27th United States Congress

1841-1843 U.S. Congress
27th United States Congress
26th ←
→ 28th
United States Capitol (1846)

March 4, 1841 – March 4, 1843
Members52 senators
242 representatives
3 non-voting delegates
Senate majorityWhig
Senate PresidentJohn Tyler (W)[a]
(until April 4, 1841)
Vacant
(from April 4, 1841)
House majorityWhig
House SpeakerJohn White (W)
Sessions
Special: March 4, 1841 – March 15, 1841
1st: May 31, 1841 – September 13, 1841
2nd: December 6, 1841 – August 31, 1842
3rd: December 5, 1842 – March 3, 1843 (lame duck)

The 27th 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., between March 4, 1841, and March 4, 1843, during the one-month presidency of William Henry Harrison and the first two years of the presidency of his successor, John Tyler. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1830 United States census. Both chambers had a Whig majority.

Major events

Major legislation

Treaties

  • August 9, 1842: Webster-Ashburton Treaty signed, establishing the United States–Canada border east of the Rocky Mountains.

Party summary

Senate

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Whig
(W)
End of previous congress 29 23 52 0
Begin 22 29 51 1
End 20 493
Final voting share 40.8% 59.2%
Beginning of next congress 22 26 48 4

House of Representatives

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Independent
Democratic
(ID)
Whig
(W)
Other
End of previous congress 124 0 111 2[b] 237 0
Begin 98 1 142 0 241 1
End 101 139
Final voting share 41.9% 0.4% 57.7% 0.0%
Beginning of next congress 147 1 72 3[c] 223 0

Leadership

President of the Senate
John Tyler

Senate

House of Representatives

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, 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 in the last Congress, requiring re-election in 1844; Class 2 meant their term began with this Congress, requiring re-election in 1846; and Class 3 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring re-election in 1842.

Alabama

2. William R. King (D)
3. Clement C. Clay (D), until November 15, 1841
Arthur P. Bagby (D), from November 24, 1841

Arkansas

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

Connecticut

1. Jabez W. Huntington (W)
3. Perry Smith (D)

Delaware

1. Richard H. Bayard (W)
2. Thomas Clayton (W)

Georgia

2. John Macpherson Berrien (W)
3. Alfred Cuthbert (D)

Illinois

2. Samuel McRoberts (D)
3. Richard M. Young (D)

Indiana

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

Kentucky

2. James T. Morehead (W)
3. Henry Clay (W), until March 31, 1842
John J. Crittenden (W), from March 31, 1842

Louisiana

2. Alexander Barrow (W)
3. Alexander Mouton (D), until March 1, 1842
Charles M. Conrad (W), from April 14, 1842

Maine

1. Reuel Williams (D), until February 15, 1843
2. George Evans (W)

Maryland

1. William D. Merrick (W)
3. John L. Kerr (W)

Massachusetts

1. Rufus Choate (W)
2. Isaac C. Bates (W)

Michigan

1. Augustus S. Porter (W)
2. William Woodbridge (W)

Mississippi

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

Missouri

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

New Hampshire

2. Levi Woodbury (D)
3. Franklin Pierce (D), until February 28, 1842
Leonard Wilcox (D), from March 1, 1842

New Jersey

1. Samuel L. Southard (W), until June 26, 1842
William L. Dayton (W), from July 2, 1842
2. Jacob W. Miller (W)

New York

1. Nathaniel P. Tallmadge (W)
3. Silas Wright Jr. (D)

North Carolina

2. Willie P. Mangum (W)
3. William A. Graham (W)

Ohio

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

Pennsylvania

1. Daniel Sturgeon (D)
3. James Buchanan (D)

Rhode Island

1. Nathan Dixon (W), until January 29, 1842
William Sprague III (W), from February 18, 1842
2. James F. Simmons (W)

South Carolina

2. John C. Calhoun (D)
3. William C. Preston (W), until November 29, 1842
George McDuffie (D), from December 23, 1842

Tennessee

1. Alfred O. P. Nicholson (D), until February 7, 1842
2. vacant

Vermont

1. Samuel S. Phelps (W)
3. Samuel Prentiss (W), until April 11, 1842
Samuel C. Crafts (W), from April 23, 1842

Virginia

1. William C. Rives (W)
2. William S. Archer (W)
Senators' party membership by state at the opening of the 27th Congress in March 1841. One of Tennessee's seats was never filled.
  2 Democrats
  1 Democrat and 1 Whig
  2 Whigs
President pro tempore, 1841
William R. King
President pro tempore, 1841-42
Samuel L. Southard
President pro tempore, 1842-43
Willie Person Mangum

House of Representatives

Alabama

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. Reuben Chapman (D)
At-large. George S. Houston (D)
At-large. Dixon H. Lewis (D)
At-large. William W. Payne (D)
At-large. Benjamin Shields (D)

Arkansas

At-large. Edward Cross (D)

Connecticut

1. Joseph Trumbull (W)
2. William W. Boardman (W)
3. Thomas W. Williams (W)
4. Thomas B. Osborne (W)
5. Truman Smith (W)
6. John H. Brockway (W)

Delaware

At-large. George B. Rodney (W)

Georgia

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. Julius C. Alford (W), until October 1, 1841
Edward J. Black (D), from January 3, 1842
At-large. William C. Dawson (W), until November 13, 1841
Walter T. Colquitt (D), from January 3, 1842
At-large. Thomas F. Foster (W)
At-large. Roger L. Gamble (W)
At-large. Richard W. Habersham (W), until December 2, 1842
George W. Crawford (W), from January 7, 1843
At-large. Thomas Butler King (W)
At-large. James Meriwether (W)
At-large. Eugenius Nisbet (W), until October 12, 1841
Mark A. Cooper (D), from January 3, 1842
At-large. Lott Warren (W)

Illinois

1. John Reynolds (D)
2. Zadok Casey (Ind. D)
3. John T. Stuart (W)

Indiana

1. George H. Proffit (W)
2. Richard W. Thompson (W)
3. Joseph L. White (W)
4. James H. Cravens (W)
5. Andrew Kennedy (D)
6. David Wallace (W)
7. Henry S. Lane (W)

Kentucky

1. Linn Boyd (D)
2. Philip Triplett (W)
3. Joseph R. Underwood (W)
4. Bryan Owsley (W)
5. John B. Thompson (W)
6. Willis Green (W)
7. John Pope (W)
8. James Sprigg (W)
9. John White (W)
10. Thomas F. Marshall (W)
11. Landaff W. Andrews (W)
12. Garrett Davis (W)
13. William O. Butler (D)

Louisiana

1. Edward D. White (W)
2. John B. Dawson (D)
3. John Moore (W)

Maine

1. Nathan Clifford (D)
2. William P. Fessenden (W)
3. Benjamin Randall (W)
4. David Bronson (W), from May 31, 1841
5. Nathaniel Littlefield (D)
6. Alfred Marshall (D)
7. Joshua A. Lowell (D)
8. Elisha Allen (W)

Maryland

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

1. Isaac Jones (W)
2. James A. Pearce (W)
3. James W. Williams (D), until December 2, 1842
Charles S. Sewall (D), from January 2, 1843
4. John P. Kennedy (W)
4. Alexander Randall (W)
5. William Cost Johnson (W)
6. John Mason (D)
7. Augustus R. Sollers (W)

Massachusetts

1. Robert C. Winthrop (W), until May 25, 1842
Nathan Appleton (W), from June 9, 1842, until September 28, 1842
Robert C. Winthrop (W), from November 29, 1842
2. Leverett Saltonstall I (W)
3. Caleb Cushing (W)
4. William Parmenter (D)
5. Levi Lincoln Jr. (W), until March 16, 1841
Charles Hudson (W), from May 3, 1841
6. Osmyn Baker (W)
7. George N. Briggs (W)
8. William B. Calhoun (W)
9. William S. Hastings (W), until June 17, 1842
10. Nathaniel B. Borden (W)
11. Barker Burnell (W)
12. John Quincy Adams (W)

Michigan

At-large. Jacob M. Howard (W)

Mississippi

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. William M. Gwin (D)
At-large. Jacob Thompson (D)

Missouri

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. John C. Edwards (D)
At-large. John Miller (D)

New Hampshire

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. Charles G. Atherton (D)
At-large. Edmund Burke (D)
At-large. Ira A. Eastman (D)
At-large. John R. Reding (D)
At-large. Tristram Shaw (D)

New Jersey

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. John B. Aycrigg (W)
At-large. William Halstead (W)
At-large. John P. B. Maxwell (W)
At-large. Joseph F. Randolph (W)
At-large. Charles C. Stratton (W)
At-large. Thomas J. Yorke (W)

New York

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

1. Charles A. Floyd (D)
2. Joseph Egbert (D)
3. Charles G. Ferris (D)
3. John McKeon (D)
3. James I. Roosevelt (D)
3. Fernando Wood (D)
4. Aaron Ward (D)
5. Richard D. Davis (D)
6. James G. Clinton (D)
7. John Van Buren (D)
8. Jacob Houck Jr. (D)
8. Robert McClellan (D)
9. Hiram P. Hunt (W)
10. Daniel D. Barnard (W)
11. Archibald L. Linn (W)
12. Bernard Blair (W)
13. Thomas A. Tomlinson (W)
14. Henry Bell Van Rensselaer (W)
15. John Sanford (D)
16. Andrew W. Doig (D)
17. David P. Brewster (D)
17. John G. Floyd (D)
18. Thomas C. Chittenden (W)
19. Samuel S. Bowne (D)
20. Samuel Gordon (D)
21. John C. Clark (W)
22. Samuel Partridge (D)
22. Lewis Riggs (D)
23. Victory Birdseye (W)
23. A. Lawrence Foster (W)
24. Christopher Morgan (W)
25. John Maynard (W)
26. Francis Granger (W), until March 5, 1841
John Greig (W), from May 21, 1841, until September 25, 1841
Francis Granger (W), from November 27, 1841
27. William M. Oliver (D)
28. Timothy Childs (W)
29. Seth M. Gates (W)
30. John Young (W)
31. Staley N. Clarke (W)
32. Millard Fillmore (W)
33. Alfred Babcock (W)

North Carolina

1. Kenneth Rayner (W)
2. John R. J. Daniel (D)
3. Edward Stanly (W)
4. William Washington (W)
5. James I. McKay (D)
6. Archibald H. Arrington (D)
7. Edmund Deberry (W)
8. Romulus M. Saunders (D)
9. Augustine H. Shepperd (W)
10. Abraham Rencher (W)
11. Greene Caldwell (D)
12. James Graham (W)
13. Lewis Williams (W), until February 23, 1842
Anderson Mitchell (W), from April 27, 1842

Ohio

1. Nathanael G. Pendleton (W)
2. John B. Weller (D)
3. Patrick Goode (W)
4. Jeremiah Morrow (W)
5. William Doan (D)
6. Calvary Morris (W)
7. William Russell (W)
8. Joseph Ridgway (W)
9. William Medill (D)
10. Samson Mason (W)
11. Benjamin S. Cowen (W)
12. Joshua Mathiot (W)
13. James Mathews (D)
14. George Sweeny (D)
15. Sherlock Andrews (W)
16. Joshua R. Giddings (W), until March 22, 1842, and from December 5, 1842
17. John Hastings (D)
18. Ezra Dean (D)
19. Samuel Stokely (W)

Pennsylvania

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

1. Charles Brown (D)
2. George W. Toland (W)
2. John Sergeant (W), until September 15, 1841
Joseph R. Ingersoll (W), from October 12, 1841
3. Charles J. Ingersoll (D)
4. Jeremiah Brown (W)
4. John Edwards (W)
4. Francis James (W)
5. Joseph Fornance (D)
6. Robert Ramsey (W)
7. John Westbrook (D)
8. Peter Newhard (D)
9. George M. Keim (D)
10. William Simonton (W)
11. James Gerry (D)
12. James Cooper (W)
13. Amos Gustine (D)
14. James Irvin (W)
15. Benjamin A. Bidlack (D)
16. John Snyder (D)
17. Davis Dimock Jr. (D), until January 13, 1842
Almon H. Read (D), from March 18, 1842
18. Charles Ogle (W), until May 10, 1841
Henry Black (W), from June 28, 1841, until November 28, 1841
James M. Russell (W), from December 21, 1841
19. Albert G. Marchand (D)
20. Enos Hook (D), until April 18, 1841
Henry W. Beeson (D), from May 31, 1841
21. Joseph Lawrence (W), until April 17, 1842
Thomas M. T. McKennan (W), from May 30, 1842
22. William W. Irwin (W)
23. William Jack (D)
24. Thomas Henry (W)
25. Arnold Plumer (D)

Rhode Island

Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.

At-large. Robert B. Cranston (W)
At-large. Joseph L. Tillinghast (W)

South Carolina

1. Isaac E. Holmes (D)
2. Robert Rhett (D)
3. John Campbell (D)
4. Sampson H. Butler (D), until September 27, 1842
Samuel W. Trotti (D), from December 17, 1842
5. Francis W. Pickens (D)
6. William Butler (W)
7. James Rogers (D)
8. Thomas D. Sumter (D)
9. Patrick C. Caldwell (D)

Tennessee

1. Thomas D. Arnold (W)
2. Abraham McClellan (D)
3. Joseph L. Williams (W)
4. Thomas Campbell (W)
5. Hopkins L. Turney (D)
6. William B. Campbell (W)
7. Robert L. Caruthers (W)
8. Meredith P. Gentry (W)
9. Harvey M. Watterson (D)
10. Aaron V. Brown (D)
11. Cave Johnson (D)
12. Milton Brown (W)
13. Christopher Williams (W)

Vermont

1. Hiland Hall (W)
2. William Slade (W)
3. Horace Everett (W)
4. Augustus Young (W)
5. John Mattocks (W)

Virginia

1. Francis Mallory (W)
2. George B. Cary (D)
3. John W. Jones (D)
4. William Goode (D)
5. Edmund W. Hubard (D)
6. Walter Coles (D)
7. William L. Goggin (W)
8. Henry A. Wise (W)
9. Robert M. T. Hunter (W)[d]
10. John Taliaferro (W)
11. John M. Botts (W)
12. Thomas W. Gilmer (W)
13. Linn Banks (D), until December 6, 1841
William Smith (D), from December 6, 1841
14. Cuthbert Powell (W)
15. Richard W. Barton (W)
16. William Harris (D)
17. Alexander Stuart (W)
18. George W. Hopkins (D)
19. George W. Summers (W)
20. Samuel Hays (D)
21. Lewis Steenrod (D)

Non-voting members

Florida Territory. David Levy Yulee (D)
Iowa Territory. Augustus C. Dodge (D)
Wisconsin Territory. Henry Dodge (D)
House seats by party holding plurality in state
  80+% to 100% Democratic
  Up to 60% Whig
  60+% to 80% Democratic
  60+% to 80% Whig
  Up to 60% Democratic
  80+% to 100% Whig
Speaker of the House
John White

Changes in membership

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

Senate

  • Replacements: 9
    • Democrats: no net change
    • Whigs: no net change
  • Deaths: 2
  • Resignations: 8
  • Interim appointments: 0
  • Vacancy: 1
  • Total seats with changes: 10
Senate changes
State
(class)
Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[e]
Alabama
(3)
Clement C. Clay (D) Resigned November 15, 1841 Arthur P. Bagby (D) Elected November 24, 1841
Rhode Island
(1)
Nathan F. Dixon (W) Died January 29, 1842 William Sprague (W) Elected February 18, 1842
Tennessee
(1)
Alfred O. P. Nicholson (D) Resigned February 7, 1842 Vacant Not filled this term
New Hampshire
(3)
Franklin Pierce (D) Resigned February 28, 1842 Leonard Wilcox (D) Appointed March 1, 1842, and subsequently elected
Louisiana
(3)
Alexandre Mouton (D) Resigned March 1, 1842, after being elected Governor of Louisiana Charles M. Conrad (W) Appointed April 14, 1842
Kentucky
(3)
Henry Clay (W) Resigned March 31, 1842 John J. Crittenden (W) Appointed March 31, 1842, and subsequently elected
Vermont
(3)
Samuel Prentiss (W) Resigned April 11, 1842, to become judge of the U.S. District Court of Vermont Samuel C. Crafts (W) Appointed April 23, 1842, and subsequently elected
New Jersey
(1)
Samuel L. Southard (W) Died June 26, 1842 William L. Dayton (W) Appointed July 2, 1842
South Carolina
(3)
William C. Preston (W) Resigned November 29, 1842 George McDuffie (D) Elected December 23, 1842
Maine
(1)
Reuel Williams (D) Resigned February 15, 1843 Vacant Not filled this term

House of Representatives

  • Replacements: 17
    • Democrats: 3 seat net gain
    • Whigs: 3 seat net loss
  • Deaths: 8
  • Resignations: 12
  • Contested election: 1
  • Total seats with changes: 20
House changes
District Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[e]
Maine 4th Vacant Rep. George Evans resigned in previous congress David Bronson (W) Seated May 31, 1841
New York 26th Francis Granger (W) Resigned March 5, 1841, after being appointed United States Postmaster General John Greig (W) Seated May 21, 1841
Massachusetts 5th Levi Lincoln Jr. (W) Resigned March 16, 1841, after being appointed Collector of the port of Boston Charles Hudson (W) Seated May 3, 1841
Pennsylvania 20th Enos Hook (D) Resigned April 18, 1841 Henry W. Beeson (D) Seated May 31, 1841
Pennsylvania 18th Charles Ogle (W) Died May 10, 1841 Henry Black (W) Seated June 28, 1841
Pennsylvania 2nd John Sergeant (W) Resigned September 15, 1841 Joseph R. Ingersoll (W) Seated October 12, 1841
New York 26th John Greig (W) Resigned September 25, 1841 Francis Granger (W) Seated November 27, 1841
Georgia at-large Julius C. Alford (W) Resigned October 1, 1841 Edward J. Black (D) Seated January 3, 1842
Georgia at-large Eugenius A. Nisbet (W) Resigned October 12, 1841 Mark A. Cooper (D) Seated January 3, 1842
Georgia at-large William C. Dawson (W) Resigned November 13, 1841 Walter T. Colquitt (D) Seated January 3, 1842
Pennsylvania 18th Henry Black (W) Died November 28, 1841 James M. Russell (W) Seated December 21, 1841
Virginia 13th Linn Banks (D) Lost contested election December 6, 1841 William Smith (D) Seated December 6, 1841
Pennsylvania 17th Davis Dimock Jr. (D) Died January 13, 1842 Almon H. Read (D) Seated March 18, 1842
North Carolina 13th Lewis Williams (W) Died February 23, 1842 Anderson Mitchell (W) Seated April 27, 1842
Ohio 16th Joshua R. Giddings (W) Resigned March 22, 1842, after vote of his censure and re-elected to same seat Joshua R. Giddings (W) Seated December 5, 1842
Pennsylvania 21st Joseph Lawrence (W) Died April 17, 1842 Thomas M. T. McKennan (W) Seated May 30, 1842
Massachusetts 1st Robert C. Winthrop (W) Resigned May 25, 1842 Nathan Appleton (W) Seated June 9, 1842
Massachusetts 9th William S. Hastings (W) Died June 17, 1842 Vacant Not filled this Congress
South Carolina 4th Sampson H. Butler (D) Resigned September 27, 1842 Samuel W. Trotti (D) Seated December 17, 1842
Massachusetts 1st Nathan Appleton (W) Resigned September 28, 1842 Robert C. Winthrop (W) Seated November 29, 1842
Georgia at-large Richard W. Habersham (W) Died December 2, 1842 George W. Crawford (W) Seated January 7, 1843
Maryland 3rd James W. Williams (D) Died December 2, 1842 Charles S. Sewall (D) Seated January 2, 1843

Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders.

Senate

House of Representatives

Joint committees

Employees

Senate

House of Representatives

See also

Notes

  1. ^ U.S. Vice President Tyler's term as President of the Senate ended on April 4, 1841 when he ascended to the presidency. President pro tempore Samuel L. Southard acted his duties as the president of the Senate until he retired on May 31, 1842, due to health reasons, and Willie P. Mangum took over to act his duties until at the end of Congress.
  2. ^ Conservative
  3. ^ Law and Order
    & Independent Whig
  4. ^ Robert M. T. Hunter is sometimes called a "States' Rights Whig".
  5. ^ a b When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.

References

  • Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
  • Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.

External links

  • 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 U.S. Congress
  • U.S. House of Representatives: House History
  • U.S. Senate: Statistics and Lists
  • Congressional Directory for the 27th Congress, 1st Session. 1841.
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United States congresses (and year convened)