
. Edward Stanly (W)
. Charles B. Shepard (D)
. James I. McKay (D)
. Micajah T. Hawkins (D)
. Edmund Deberry (W)
. William Montgomery (D)
. John Hill (D)
. Charles Fisher (D)
. Henry W. Connor (D)
. James Graham (W)
. Lewis Williams (W)

Ohio

. Alexander Duncan (D)
. John B. Weller (D)
. Patrick G. Goode (W)
. Thomas Corwin (W), until May 30, 1840
: Jeremiah Morrow (W), from October 13, 1840
. William Doan (D)
. Calvary Morris (W)
. William K. Bond (W)
. Joseph Ridgway (W)
. William Medill (D)
. Samson Mason (W)
. Isaac Parrish (D)
. Jonathan Taylor (D)
. Daniel P. Leadbetter (D)
. George Sweeny (D)
. John W. Allen (W)
. Joshua R. Giddings (W)
. John Hastings (D)
. David A. Starkweather (D)
. Henry Swearingen (D)

Pennsylvania

There were two plural districts, the 2nd had two representatives, the 4th had three representatives.

. Lemuel Paynter (D)
. John Sergeant (W)
. George W. Toland (W)
. Charles Naylor (W)
. Edward Davies (AM)
. John Edwards (AM)
. Francis James (AM)
. Joseph Fornance (D)
. John Davis (D)
. David D. Wagener (D)
. Peter Newhard (D)
. George M. Keim (D)
. William Simonton (W)
. James Gerry (D)
. James Cooper (W)
. William S. Ramsey (D), until October 17, 1840
: Charles McClure (D), from December 7, 1840
. William W. Potter (D), until October 28, 1839
: George McCulloch (D), from November 20, 1839
. David Petrikin (D)
. Robert H. Hammond (D)
. Samuel W. Morris (D)
. Charles Ogle (AM)
. Albert G. Marchand (D)
. Enos Hook (D)
. Isaac Leet (D)
. Richard Biddle (AM), until July 21, 1840
: Henry M. Brackenridge (W), from October 13, 1840
. William Beatty (D)
. Thomas Henry (AM)
. John Galbraith (D)

Rhode Island

. Robert B. Cranston (W)
. Joseph L. Tillinghast (W)

South Carolina

. Isaac E. Holmes (D)
. Robert Rhett (D)
. John Campbell (D)
. Sampson H. Butler (D)
. Francis W. Pickens (D)
. Waddy Thompson Jr. (W)
. James Rogers (D)
. Thomas D. Sumter (D)
. John K. Griffin (D)

Tennessee

. William B. Carter (W)
. Abraham McClellan (D)
. Joseph L. Williams (W)
. Julius W. Blackwell (D)
. Hopkins L. Turney (D)
. William B. Campbell (W)
. John Bell (W)
. Meredith P. Gentry (W)
. Harvey M. Watterson (D)
. Aaron V. Brown (D)
. Cave Johnson (D)
. John W. Crockett (W)
. Christopher H. Williams (W)

Vermont

. Hiland Hall (W)
. William Slade (W)
. Horace Everett (W)
. John Smith (D)
. Isaac Fletcher (D)

Virginia

. Joel Holleman (D), until December 1840
: Francis Mallory (W), from December 28, 1840
. Francis E. Rives (D)
. John W. Jones (D)
. George C. Dromgoole (D)
. John Hill (W)
. Walter Coles (D)
. William L. Goggin (W)
. Henry A. Wise (W)
. Robert M. T. Hunter (W)
. John Taliaferro (W)
. John M. Botts (W)
. James Garland (C)
. Linn Banks (D)
. Charles F. Mercer (W), until December 26, 1839
: William M. McCarty (W), from January 25, 1840
. William Lucas (D)
. Green B. Samuels (D)
. Robert Craig (D)
. George W. Hopkins (C)
. Andrew Beirne (D)
. Joseph Johnson (D)
. Lewis Steenrod (D)

Non-voting members

. Charles Downing
. William W. Chapman (D), until October 27, 1840
: Augustus C. Dodge (D), from October 28, 1840
. James D. Doty (D)

Changes in membership

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

Senate

  • Replacements: 8
  • Democrats: 0-seat net loss
  • Whigs: 0-seat net gain
  • Deaths: 3
  • Resignations: 7
  • Interim appointments: 0
  • Total seats with changes: 11

|- | Tennessee<br>(1) | colspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | Vacant after previous Congress | | Felix Grundy (D) | Elected November 19, 1839

|- | New York<br>(1) | colspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | Vacant after previous Congress | | Nathaniel P. Tallmadge (W) | Elected January 14, 1840

|- | Pennsylvania<br>(1) | colspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | Vacant after previous Congress | | Daniel Sturgeon (D) | Elected January 14, 1840 |- | Michigan<br>(1) | colspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | Vacant after legislature failed to reelect incumbent. | | Augustus S. Porter (W) | Elected January 20, 1840 |- | Virginia<br>(1) | colspan=2 style="font-size:80%" | Vacant after legislature failed to reelect incumbent. | | William C. Rives (W) | Elected January 18, 1841 |- | Delaware<br>(1) | | Richard H. Bayard (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned September 19, 1839, to become Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court | | Richard H. Bayard (W) | Elected January 12, 1841, to his former position |- | Tennessee<br>(2) | | Hugh Lawson White (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned January 13, 1840, because he could not conscientiously obey the intentions of his constituents | | Alexander O. Anderson (D) | Elected February 26, 1840 |- | Connecticut<br>(1) | | Thaddeus Betts (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Died April 7, 1840 | | Jabez W. Huntington (W) | Elected May 4, 1840 |- | Maryland<br>(3) | | John S. Spence (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Died October 24, 1840 | | John L. Kerr (W) | Elected January 5, 1841 |- | North Carolina<br>(2) | | Bedford Brown (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned November 16, 1840, because he could not obey instructions of the North Carolina General Assembly | | Willie P. Mangum (W) | Elected November 25, 1840 |- | North Carolina<br>(3) | | Robert Strange (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned November 16, 1840 | | William A. Graham (W) | Elected November 25, 1840 |- | Tennessee<br>(1) | | Felix Grundy (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Died December 19, 1840 | | Alfred O. P. Nicholson (D) | Elected December 25, 1840 |- | Massachusetts<br>(2) | | John Davis (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned January 5, 1841, after being elected Governor of Massachusetts | | Isaac C. Bates (W) | Elected January 13, 1841 |- | Massachusetts<br>(1) | | Daniel Webster (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned February 22, 1841 | | Rufus Choate (W) | Elected February 23, 1841

House of Representatives

  • Replacements: 15
  • Democrats: 2-seat net loss
  • Whigs: 3-seat net gain
  • Anti-Masonic: 1-seat net loss
  • Deaths: 6
  • Resignations: 10
  • Contested election: 0
  • Total seats with changes: 17

|- | | Vacant | style="font-size:80%" | Rep-elect Howard presented credentials August 5, 1839 | | Tilghman Howard (D) | Seated August 5, 1839 |- | | | Albert G. Harrison (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Died September 7, 1839 | | John Jameson (D) | Seated December 12, 1839 |- | | | James C. Alvord (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Died September 27, 1839 | | Osmyn Baker (W) | Seated January 14, 1840 |- | | | William W. Potter (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Died October 28, 1839 | | George McCulloch (D) | Seated November 20, 1839 |- | | | Charles F. Mercer (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned December 26, 1839 | | William M. McCarty (W) | Seated January 25, 1840 |- | | | Thomas Corwin (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned May 30, 1840, having become a candidate for Governor of Ohio | | Jeremiah Morrow (W) | Seated October 13, 1840 |- | | | William L. Storrs (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned some time in June, 1840 | | William W. Boardman (W) | Seated December 7, 1840 |- | | | Anson Brown (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Died June 14, 1840 | | Nicholas B. Doe (W) | Seated December 7, 1840 |- | | | Tilghman Howard (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned July 1, 1840 | | HHenry S. Lane (W) | Seated August 3, 1840 |- | | | Walter T. Colquitt (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned July 21, 1840 | | Hines Holt (W) | Seated February 1, 1841 |- | | | Rice Garland (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned July 21, 1840, to accept appointment as judge of Louisiana Supreme Court | | John Moore (W) | Seated December 17, 1840 |- | | | Richard Biddle (AM) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned July 21, 1840 | | Henry M. Brackenridge (W) | Seated October 13, 1840 |- | | | Simeon H. Anderson (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Died August 11, 1840 | | John B. Thompson (W) | Seated December 7, 1840 |- | | | Abbott Lawrence (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned September 18, 1840 | | Robert C. Winthrop (W) | Seated November 9, 1840 |- | | | William S. Ramsey (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Died October 17, 1840 | | Charles McClure (D) | Seated December 7, 1840 |- | | | William W. Chapman (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Term expired by law October 27, 1840 | | Augustus C. Dodge (D) | Seated October 28, 1840 |- | | | Joel Holleman (D) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned in December 1840 | | Francis Mallory (W) | Seated December 28, 1840 |- | | | George Evans (W) | style="font-size:80%" | Resigned March 3, 1841, after being elected to the US Senate | Vacant | Not filled this term

Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders.

Senate

House of Representatives

Joint committees

Employees

Senate

House of Representatives

See also

Notes

References

External links