30th United States Congress

1847-1849 U.S. Congress

30th United States Congress
29th ←
→ 31st
United States Capitol (1846)

March 4, 1847 – March 4, 1849
Members60 senators
230 representatives
2 non-voting delegates
Senate majorityDemocratic
Senate PresidentGeorge M. Dallas (D)
House majorityWhig
House SpeakerRobert C. Winthrop (W)
Sessions
1st: December 6, 1847 – August 14, 1848
2nd: December 4, 1848 – March 3, 1849

The 30th 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, 1847, to March 4, 1849, during the last two years of the administration of President James K. Polk. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1840 United States census. The Senate had a Democratic majority, and the House had a Whig majority. It was the only Congress in which Abraham Lincoln served.

Major events

Sutter's Mill, origin of the California Gold Rush

Major legislation

Treaty

Mapa de los Estados Unidos de Méjico by John Distrunell: the 1847 map used during negotiations of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

States admitted and territories established

Party summary

Senate

During this congress, two Senate seats were added for the new state of Wisconsin.

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Independent
Democratic
(ID)
Liberty
(L)
Whig
(W)
End of previous congress 31 0 1 24 56 2
Begin 34 1 0 20 55 3
End 38 21 600
Final voting share 63.3% 1.7% 0.0% 35.0%
Beginning of next congress 33 0 0 25 58 2

House of Representatives

During this congress, two House seats were added for the new state of Wisconsin.

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
American
(A)
Democratic
(D)
Independent
Democratic
(ID)
Independent
(I)
Whig
(W)
End of previous congress 12 137 0 0 77 226 2
Begin 1 107 2 1 116 227 1
End 110 2300
Final voting share 0.4% 47.8% 0.9% 0.4% 50.4%
Beginning of next congress 1 113 0 0 107 221 1

Leadership

President of the Senate
George M. Dallas

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

Alabama

2. Dixon H. Lewis (D), until October 25, 1848
Benjamin Fitzpatrick (D), from November 25, 1848
3. Arthur P. Bagby (D), until June 16, 1848
William R. King (D), from July 1, 1848

Arkansas

2. Chester Ashley (D), until April 29, 1848
William K. Sebastian (D), from May 12, 1848
3. Ambrose H. Sevier (D), until March 15, 1848
Solon Borland (D), from March 30, 1848

Connecticut

1. Jabez W. Huntington (W), until November 1, 1847
Roger S. Baldwin (W), from November 11, 1847
3. John M. Niles (D)

Delaware

1. John M. Clayton (W), until February 23, 1849
John Wales (W), from February 23, 1849
2. Presley Spruance (W)

Florida

1. David Levy Yulee (D)
3. James Westcott (D)

Georgia

2. John Macpherson Berrien (W)
3. Walter T. Colquitt (D), until February 4, 1848
Herschel V. Johnson (D), from February 4, 1848

Illinois

2. Stephen A. Douglas (D)
3. Sidney Breese (D)

Indiana

1. Jesse D. Bright (D)
3. Edward A. Hannegan (D)

Iowa

2. George Wallace Jones (D), from December 7, 1848
3. Augustus C. Dodge (D), from December 7, 1848

Kentucky

2. Joseph R. Underwood (W)
3. John J. Crittenden (W), until June 12, 1848
Thomas Metcalfe (W), from June 23, 1848

Louisiana

2. Solomon W. Downs (D)
3. Henry Johnson (W)

Maine

1. John Fairfield (D), until December 24, 1847
Wyman B. S. Moor (D), January 5, 1848 – June 7, 1848
Hannibal Hamlin (D), from June 7, 1848
2. James W. Bradbury (D)

Maryland

1. Reverdy Johnson (W)
3. James Pearce (W)

Massachusetts

1. Daniel Webster (W)
2. John Davis (W)

Michigan

1. Lewis Cass (D), until May 29, 1848
Thomas Fitzgerald (D), from June 8, 1848
2. Alpheus Felch (D)

Mississippi

1. Jesse Speight (D), until May 1, 1847
Jefferson Davis (D), from August 10, 1847
2. Henry S. Foote (D)

Missouri

1. Thomas H. Benton (D)
3. David R. Atchison (D)

New Hampshire

2. John P. Hale (ID)
3. Charles G. Atherton (D)

New Jersey

1. William L. Dayton (W)
2. Jacob W. Miller (W)

New York

1. Daniel S. Dickinson (D)
3. John A. Dix (D)

North Carolina

2. Willie P. Mangum (W)
3. George E. Badger (W)

Ohio

1. Thomas Corwin (W)
3. William Allen (D)

Pennsylvania

1. Daniel Sturgeon (D)
3. Simon Cameron (D)

Rhode Island

1. Albert C. Greene (W)
2. John H. Clarke (W)

South Carolina

2. John C. Calhoun (D)
3. Andrew Butler (D)

Tennessee

1. Hopkins L. Turney (D)
2. John Bell (W), from November 22, 1847

Texas

1. Thomas J. Rusk (D)
2. Samuel Houston (D)

Vermont

1. Samuel S. Phelps (W)
3. William Upham (W)

Virginia

1. James M. Mason (D)
2. Robert M. T. Hunter (D)

Wisconsin

1. Henry Dodge (D), from June 8, 1848 (newly admitted state)
3. Isaac P. Walker (D), from June 8, 1848 (newly admitted state)
Senators' party membership by state at the opening of the 30th Congress in March 1847. The green stripes in New Hampshire represent independent Democrat John P. Hale. The senators from Iowa and Wisconsin were not seated until later in the Congress.
  2 Democrats
  1 Democrat and 1 Whig
  2 Whigs
Senate President pro tempore
David R. Atchison

House of Representatives

The names of members of the House of Representatives are preceded by their district numbers.

Alabama

1. John Gayle (W)
2. Henry W. Hilliard (W)
3. Sampson W. Harris (D)
4. Samuel W. Inge (D)
5. George S. Houston (D)
6. Williamson R. W. Cobb (D)
7. Franklin W. Bowdon (D)

Arkansas

At-large. Robert W. Johnson (D)

Connecticut

1. James Dixon (W)
2. Samuel D. Hubbard (W)
3. John A. Rockwell (W)
4. Truman Smith (W)

Delaware

At-large. John W. Houston (W)

Florida

At-large. Edward C. Cabell (W)

Georgia

1. Thomas Butler King (W)
2. Alfred Iverson Sr. (D)
3. John W. Jones (W)
4. Hugh A. Haralson (D)
5. John H. Lumpkin (D)
6. Howell Cobb (D)
7. Alexander H. Stephens (W)
8. Robert A. Toombs (W)

Illinois

1. Robert Smith (ID)
2. John A. McClernand (D)
3. Orlando B. Ficklin (D)
4. John Wentworth (D)
5. William A. Richardson (D), from December 6, 1847
6. Thomas J. Turner (D)
7. Abraham Lincoln (W)

Indiana

1. Elisha Embree (W)
2. Thomas J. Henley (D)
3. John L. Robinson (D)
4. Caleb B. Smith (W)
5. William W. Wick (D)
6. George G. Dunn (W)
7. Richard W. Thompson (W)
8. John Pettit (D)
9. Charles W. Cathcart (D)
10. William R. Rockhill (D)

Iowa

1. William Thompson (D)
2. Shepherd Leffler (D)

Kentucky

1. Linn Boyd (D)
2. Beverly L. Clarke (D)
3. Samuel O. Peyton (D)
4. Aylette Buckner (W)
5. John B. Thompson (W)
6. Green Adams (W)
7. W. Garnett Duncan (W)
8. Charles S. Morehead (W)
9. Richard French (D)
10. John P. Gaines (W)

Louisiana

1. Emile La Sére (D)
2. Bannon G. Thibodeaux (W)
3. John H. Harmanson (D)
4. Isaac E. Morse (D)

Maine

1. David Hammons (D)
2. Asa W. H. Clapp (D)
3. Hiram Belcher (W)
4. Franklin Clark (D)
5. Ephraim K. Smart (D)
6. James S. Wiley (D)
7. Hezekiah Williams (D)

Maryland

1. John G. Chapman (W)
2. J. Dixon Roman (W)
3. Thomas W. Ligon (D)
4. Robert M. McLane (D)
5. Alexander Evans (W)
6. John W. Crisfield (W)

Massachusetts

1. Robert C. Winthrop (W)
2. Daniel P. King (W)
3. Amos Abbott (W)
4. John G. Palfrey (W)
5. Charles Hudson (W)
6. George Ashmun (W)
7. Julius Rockwell (W)
8. John Quincy Adams (W), until February 23, 1848
Horace Mann (W), from April 3, 1848
9. Artemas Hale (W)
10. Joseph Grinnell (W)

Michigan

1. Robert McClelland (D)
2. Edward Bradley (D), until August 5, 1847
Charles E. Stuart (D), from December 6, 1847
3. Kinsley S. Bingham (D)

Mississippi

1. Jacob Thompson (D)
2. Winfield S. Featherston (D)
3. Patrick W. Tompkins (W)
4. Albert G. Brown (D)

Missouri

1. James B. Bowlin (D)
2. John Jameson (D)
3. James S. Green (D)
4. Willard P. Hall (D)
5. John S. Phelps (D)

New Hampshire

1. Amos Tuck (I)
2. Charles H. Peaslee (D)
3. James Wilson (W)
4. James H. Johnson (D)

New Jersey

1. James G. Hampton (W)
2. William A. Newell (W)
3. Joseph E. Edsall (D)
4. John Van Dyke (W)
5. Dudley S. Gregory (W)

New York

1. Frederick W. Lord (D)
2. Henry C. Murphy (D)
3. Henry Nicoll (D)
4. William B. Maclay (D)
5. Frederick A. Tallmadge (W)
6. David S. Jackson (D), until April 19, 1848
Horace Greeley (W), from December 4, 1848
7. William Nelson (W)
8. Cornelius Warren (W)
9. Daniel B. St. John (W)
10. Eliakim Sherrill (W)
11. Peter H. Silvester (W)
12. Gideon Reynolds (W)
13. John I. Slingerland (W)
14. Orlando Kellogg (W)
15. Sidney Lawrence (D)
16. Hugh White (W)
17. George Petrie (ID)
18. William Collins (D)
19. Joseph Mullin (W)
20. Timothy Jenkins (D)
21. George A. Starkweather (D)
22. Ausburn Birdsall (D)
23. William Duer (W)
24. Daniel Gott (W)
25. Harmon S. Conger (W)
26. William T. Lawrence (W)
27. John M. Holley (W), until March 8, 1848
Esbon Blackmar (W), from December 4, 1848
28. Elias B. Holmes (W)
29. Robert L. Rose (W)
30. David Rumsey Jr. (W)
31. Dudley Marvin (W)
32. Nathan K. Hall (W)
33. Harvey Putnam (W)
34. Washington Hunt (W)

North Carolina

1. Thomas L. Clingman (W)
2. Nathaniel Boyden (W)
3. Daniel M. Barringer (W)
4. Augustine H. Shepperd (W)
5. Abraham W. Venable (D)
6. John R. J. Daniel (D)
7. James I. McKay (D)
8. Richard S. Donnell (W)
9. David Outlaw (W)

Ohio

1. James J. Faran (D)
2. David Fisher (W)
3. Robert C. Schenck (W)
4. Richard S. Canby (W)
5. William Sawyer (D)
6. Rodolphus Dickinson (D)
7. Jonathan D. Morris (D)
8. John L. Taylor (W)
9. Thomas O. Edwards (W)
10. Daniel Duncan (W)
11. John K. Miller (D)
12. Samuel F. Vinton (W)
13. Thomas Ritchey (D)
14. Nathan Evans (W)
15. William Kennon Jr. (D)
16. John D. Cummins (D)
17. George Fries (D)
18. Samuel Lahm (D)
19. John Crowell (W)
20. Joshua R. Giddings (W)
21. Joseph M. Root (W)

Pennsylvania

1. Lewis C. Levin (A)
2. Joseph R. Ingersoll (W)
3. Charles Brown (D)
4. Charles J. Ingersoll (D)
5. John Freedley (W)
6. John W. Hornbeck (W), until January 16, 1848
Samuel A. Bridges (D), from March 6, 1848
7. Abraham R. McIlvaine (W)
8. John Strohm (W)
9. William Strong (D)
10. Richard Brodhead (D)
11. Chester P. Butler (W)
12. David Wilmot (D)
13. James Pollock (W)
14. George N. Eckert (W)
15. Henry Nes (W)
16. Jasper E. Brady (W)
17. John Blanchard (W)
18. Andrew Stewart (W)
19. Job Mann (D)
20. John Dickey (W)
21. Moses Hampton (W)
22. John W. Farrelly (W)
23. James Thompson (D)
24. Alexander Irvin (W)

Rhode Island

1. Robert B. Cranston (W)
2. Benjamin B. Thurston (D)

South Carolina

1. James A. Black (D), until April 3, 1848
Daniel Wallace (D), from June 12, 1848
2. Richard F. Simpson (D)
3. Joseph A. Woodward (D)
4. Alexander D. Sims (D), until November 22, 1848
John McQueen (D), from February 12, 1849
5. Armistead Burt (D)
6. Isaac E. Holmes (D)
7. Robert Rhett (D)

Tennessee

1. Andrew Johnson (D)
2. William M. Cocke (W)
3. John H. Crozier (W)
4. Hugh L. W. Hill (D)
5. George W. Jones (D)
6. James H. Thomas (D)
7. Meredith P. Gentry (W)
8. Washington Barrow (W)
9. Lucien B. Chase (D)
10. Frederick P. Stanton (D)
11. William T. Haskell (W)

Texas

1. David S. Kaufman (D)
2. Timothy Pilsbury (D)

Vermont

1. William Henry (W)
2. Jacob Collamer (W)
3. George P. Marsh (W)
4. Lucius B. Peck (D)

Virginia

1. Archibald Atkinson (D)
2. George Dromgoole (D), until April 27, 1847
Richard K. Meade (D), from August 5, 1847
3. Thomas S. Flournoy (W)
4. Thomas S. Bocock (D)
5. William L. Goggin (W)
6. John M. Botts (W)
7. Thomas H. Bayly (D)
8. Richard L. T. Beale (D)
9. John S. Pendleton (W)
10. Henry Bedinger (D)
11. James McDowell (D)
12. William B. Preston (W)
13. Andrew S. Fulton (W)
14. Robert A. Thompson (D)
15. William G. Brown Sr. (D)

Wisconsin

1. William P. Lynde (D), from June 8, 1848 (newly admitted state)
2. Mason C. Darling (D), from June 8, 1848 (newly admitted state)

Non-voting members

Wisconsin Territory. John H. Tweedy (W), until May 29, 1848
Henry H. Sibley, from October 30, 1848
Speaker of the House
Robert C. Winthrop
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
Middle aged clean shaven Lincoln from the hips up.
Lincoln in his late 30s as a member of the United States House of Representatives

Changes in membership

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

Senate

  • Replacements: 11
    • Democrats (D): 4 seat net gain
    • Whigs (W): no net change
  • Deaths: 5
  • Resignations: 6
  • Interim appointments: 7
  • Seats of newly admitted states: 4
Senate changes
State
(class)
Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[a]
Tennessee
(2)
Vacant Failure to elect.
Successor elected November 22, 1847.
John Bell (W) Elected November 22, 1847.
Iowa
(2)
Vacant Iowa had been admitted to the Union December 28, 1846, but the legislature failed to elect due to a three-way split that prevented any candidate from earning the required number of 30 legislators' votes.[1]
First Senator elected December 7, 1848.
George Wallace Jones (D) Elected December 7, 1848.
Iowa
(3)
Vacant Iowa had been admitted to the Union December 28, 1846, but the legislature failed to elect due to a three-way split that prevented any candidate from earning the required number of 30 legislators' votes.[1]
First Senator elected December 7, 1848.
Augustus C. Dodge (D) Elected December 7, 1848.
Mississippi
(1)
Jesse Speight (D) Incumbent died May 1, 1847.
Successor appointed August 10, 1847, and then elected January 1848.
Jefferson Davis (D) Appointed December 5, 1847.
Connecticut
(1)
Jabez W. Huntington (W) Incumbent died November 1, 1847.
Successor appointed November 11, 1847, and then elected May 1848.
Roger S. Baldwin (W) Appointed December 5, 1847.
Maine
(1)
John Fairfield (D) Incumbent died December 24, 1847.
Successor appointed January 5, 1848.
Wyman B. S. Moor (D) Appointed January 5, 1848.
Georgia
(3)
Walter T. Colquitt (D) Incumbent resigned February 4, 1848.
Successor appointed February 4, 1848, to finish the term.
Herschel V. Johnson (D) Appointed February 4, 1848.
Arkansas
(3)
Ambrose H. Sevier (D) Incumbent resigned March 15, 1848.
Successor appointed March 30, 1848, to finish the term.
Solon Borland (D) Appointed March 30, 1848.
Arkansas
(2)
Chester Ashley (D) Incumbent died April 29, 1848.
Successor appointed May 12, 1848, and elected sometime thereafter.
William K. Sebastian (D) Elected May 12, 1848.
Wisconsin
(1)
Wisconsin admitted to the Union May 29, 1848.
First Senator elected June 8, 1848.
Henry Dodge (D) Elected June 8, 1848.
Wisconsin
(3)
Wisconsin admitted to the Union May 29, 1848.
First Senator elected June 8, 1848.
Isaac P. Walker (D) Elected June 8, 1848.
Michigan
(1)
Lewis Cass (D) Incumbent resigned May 29, 1848, to run for U.S. President.
Successor appointed June 8, 1848.
Thomas Fitzgerald (D) Elected June 8, 1848.
Maine
(1)
Wyman B. S. Moor (D) Interim appointee retired when successor elected June 7, 1848. Hannibal Hamlin (D) Elected June 7, 1848.
Kentucky
(3)
John J. Crittenden (W) Incumbent resigned June 12, 1848, to run for Governor of Kentucky.
Successor appointed June 23, 1848, and elected sometime thereafter.
Thomas Metcalfe (W) Elected June 23, 1848.
Alabama
(3)
Arthur P. Bagby (D) Incumbent resigned June 16, 1848, to become U.S. Minister to Russia.
Successor elected July 1, 1848.
William R. King (D) Elected July 1, 1848.
Alabama
(2)
Dixon H. Lewis (D) Incumbent died October 25, 1848.
Successor elected November 25, 1848.
Benjamin Fitzpatrick (D) Elected November 25, 1848.
Delaware
(1)
John M. Clayton (W) Incumbent resigned February 23, 1849, to become U.S. Secretary of State.
Successor elected February 23, 1849.
John Wales (W) Elected February 23, 1849.

House of Representatives

  • Replacements: 10
    • Democrats (D): no net change
    • Whigs (W): no net change
  • Deaths: 7
  • Resignations: 0
  • Contested election: 1
  • Seats of newly admitted states: 2
  • Total seats with changes: 12
House changes
District Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[a]
Illinois 5th Vacant Representative Stephen A. Douglas resigned at end of previous congress. William A. Richardson (D) Seated December 6, 1847
Virginia 2nd George Dromgoole (D) Incumbent died April 27, 1847. Richard K. Meade (D) Seated August 5, 1847
Michigan 2nd Edward Bradley (D) Incumbent died August 5, 1847. Charles E. Stuart (D) Seated December 6, 1847
Pennsylvania 6th John W. Hornbeck (W) Incumbent died January 16, 1848. Samuel A. Bridges (D) Seated March 6, 1848
Massachusetts 8th John Quincy Adams (W) Incumbent died February 23, 1848. Horace Mann (W) Seated April 3, 1848
New York 27th John M. Holley (W) Incumbent died March 8, 1848. Esbon Blackmar (W) Seated December 4, 1848
South Carolina 1st James A. Black (D) Incumbent died April 3, 1848. Daniel Wallace (D) Seated June 12, 1848
New York 6th David S. Jackson (D) James Monroe contested seat after which the House declared the seat vacant April 19, 1848. Horace Greeley (W) Seated December 4, 1848
Wisconsin 1st Wisconsin admitted into the Union May 29, 1848, and seat remained vacant until June 8, 1848. William P. Lynde (D) Seated June 8, 1848
Wisconsin 2nd Wisconsin admitted into the Union May 29, 1848, and seat remained vacant until June 8, 1848. Mason C. Darling (D) Seated June 8, 1848
Wisconsin Territory At-large John H. Tweedy (W) Incumbent was disqualified May 29, 1848, after the portion of territory he resided in achieved statehood. Henry H. Sibley Seated October 30, 1848
South Carolina 4th Alexander D. Sims (D) Incumbent died November 22, 1848. John McQueen (D) Seated February 12, 1849

Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders.

Senate

House of Representatives

Joint committees

Employees

Senate

House of Representatives

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.

References

  1. ^ a b Clark, Dan Elbert (1913). History of Senatorial Elections in Iowa. Iowa: State Historical Society of Iowa. pp. 17–46, 72–79.
  • 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 30th Congress, 1st Session.
  • Congress, United States (1849). Congressional Directory for the 30th Congress, 2nd Session.
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United States congresses (and year convened)