Fifty-first United States Congress

DATES OF SESSIONS

March 4 , 1889 – March 3 , 1891

Special Session of the Senate: March 4 , 1889 - April 2 , 1889 .

First session: December 2 , 1889 - October 1 , 1890

Second session: December 1 , 1890 - March 2 , 1891 — a Lame Duck session.

MAJOR EVENTS

Main article: Events Of 1889 ; Events Of 1890 ; Events Of 1891

This Congress was dominated by the Republican Party . It was responsible for a number of pieces of landmark legislation, many of which asserted the authority of the Federal Government .

Emboldened by their success in the elections of 1888, the Republicans enacted virtually their entire platform during their first 303-day session, including a measure that provided American Civil War veterans with generous pensions and expanded the list of eligible recipients to include noncombatants and the children of veterans. Grover Cleveland had vetoed a similar bill in 1887. It was criticized as the "Billion Dollar Congress'" for its lavish spending and, for this reason, it incited drastic reversals in public support that led to Cleveland's reelection in 1892 .

Other important legislation passed into law by the Congress included the McKinley Tariff , authored by Representative (and future President) William McKinley ; the Sherman Antitrust Act , which prohibited business combinations that restricted trade; and the Sherman Silver Purchase Act , which required the U.S. government to mint Silver . The last two were concessions to Western farmer interests in exchange for support of the tariff and would become central tenets of the Populist Party later in the decade. They were authored by Senator John Sherman of Ohio .

The Fifty-first Congress was also responsible for passing the Land Revision Act Of 1891 , which created the National Forest s. Harrison authorized America's first forest reserve in Yellowstone , Wyoming , the same year.

Other bills were discussed but failed to pass, including two significant pieces of legislation focused on ensuring African Americans the right to vote. Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts sponsored a so-called Force Bill that would have established federal supervision of Congressional elections so as to prevent the disfranchisement of southern blacks. Henry W. Blair of New Hampshire sponsored the Blair Education Bill , which advocated the use of federal aid for education in order to frustrate southern whites employing literacy tests to prevent blacks from registering to vote.

MAJOR LEGISLATION

:''Main article: List Of United States Federal Legislation In The Fifty-first Congress

July 2 , 1890 - Sherman Antitrust Act , (ch. 647, 26 Stat. 209, ''et seq.'')

1890 - Sherman Silver Purchase Act (ch. 708, 26 Stat. 289)

1890 - McKinley Tariff (ch. 1244, 26 Stat. 567)

1891 - Forest Reserve Act Of 1891

1891 - Land Revision Act Of 1891

PARTY SUMMARY

Senate

Republicans : 39

Democrats : 37

House of Representatives

Republicans : 167

Democrats : 152

Labor: 2

delegates: 1

OFFICERS

Senate

Vice President Of The United States (President of the Senate):

--- Levi P. Morton , '' Republican '' of New York .

President ''Pro Tempore'' :

--- John J. Ingalls , '' Republican '' of Kansas , first elected in this Congress March 7 , 1889 .

--- Charles F. Manderson , '' Republican '' of Nebraska , elected March 2 , 1891 .

Secretary Of The Senate :

--- Anson C. McCook of Ohio

Sergeant At Arms Of The Senate :

--- William P. Canaday of North Carolina

--- Edward K. Valentine of Nebraska

House of Representatives

Speaker Of The House :

--- Thomas B. Reed , '' Republican '' of Maine , elected December 2 , 1889 .

Clerk Of The House :

--- John B. Clark, Jr. of Missouri , reelected December 7 , 1885 .

--- Edward McPherson of Pennsylvania , reelected December 2 , 1889 .

Sergeant At Arms Of The House :

--- John P. Leedom of Ohio

Doorkeeper Of The House :

--- Charles E. Adams of Maryland

MEMBERS

At this time, Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six year terms with each Congress. Nearly all of the members of the House of Representatives were elected to single member districts, by popular vote.

See also: Fifty-first United States Congress - State Delegations

See also: Fifty-first United States Congress - Political Parties

See also: United States House Election, 1888

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district. Also listed at the end are the delegates from the then-existing organized territories.

Senate

:Alabama

John T. Morgan (1824-1907), '' Democratic ''

James L. Pugh (1820-1907), '' Democratic ''

:Arkansas

James K. Jones (1839-1908), '' Democratic ''

John D. Alderson (1854-1910), '' Democratic ''

:California

Leland Stanford (1824-1893), '' Republican ''

George Hearst (1820-1891), '' Democratic '' ...died in office February 28 , 1891 .

:Colorado

Henry M. Teller (1830-1914), '' Republican ''

Edward O. Wolcott (1848-1905), '' Republican ''

:Connecticut

Orville H. Platt (1827-1905), '' Republican ''

Joseph R. Hawley (1826-1905), '' Republican ''

:Delaware

George Gray (1840-1925), '' Democratic ''

Anthony Higgins (1840-1912), '' Republican ''

:Florida

Wilkinson Call (1834-1910), '' Democratic ''

Samuel Pasco (1834-1917), '' Democratic ''

:Georgia

Joseph E. Brown (1821-1894), '' Democratic ''

Alfred H. Colquitt (1824-1894), '' Democratic ''

:Idaho

George L. Shoup (1836-1904), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 29 , 1890 .

William J. McConnell (1839-1925), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated January 5 , 1891 .

:Illinois

Shelby M. Cullom (1829-1914), '' Republican ''

Charles B. Farwell (1823-1903), '' Republican ''

:Indiana

Daniel W. Voorhees (1827-1897), '' Democratic ''

David Turpie (1828-1909), '' Democratic ''

:Iowa

William B. Allison (1829-1908), '' Republican ''

James F. Wilson (1828-1895), '' Republican ''

:Kansas

John J. Ingalls (1833-1900), '' Republican ''

Preston B. Plumb (1837-1891), '' Republican ''

:Kentucky

James B. Beck (1822-1890), '' Democratic '' ...died in office May 3 , 1890 .

Joseph C.S. Blackburn (1838-1918), '' Democratic ''

John G. Carlisle (1834-1910), '' Democratic '' ...resigned House May 29 , 1890 , ...elected to fill vacancy, seated May 26 , 1890 .

:Louisiana

Randall L. Gibson (1832-1892), '' Democratic ''

James B. Eustis (1834-1899), '' Democratic ''

:Maine

Eugene Hale (1836-1918), '' Republican ''

William P. Frye (1830-1911), '' Republican ''

:Maryland

Arthur P. Gorman (1839-1906), '' Democratic ''

Ephraim K. Wilson (1821-1891), '' Democratic '' ...died in office February 24 , 1891 .

:Massachusetts

Henry L. Dawes (1816-1903), '' Republican ''

George F. Hoar (1826-1904), '' Republican ''

:Michigan

Francis B. Stockbridge (1826-1894), '' Republican ''

James McMillan (1838-1902), '' Republican ''

:Minnesota

Cushman K. Davis (1838-1900), '' Republican ''

William D. Washburn (1831-1912), '' Republican ''

:Mississippi

James Z. George (1826-1897), '' Democratic ''

Edward C. Walthall (1831-1898), '' Democratic ''

:Missouri

Francis M. Cockrell (1834-1915), '' Democratic ''

George G. Vest (1830-1904), '' Democratic ''

:Montana

Thomas C. Power (1839-1923), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated April 16 , 1890 .

Wilbur F. Sanders (1834-1905), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated April 16 , 1890 .

:Nebraska

Charles F. Manderson (1837-1911), '' Republican ''

Algernon S. Paddock (1830-1897), '' Republican ''

:Nevada

John P. Jones (1829-1912), '' Republican ''

William M. Stewart (1827-1909), '' Republican ''

:New Hampshire

Henry W. Blair (1834-1920), '' Republican ''

Gilman Marston (1811-1890), '' Republican '' …appointed to fill vacancy, served until June 18 , 1889 .

: William E. Chandler (1835-1917), '' Republican '' ...elected to fill vacancy, seated June 18 , 1889 .

:New Jersey

John R. McPherson (1833-1897), '' Democratic ''

Rufus Blodgett (1834-1910), '' Democratic ''

:New York

William M. Evarts (1818-1901), '' Republican ''

Frank Hiscock (1834-1914), '' Republican ''

:North Carolina

Matt W. Ransom (1826-1904), '' Democratic ''

Zebulon B. Vance (1830-1894), '' Democratic ''

:North Dakota

Lyman R. Casey (1837-1914), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 4 , 1889 .

Gilbert A. Pierce (1839-1901), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 4 , 1889 .

:Ohio

John Sherman (1823-1900), '' Republican ''

Henry B. Payne (1810-1896), '' Democratic ''

:Oregon

Joseph N. Dolph (1835-1897), '' Republican ''

John H. Mitchell (1835-1905), '' Republican ''

:Pennsylvania

J. Donald Cameron (1833-1918), '' Republican ''

Matthew S. Quay (1833-1904), '' Republican ''

:Rhode Island

Nelson W. Aldrich (1841-1915), '' Republican ''

Jonathan Chace (1829-1917), '' Republican '' ...resigned April 9 , 1889 .

Nathan F. Dixon (1847-1897), '' Republican '' ...elected to fill vacancy, seated December 2 , 1889 .

:South Carolina

Matthew C. Butler (1836-1909), '' Democratic ''

Wade Hampton, III (1818-1902), '' Democratic ''

:South Dakota

Richard F. Pettigrew (1848-1926), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 2 , 1889 .

Gideon C. Moody (1832-1904), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 2 , 1889 .

:Tennessee

Isham G. Harris (1818-1897), '' Democratic ''

William B. Bate (1826-1905), '' Democratic ''

:Texas

Richard Coke (1829-1897), '' Democratic ''

John H. Reagan (1818-1905), '' Democratic ''

:Vermont

George F. Edmunds (1828-1919), '' Republican ''

Justin S. Morrill (1810-1898), '' Republican ''

:Virginia

John W. Daniel (1842-1910), '' Democratic ''

John S. Barbour, Jr. (1820-1892), '' Democratic ''

:Washington

John B. Allen (1845-1903), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 2 , 1889 .

Watson C. Squire (1838-1926), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 2 , 1889 .

:West Virginia

John E. Kenna (1848-1893), '' Democratic ''

Charles J. Faulkner (1847-1929), '' Democratic ''

:Wisconsin

Philetus Sawyer (1816-1900), '' Republican ''

John C. Spooner (1843-1919), '' Republican ''

:Wyoming

Joseph M. Carey (1845-1924), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 1 , 1890 .

Francis E. Warren (1844-1929), '' Republican '' ...newly admitted state, seated December 1 , 1890 .

House of Representatives

:Alabama

1. Richard H. Clarke (1843-1906), '' Democratic ''

2. Hilary A. Herbert (1834-1919), '' Democratic ''

3. William C. Oates (1835-1910), '' Democratic ''

4. Louis W. Turpin (1849-1903), '' Democratic '' ...contested election, served until June 4 , 1890 .

: John V. McDuffie (1841-1896), '' Republican '' ...contested election, seated June 4 , 1890 .

5. James E. Cobb (1835-1903), '' Democratic ''

6. John H. Bankhead (1842-1920), '' Democratic ''

7. William H. Forney (1823-1894), '' Democratic ''

8. Joseph Wheeler (1836-1906), '' Democratic ''