34th United States Congress

From Citizendium - Reading time: 19 min

United States Capitol

The Thirty-fourth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1855 to March 3, 1857, during the last two years of the administration of U.S. President Franklin Pierce.

The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the |Seventh Census of the United States in 1850. The Senate had a Democratic majority, and the House had an anti-Democratic, coalition majority.

Dates of sessions[edit]

March 4, 1855 - March 3, 1857

  • First session: December 3, 1855 - August 18, 1856
  • Second session: August 21, 1856 - August 30, 1856
  • Third session: December 1, 1856 - March 3, 1857
  • Previous congress: 33rd Congress
  • Next congress: 35th Congress

Party summary[edit]

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.

During the time of the elections for the Thirty-Fourth Congress opponents to the Democrats used the Whig party label inconsistently and not at all in some states. Hence in this Congress, and in accordance with the practice of the Senate and House, representatives not associated with the Democratic Party or the American Party are labeled as “Opposition.” This is the first example in U.S. history of a form of coalition government in either house of Congress.

Senate

TOTAL members: 62

House of Representatives

TOTAL members: 234

Leadership[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives

Major events[edit]

Events of 1855, 1856 and 1857

Major legislation[edit]

List of United States federal legislation in the 34th Congress

Membership highlights by chamber[edit]

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

Senate[edit]

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 1856; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1858; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1860.

Alabama
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Mississippi
Missouri
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Wisconsin

House of Representatives[edit]

The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide on the general ticket or otherwise at-large, are preceded by an "A/L," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.

Many of the congressional district numbers are linked to articles describing the district itself. Since the boundaries of the districts have changed often and substantially, the linked article may only describe the district as it exists today, and not as it was at the time of this Congress.

Alabama
Arkansas
California [2]
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Mississippi
Missouri
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Wisconsin

Delegates[edit]

Kansas Territory
Minnesota Territory
Nebraska Territory
New Mexico Territory
Oregon Territory
Utah Territory
Washington Territory


Membership detail by state[edit]

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 1856; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1858; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1860.

The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide on the general ticket or otherwise at-large, are preceded by an "A/L," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.

Many of the congressional district numbers are linked to articles describing the district itself. Since the boundaries of the districts have changed often and substantially, the linked article may only describe the district as it exists today, and not as it was at the time of this Congress.

The list below is arranged by state, then by chamber. Senators are shown in order of seniority, House members in district order.

Alabama[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (7 seats)

Arkansas[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

California[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats) [3]

Connecticut[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Delaware[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (1 seat)

Florida[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (1 seat)

Georgia[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (8 seats)

Illinois[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (9 seats)

Indiana[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (11 seats)

Iowa[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

Kentucky[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (10 seats)

Louisiana[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Maine[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (6 seats)

Maryland[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (6 seats)

Massachusetts[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (11 seats)

Michigan[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Mississippi[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (5 seats)

Missouri[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (7 seats)

New Hampshire[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (3 seats)

New Jersey[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (5 seats)

New York[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (33 seats)

North Carolina[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (8 seats)

Ohio[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (21 seats)

Pennsylvania[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (25 seats)

Rhode Island[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

South Carolina[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (6 seats)

Tennessee[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (10 seats)

Texas[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

Vermont[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (3 seats)

Virginia[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (13 seats)

Wisconsin[edit]

Senate
House of Representatives (3 seats)

Delegates[edit]

Kansas Territory
Minnesota Territory
Nebraska Territory
New Mexico Territory
Oregon Territory
Utah Territory
Washington Territory


Membership detail by Chamber/Party[edit]

The list below is arranged by chamber, then by political party. Members are shown in alphabetical order.

Senate[edit]

Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six year terms with each Congress.

Democratic[edit]
A-F
G-R
S-Z
Opposition[edit]
A-F
G-R
S-Z
American[edit]
Republican[edit]

House of Representatives[edit]

Members of the House of Representatives were elected by popular vote, variously to single member districts or at-large.

Democratic[edit]
A-B-C
D-E-F
G-H-I
J-K-L
M-N-O
P-Q-R
S-T-U-V
W-X-Y-Z
American[edit]
A-B-C
D-E-F
G-H-I
J-K-L
M-N-O
P-Q-R
S-T-U-V
W-X-Y-Z
Opposition[edit]
A-B-C
D-E-F
G-H-I
J-K-L
M-N-O
P-Q-R
S-T-U-V
W-X-Y-Z
Republican[edit]

Membership Changes[edit]

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

Senate
House of Representatives

Officers[edit]

Senate
Other
House of Representatives

References[edit]

  1. The parties that opposed the Democrats joined a coalition and formed the majority.
  2. Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
  3. Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 | Source: https://citizendium.org/wiki/34th_United_States_Congress
32 views | Status: cached on November 03 2024 03:45:18
↧ Download this article as ZWI file
Encyclosphere.org EncycloReader is supported by the EncyclosphereKSF