The 31st 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, 1849, to March 4, 1851, during the 16 months of the Zachary Taylor presidency and the first eight months of the administration of Millard Fillmore's. The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the 1840 United States census. The Senate had a Democratic majority, while there was a Democratic plurality in the House.
Major events
March 4, 1849: Zachary Taylor became President of the United States June, 1849: Relations with France broke down as the French ambassador Guillaume-Tell de La Vallée Poussin engaged in "insulting and confrontational" behavior towards President Taylor, shortly after this a row erupted with France over reparations which France owed the United States. The president of France, Napoleon III, made this worse by making remarks that led to several members of Congress openly condemning him. December 3–22, 1849: The election for the House speakership takes 63 ballots. March 7, 1850: Senator Daniel Webster gave his "Seventh of March" speech in which he endorsed the Compromise of 1850 to prevent a possible civil war May 22, 1850: Senate votes 42-11 in favor of ratifying the Clayton–Bulwer Treaty after the motion to do so was put forth by William R. King of Alabama. The results of the vote were celebrated in Britain.Mediation of the Honduran-Guatemalan Boundary Question: Held Under the Good Offices of the Department of State, 1918-1919 ... by United States. Department of State U.S. Government Printing Office, 1919 pg. 211 July 9, 1850: President Taylor died and Vice President Millard Fillmore became president.
Major legislation
September 9, 1850: Compromise of 1850, sess. 1, chs. 48-51, - September 18, 1850: Fugitive Slave Act, sess. 1, ch. 60, September 20, 1850: "An Act to suppress the Slave Trade in the District of Columbia," sess. 1, ch. 63, September 29, 1850: Donation Land Claim Act, sess. 1, ch. 76,
States admitted and territories organized September 9, 1850 — As part of the Compromise of 1850: Texas's borders were changed, ch. 49, New Mexico Territory was organized, ch. 49, California was admitted as a state, ch. 50, Utah Territory was organized, ch. 51,
Party summary
Senate During this Congress, two Senate seats were added for the new state of California.
House of Representatives During this Congress, two House seats were added for the new state of California.
Leadership
Senate President: Millard Fillmore (W), until July 9, 1850; vacant thereafter. President pro tempore: David Atchison (D), until May 5, 1850 William R. King (D), from May 6, 1850
House of Representatives Speaker: Howell Cobb (D), elected December 22, 1849, after 63 ballots Democratic Caucus Chairman: James Thompson
Members This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed by class, and representatives 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 ended with this Congress, facing re-election in 1850; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1852; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, facing re-election in 1854.
Alabama 2. Benjamin Fitzpatrick (D), until November 30, 1849 Jeremiah Clemens (D), from November 30, 1849 3. William R. King (D)
Arkansas 2. William K. Sebastian (D) 3. Solon Borland (D)
California 1. John C. Frémont (D), from September 10, 1850 (newly admitted state) 3. William M. Gwin (D), from September 10, 1850 (newly admitted state)
Connecticut 1. Roger S. Baldwin (W) 3. Truman Smith (W)
Delaware 1. John Wales (W) 2. Presley Spruance (W)
Florida 1. David Levy Yulee (D) 3. Jackson Morton (W)
Georgia 2. John Macpherson Berrien (W) 3. William C. Dawson (W)
Illinois 2. Stephen A. Douglas (D) 3. James Shields (D), until March 6, 1849 James Shields (D), from December 3, 1849
Indiana 1. Jesse D. Bright (D) 3. James Whitcomb (D)
Iowa 2. George Wallace Jones (D) 3. Augustus C. Dodge (D)
Kentucky 2. Joseph R. Underwood (W) 3. Henry Clay (W)
Louisiana 2. Solomon W. Downs (D) 3. Pierre Soulé (D)
Maine 1. Hannibal Hamlin (D) 2. James W. Bradbury (D)
Maryland 1. Reverdy Johnson (W), until March 7, 1849 David Stewart (W), from December 6, 1849, until January 12, 1850 Thomas Pratt (W), from January 12, 1850 3. James Pearce (W)
Massachusetts 1. Daniel Webster (W), until July 22, 1850 Robert C. Winthrop (W), from July 30, 1850, until February 1, 1851 Robert Rantoul Jr. (D), from February 1, 1851 2. John Davis (W)
Michigan 1. Lewis Cass (D) 2. Alpheus Felch (D)
Mississippi 1. Jefferson Davis (D) 2. Henry S. Foote (D)
Missouri 1. Thomas H. Benton (D) 3. David R. Atchison (D)
New Hampshire 2. John P. Hale (FS) 3. Moses Norris Jr. (D)
New Jersey 1. William L. Dayton (W) 2. Jacob W. Miller (W)
New York 1. Daniel S. Dickinson (D) 3. William H. Seward (W)
North Carolina 2. Willie P. Mangum (W) 3. George E. Badger (W)
Ohio 1. Thomas Corwin (W), until July 20, 1850 Thomas Ewing (W), from July 20, 1850 3. Salmon P. Chase (FS)
Pennsylvania 1. Daniel Sturgeon (D) 3. James Cooper (W)
Rhode Island 1. Albert C. Greene (W) 2. John H. Clarke (W)
South Carolina 2. John C. Calhoun (D), until March 31, 1850 Franklin H. Elmore (D), from April 11, 1850, until May 29, 1850 Robert W. Barnwell (D), from June 4, 1850, until December 18, 1850 Robert Rhett (D), from December 18, 1850 3. Andrew Butler (D)
Tennessee 1. Hopkins L. Turney (D) 2. John Bell (W)
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) 3. Isaac P. Walker (D)
House of Representatives
The names of representatives are preceded by their district numbers.
Alabama . William J. Alston (W) . Henry W. Hilliard (W) . Sampson W. Harris (D) . Samuel W. Inge (D) . David Hubbard (D) . Williamson R. W. Cobb (D) . Franklin W. Bowdon (D)
Arkansas . Robert W. Johnson (D)
California Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket. . Edward Gilbert (D), from September 11, 1850 (newly admitted state) . George W. Wright (I), from September 11, 1850 (newly admitted state)
Connecticut . Loren P. Waldo (D) . Walter Booth (FS) . Chauncey F. Cleveland (D) . Thomas B. Butler (W)
Delaware . John W. Houston (W)
Florida . Edward C. Cabell (W)
Georgia . Thomas Butler King (W), until March 3, 1850 Joseph W. Jackson (D), from March 4, 1850 . Marshall J. Wellborn (D) . Allen F. Owen (W) . Hugh A. Haralson (D) . Thomas C. Hackett (D) . Howell Cobb (D) . Alexander H. Stephens (W) . Robert A. Toombs (W)
Illinois . William H. Bissell (D) . John A. McClernand (D) . Timothy R. Young (D) . John Wentworth (D) . William A. Richardson (D) . Edward D. Baker (W) . Thomas L. Harris (D)
Indiana . Nathaniel Albertson (D) . Cyrus L. Dunham (D) . John L. Robinson (D) . George W. Julian (FS) . William J. Brown (D) . Willis A. Gorman (D) . Edward W. McGaughey (W) . Joseph E. McDonald (D) . Graham N. Fitch (D) . Andrew J. Harlan (D)
Iowa . William Thompson (D), until June 29, 1850 Daniel F. Miller (W), from December 20, 1850 . Shepherd Leffler (D)
Kentucky . Linn Boyd (D) . James L. Johnson (W) . Finis E. McLean (W) . George Caldwell (D) . John B. Thompson (W) . Daniel Breck (W) . Humphrey Marshall (W) . Charles S. Morehead (W) . John C. Mason (D) . Richard H. Stanton (D)
Louisiana . Emile La Sére (D) . Charles M. Conrad (W), until August 17, 1850 Henry A. Bullard (W), from December 5, 1850 . John H. Harmanson (D), until October 24, 1850 Alexander G. Penn (D), from December 30, 1850 . Isaac E. Morse (D)
Maine . Elbridge Gerry (D) . Nathaniel Littlefield (D) . John Otis (W) . Rufus K. Goodenow (W) . Cullen Sawtelle (D) . Charles Stetson (D) . Thomas J. D. Fuller (D)
Maryland . Richard Bowie (W) . William T. Hamilton (D) . Edward Hammond (D) . Robert M. McLane (D) . Alexander Evans (W) . John B. Kerr (W)
Massachusetts . Robert C. Winthrop (W), until July 30, 1850 Samuel Atkins Eliot (W), from August 22, 1850 . Daniel P. King (W), until July 25, 1850 . James H. Duncan (W) . vacant . Charles Allen (FS) . George Ashmun (W) . Julius Rockwell (W) . Horace Mann (W) . Orin Fowler (W) . Joseph Grinnell (W)
Michigan . Alexander W. Buel (D) . William Sprague (W) . Kinsley S. Bingham (D)
Mississippi . Jacob Thompson (D) . Winfield S. Featherston (D) . William McWillie (D) . Albert G. Brown (D)
Missouri . James B. Bowlin (D) . William V. Bay (D) . James S. Green (D) . Willard P. Hall (D) . John S. Phelps (D)
New Hampshire . Amos Tuck (FS) . Charles H. Peaslee (D) . James Wilson (W), until September 9, 1850 George W. Morrison (D), from October 8, 1850 . Harry Hibbard (D)
New Jersey . Andrew K. Hay (W) . William A. Newell (W) . Isaac Wildrick (D) . John Van Dyke (W) . James G. King (W)
New York . John A. King (W) . David A. Bokee (W) . J. Phillips Phoenix (W) . Walter Underhill (W) . George Briggs (W) . James Brooks (W) . William Nelson (W) . Ransom Halloway (W) . Thomas McKissock (W) . Herman D. Gould (W) . Peter H. Silvester (W) . Gideon Reynolds (W) . John L. Schoolcraft (W) . George R. Andrews (W) . John R. Thurman (W) . Hugh White (W) . Henry P. Alexander (W) . Preston King (FS) . Charles E. Clarke (W) . Orsamus B. Matteson (W) . Hiram Walden (D) . Henry Bennett (W) . William Duer (W) . Daniel Gott (W) . Harmon S. Conger (W) . William T. Jackson (W) . William A. Sackett (W) . Abraham M. Schermerhorn (W) . Robert L. Rose (W) . David Rumsey Jr. (W) . Elijah Risley (W) . Elbridge G. Spaulding (W) . Harvey Putnam (W) . Lorenzo Burrows (W)
North Carolina . Thomas L. Clingman (W) . Joseph P. Caldwell (W) . Edmund Deberry (W) . Augustine H. Shepperd (W) . Abraham W. Venable (D) . John R. J. Daniel (D) . William S. Ashe (D) . Edward Stanly (W) . David Outlaw (W)
Ohio . David T. Disney (D) . Lewis D. Campbell (W) . Robert C. Schenck (W) . Moses B. Corwin (W) . Emery D. Potter (D) . Rodolphus Dickinson (D), until March 20, 1849 Amos E. Wood (D), from December 3, 1849, until November 19, 1850 John Bell (W), from January 7, 1851 . Jonathan D. Morris (D) . John L. Taylor (W) . Edson B. Olds (D) . Charles Sweetser (D) . John K. Miller (D) . Samuel F. Vinton (W) . William A. Whittlesey (D) . Nathan Evans (W) . William F. Hunter (W) . Moses Hoagland (D) . Joseph Cable (D) . David K. Cartter (D) . John Crowell (W) . Joshua R. Giddings (FS) . Joseph M. Root (FS)
Pennsylvania . Lewis C. Levin (A) . Joseph R. Chandler (W) . Henry D. Moore (W) . John Robbins Jr. (D) . John Freedley (W) . Thomas Ross (D) . Jesse C. Dickey (W) . Thaddeus Stevens (W) . William Strong (D) . Milo M. Dimmick (D) . Chester P. Butler (W), until October 5, 1850 John Brisbin (D), from November 13, 1850 . David Wilmot (D) . Joseph Casey (W) . Charles W. Pitman (W) . Henry Nes (W), until September 10, 1850 Joel B. Danner (D), from December 2, 1850 . James X. McLanahan (D) . Samuel Calvin (W) . Andrew J. Ogle (W) . Job Mann (D) . Robert R. Reed (W) . Moses Hampton (W) . John W. Howe (FS) . James Thompson (D) . Alfred Gilmore (D)
Rhode Island . George G. King (W) . Nathan F. Dixon Jr. (W)
South Carolina