35th United States Congress
35th United States Congress
34th ←
→ 36th
United States Capitol (1860)
March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1859
Members66 senators237 representatives7 non-voting delegates
Senate majorityDemocratic
Senate PresidentJohn C. Breckinridge (D)
House majorityDemocratic
House SpeakerJames L. Orr (D)
Sessions
Special[a]: March 4, 1857 – March 14, 18571st: December 7, 1857 – June 14, 1858Special[b]: June 15, 1858 – June 16, 18582nd: December 6, 1858 – March 3, 1859

The 35th 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, 1857, to March 4, 1859, during the first two years of James Buchanan's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1850 United States census. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.

Major events

Major legislation

Treaties

States admitted

  • May 11, 1858: Minnesota admitted as the 32nd state
  • February 14, 1859: Oregon admitted as the 33rd state

Party summary

Senate

Group photo of the U.S. Senate, in 1859, during this Congress.

During this congress, two Senate seats were added for each of the new states of Minnesota and Oregon.

Party(shading shows control)Total Vacant
KnowNothing(A) Democratic(D)Republican(R)
End of previous congress 2 40 20[c]62 0
Begin 4 37 20 61 1
End 42 660
Final voting share6.1% 63.6% 30.3%
Beginning of next congress 2 38 2666 0

House of Representatives

During this congress, two House seats were added for the new state of Minnesota and one House seat was added for the new state of Oregon.

Party(shading shows control)Total Vacant
KnowNothing(A) Democratic(D)IndependentDemocratic(ID)Republican(R)Other
End of previous congress 52 81 0 97[d] 0230 4
Begin 14 127 0 92 0 233 1
End 130 1 2370
Final voting share5.9% 54.9% 0.4% 38.8% 0.0%
Beginning of next congress 6 84 7 113 25235 2

Leadership

Senate

President of the SenateJohn C. Breckinridge

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.

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 with this Congress, facing re-election in 1862; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, facing re-election in 1858; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1860.

House of Representatives

The names of representatives are preceded by their district numbers.

Changes in membership

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

Senate

Senate changes
State(class) Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor'sformal installation[e]
Tennessee(1) Vacant Legislature had failed to elect.Successor elected October 8, 1857. Andrew Johnson (D) October 8, 1857
South Carolina(3) Andrew Butler (D) Died May 25, 1857.Successor elected December 7, 1857. James H. Hammond (D) December 7, 1857
New Hampshire(3) James Bell (R) Died May 26, 1857.Successor elected June 27, 1857. Daniel Clark (R) June 27, 1857
Texas(1) Thomas J. Rusk (D) Died July 29, 1857.Successor appointed November 9, 1857. J. Pinckney Henderson (D) November 9, 1857
North Carolina(3) Asa Biggs (D) Resigned May 5, 1858, to become judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of North Carolina.Successor appointed May 7, 1858.Appointee elected November 23, 1858. Thomas L. Clingman (D) May 7, 1858
South Carolina(2) Josiah J. Evans (D) Died May 6, 1858.Successor appointed May 11, 1858. Arthur P. Hayne (D) May 11, 1858
Minnesota(1) New seatMinnesota admitted to the Union May 11, 1858, and its first Senators were elected that day. Henry M. Rice (D) May 11, 1858
Minnesota(2) New seatMinnesota admitted to the Union May 11, 1858, and its first Senators were elected that day. James Shields (D) May 11, 1858
Texas(1) J. Pinckney Henderson (D) Died June 4, 1858.Successor appointed September 27, 1858. Matthias Ward (D) September 27, 1858
South Carolina(2) Arthur P. Hayne (D) Interim appointee retired.Successor elected December 2, 1858. James Chesnut Jr. (D) December 3, 1858
Oregon(2) New seatOregon admitted to the Union February 14, 1859, and its first Senators were elected that day. Delazon Smith (D) February 14, 1859
Oregon(3) New seatOregon admitted to the Union February 14, 1859, and its first Senators were elected that day. Joseph Lane (D) February 14, 1859

House of Representatives

House changes
District Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor'sformal installation[e]
Missouri 3rdVacant Rep. James S. Green was elected to this term but resigned after being elected in turn to the US SenateJohn B. Clark (D) Seated December 7, 1857
Indiana 10thSamuel Brenton (R) Died March 29, 1857 Charles Case (R) Seated December 7, 1857
Pennsylvania 12thJohn G. Montgomery (D) Died April 24, 1857 Paul Leidy (D) Seated December 7, 1857
Indiana 1stJames Lockhart (D) Died September 7, 1857 William E. Niblack (D) Seated December 7, 1857
Massachusetts 7thNathaniel P. Banks (R) Resigned December 24, 1857, after being elected Governor of MassachusettsDaniel W. Gooch (R) Seated January 31, 1858
North Carolina 8thThomas L. Clingman (D) Resigned May 7, 1858, after being appointed to the US SenateZebulon B. Vance (D) Seated December 7, 1858
Minnesota At-LargeNew seatMinnesota was admitted to the Union May 11, 1858 James M. Cavanaugh (D) Seated May 11, 1858
Minnesota Territory At-LargeWilliam W. Kingsbury (D) Minnesota was admitted to the Union May 11, 1858 Seat eliminated
Minnesota At-LargeNew seatMinnesota was admitted to the Union May 11, 1858 William W. Phelps (D) Seated May 11, 1858
Ohio 3rdLewis D. Campbell (R) Lost contested election May 25, 1858 Clement Vallandigham (D) Seated May 25, 1858
Mississippi 5thJohn A. Quitman (D) Died July 17, 1858 John J. McRae (D) Seated December 7, 1858
Pennsylvania 8thJ. Glancy Jones (D) Resigned October 30, 1858 William H. Keim (R) Seated December 7, 1858
Illinois 6thThomas L. Harris (D) Died November 24, 1858 Charles D. Hodges (D) Seated January 4, 1859
New York 4thJohn Kelly (D) Resigned December 25, 1858 Thomas J. Barr (D) Seated January 7, 1859
Oregon Territory At-LargeJoseph Lane (D) Oregon was admitted to the Union February 14, 1859 Seat eliminated
Oregon At-LargeNew seatOregon was admitted to the Union February 14, 1859 La Fayette Grover (D) Seated February 14, 1859

Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders.

Senate

House of Representatives

Joint committees

Caucuses

Employees

Legislative branch agency directors

Senate

House of Representatives

See also

Notes

  1. ^ abcdUnited States representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
  1. ^Special session of the Senate.
  2. ^Special session of the Senate.
  3. ^Opposition
  4. ^Opposition
  5. ^ ab When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.

References

Specific citations
  1. ^"The Most Infamous Floor Brawl in the History of the U.S. House of Representatives | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives". history.house.gov. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  2. ^Charles J. Kappler, ed. (1904). "Treaty with the Ponca, 1858". Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties. Washington D.C.: Government Printing Office. Archived from the original on 2015-02-13. Retrieved 2013-11-09. The Ponca tribe of Indians hereby cede and relinquish to the United States all the lands now owned or claimed by them, wherever situate, except the tract bounded as follows, viz: Beginning at a point on the Neobrara River and running due north, so as to intersect the Ponca River 25 miles from its mouth; thence from said point of intersection, up and along the Ponca River, twenty — miles; thence due south to the Neobrara River; and thence down and along said river to the place of beginning...
General 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.
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