46th United States Congress

46th United States Congress


45th ←	→ 47th
United States Capitol (1869)
Duration: March 4, 1879 – March 4, 1881

Senate President:	William A. Wheeler
Senate Pres. pro tem:	Allen G. Thurman
House Speaker:	Samuel J. Randall
Members:	76 Senators 293 Representatives 8 Non-voting members
Senate Majority:	Democratic
House Majority:	Democratic (coalition)

Sessions
1st: March 18, 1879 – July 1, 1879 2nd: December 1, 1879 – June 16, 1880 3rd: December 6, 1880 – March 3, 1881

The Forty-sixth 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, 1879 to March 4, 1881, during the last two years of the administration of U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes.

The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Ninth Census of the United States in 1870. The Senate had a Democratic majority, while the House of Representatives had a Democratic plurality. The Democrats were still able to control the House, however, with the help of the Independent politicians who caucused with them.

Party summary 1
- Senate 1.1
- House of Representatives 1.2
Leadership 2
- Senate 2.1
- House of Representatives 2.2
Major events 3
Major legislation 4
Members 5
- Senate 5.1
  - Alabama 5.1.1
  - Arkansas 5.1.2
  - California 5.1.3
  - Colorado 5.1.4
  - Connecticut 5.1.5
  - Delaware 5.1.6
  - Florida 5.1.7
  - Georgia 5.1.8
  - Illinois 5.1.9
  - Indiana 5.1.10
  - Iowa 5.1.11
  - Kansas 5.1.12
  - Kentucky 5.1.13
  - Louisiana 5.1.14
  - Maine 5.1.15
  - Maryland 5.1.16
  - Massachusetts 5.1.17
  - Michigan 5.1.18
  - Minnesota 5.1.19
  - Mississippi 5.1.20
  - Missouri 5.1.21
  - Nebraska 5.1.22
  - Nevada 5.1.23
  - New Hampshire 5.1.24
  - New Jersey 5.1.25
  - New York 5.1.26
  - North Carolina 5.1.27
  - Ohio 5.1.28
  - Oregon 5.1.29
  - Pennsylvania 5.1.30
  - Rhode Island 5.1.31
  - South Carolina 5.1.32
  - Tennessee 5.1.33
  - Texas 5.1.34
  - Vermont 5.1.35
  - Virginia 5.1.36
  - West Virginia 5.1.37
  - Wisconsin 5.1.38
- House of Representatives 5.2
  - Alabama 5.2.1
  - Arkansas 5.2.2
  - California 5.2.3
  - Colorado 5.2.4
  - Connecticut 5.2.5
  - Delaware 5.2.6
  - Florida 5.2.7
  - Georgia 5.2.8
  - Illinois 5.2.9
  - Indiana 5.2.10
  - Iowa 5.2.11
  - Kansas 5.2.12
  - Kentucky 5.2.13
  - Louisiana 5.2.14
  - Maine 5.2.15
  - Maryland 5.2.16
  - Massachusetts 5.2.17
  - Michigan 5.2.18
  - Minnesota 5.2.19
  - Mississippi 5.2.20
  - Missouri 5.2.21
  - Nebraska 5.2.22
  - Nevada 5.2.23
  - New Hampshire 5.2.24
  - New Jersey 5.2.25
  - New York 5.2.26
  - North Carolina 5.2.27
  - Ohio 5.2.28
  - Oregon 5.2.29
  - Pennsylvania 5.2.30
  - Rhode Island 5.2.31
  - South Carolina 5.2.32
  - Tennessee 5.2.33
  - Texas 5.2.34
  - Vermont 5.2.35
  - Virginia 5.2.36
  - West Virginia 5.2.37
  - Wisconsin 5.2.38
  - Non-voting delegates 5.2.39
Changes in membership 6
Employees 7
- Senate 7.1
- House of Representatives 7.2
References 8
External links 9

Party summary

Senate

	Party (Shading shows control)					Total	Vacant

	Democratic (D)	Independent (I)	Independent Republican (IR)	Republican (R)	Readjuster (RA)
End of the previous congress	36	1	0	39	0	76	0

Begin	42	1	1	32	0	76	0
End	42	1	1	31	0	75	1
Final voting share	700156000000000000056.0%	70001300000000000001.3%	70001300000000000001.3%	700141300000000000041.3%	50000000000000000000.0%

Beginning of the next congress	37	1	0	37	1	76	0

House of Representatives

	Party (Shading shows control)					Total	Vacant

	Democratic (D)	Independent Democratic (ID)	Independent (I)	National Greenback (NG)	Republican (R)
End of the previous congress	148	2	0	0	141	291	2

Begin	145	4	1	11	131	292	1
End	146	4	1	11	129	291	2
Final voting share	700150200000000000050.2%	70001400000000000001.4%	69993000000000000000.3%	70003800000000000003.8%	700144300000000000044.3%

Beginning of the next congress	128	1	1	10	151	291	0

Leadership

Senate

President of the Senate
William A. Wheeler

Senate President pro tempore Allen G. Thurman

President: William A. Wheeler (R)
President pro tempore: Allen G. Thurman (D)

House of Representatives

House Speaker Samuel J. Randall

Speaker: Samuel J. Randall (D)

Major events

Depression of 1873–79
March 18, 1879: Samuel J. Randall was elected in one of the most tightly fought contests for the speakership after the Civil War. Randall, who favored the protective tariff and "hard money," drew his greatest strength from northern cities and greatest opposition from the west and south. The midterm elections of 1878 had gone badly for the Democrats, with the Greenback Party making inroads in key districts. This emboldened Randall's opponents, who rallied to the support of Joseph Blackburn from Kentucky. In the end, Randall prevailed in the Democratic caucus to receive the nomination, with 75 votes to Blackburn's 57 and a scattering of 9 votes to three other candidates. Blackburn, in moving to make Randall's nomination unanimous, steered his supporters away from the nomination of Hendrick B. Wright, a Democrat from Pennsylvania who was nominated by the Greenbacks. In the eventual vote in the House to elect the Speaker, Randall prevailed with 144 votes, to 125 for James Garfield (Republican from Ohio), 13 for Wright, and one for William "Pig Iron" Kelley (Pennsylvania).
November 2, 1880: U.S. presidential election, 1880: James Garfield (R) defeated Winfield S. Hancock (D)
February 19, 1881: Kansas became the first state to prohibit alcohol.

Major legislation

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 ended with this Congress, requiring re-election in 1880; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring re-election in 1882; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring re-election in 1884.

Alabama

2. John Morgan (D)
3. George S. Houston (D), until December 31, 1879
- Luke Pryor (D), January 7, 1880 - November 23, 1880
- James L. Pugh (D), from November 24, 1880

Georgia

2. Benjamin Hill (D)
3. John Gordon (D), until May 26, 1880
- Joseph E. Brown (D), from May 26, 1880

Illinois

2. David Davis (I)
3. John A. Logan (R)

Indiana

1. Joseph E. McDonald (D)
3. Daniel W. Voorhees (D)

Iowa

3. William B. Allison (R)
2. Samuel J. Kirkwood (R)

Kansas

3. John Ingalls (R)
2. Preston B. Plumb (R)

Kentucky

2. James B. Beck (D)
3. John Williams (D)

Louisiana

2. William Pitt Kellogg (R)
3. Benjamin F. Jonas (D)

Maine

1. Hannibal Hamlin (R)
2. James G. Blaine (R)

Maryland

1. William Pinkney Whyte (D)
3. James Groome (D)

Massachusetts

1. Henry L. Dawes (R)
2. George Hoar (R)

Michigan

2. Thomas W. Ferry (R)
1. Zachariah Chandler (R), until November 1, 1879
- Henry P. Baldwin (R), from November 17, 1879

Minnesota

2. William Windom (R)
1. Samuel McMillan (R)

Mississippi

1. Blanche Bruce (R)
2. Lucius Lamar (D)

Missouri

1. Francis Cockrell (D)
3. George Vest (D)

Nebraska

1. Algernon Paddock (R)
2. Alvin Saunders (R)

Nevada

3. John P. Jones (R)
1. William Sharon (R)

New Hampshire

2. Edward H. Rollins (R)
3. Charles Bell (R), March 13, 1879 - June 18, 1879
- Henry W. Blair (R), from June 18, 1879

New Jersey

1. Theodore Randolph (D)
2. John R. McPherson (D)

New York

3. Roscoe Conkling (R)
1. Francis Kernan (D)

North Carolina

2. Matt Ransom (D)
3. Zebulon Vance (D)

Ohio

1. Allen G. Thurman (D)
3. George H. Pendleton (D)

Oregon

2. La Fayette Grover (D)
3. James H. Slater (D)

Pennsylvania

1. William A. Wallace (D)
3. J. Donald Cameron (R)

Rhode Island

2. Henry B. Anthony (R)
1. Ambrose Burnside (R)

South Carolina

2. Matthew Butler (D)
3. Wade Hampton (D)

Tennessee

1. James E. Bailey (D)
2. Isham G. Harris (D)

Texas

1. Samuel B. Maxey (D)
2. Richard Coke (D)

Vermont

1. George F. Edmunds (R)
3. Justin Morrill (R)

Virginia

2. John W. Johnston (D)
1. Robert E. Withers (D)

West Virginia

2. Henry G. Davis (D)
1. Frank Hereford (D)

Wisconsin

1. Angus Cameron (R)
3. Matthew H. Carpenter (R), until February 24, 1881

House of Representatives

The names of members are preceded by their district numbers.

Alabama

1. Thomas H. Herndon (D)
2. Hilary A. Herbert (D)
3. William J. Samford (D)
4. Charles M. Shelley (D)
5. Thomas Williams (D)
6. Burwell Lewis (D), until October 1, 1880
- Newton N. Clements (D), from December 8, 1880
7. William H. Forney (D)
8. William M. Lowe (NG)

At-large. James B. Belford (R)

Connecticut

Delaware

At-large. Edward L. Martin (D)

Florida

1. Robert H. M. Davidson (D)
2. Noble A. Hull (D), until January 22, 1881
- Horatio Bisbee, Jr. (R), from January 22, 1881

1. Moses A. McCoid (R)
2. Hiram Price (R)
3. Thomas Updegraff (R)
4. Nathaniel C. Deering (R)
5. Rush Clark (R), until April 29, 1879
- William Thompson (R), from October 14, 1879
6. James B. Weaver (NG)
7. Edward H. Gillette (NG)
8. William F. Sapp (R)
9. Cyrus C. Carpenter (R)

1. William W. Crapo (R)
2. Benjamin W. Harris (R)
3. Walbridge A. Field (R)
4. Leopold Morse (D)
5. Selwyn Z. Bowman (R)
George B. Loring (R)
7. William A. Russell (R)
8. William Claflin (R)
9. William W. Rice (R)
10. Amasa Norcross (R)
George D. Robinson (R)

Michigan

1. John Newberry (R)
2. Edwin Willits (R)
3. Jonas H. McGowan (R)
4. Julius C. Burrows (R)
5. John W. Stone (R)
6. Mark S. Brewer (R)
7. Omar D. Conger (R), until March 3, 1881
8. Roswell G. Horr (R)
9. Jay Hubbell (R)

1. Martin L. Clardy (D)
2. Erastus Wells (D)
3. Richard G. Frost (D)
4. Lowndes Davis (D)
5. Richard P. Bland (D)
6. James R. Waddill (D)
7. Alfred M. Lay (D), until December 8, 1879
- John Philips (D), from January 10, 1880
8. Samuel L. Sawyer (ID)
9. Nicholas Ford (NG)
10. Gideon F. Rothwell (D)
11. John Clark, Jr. (D)
12. William H. Hatch (D)
13. Aylett H. Buckner (D)

Nebraska

At-large. Edward K. Valentine (R)

Nevada

At-large. Rollin M. Daggett (R)

New Hampshire

1. Joshua G. Hall (R)
2. James F. Briggs (R)
3. Evarts Farr (R), until November 30, 1880
- Ossian Ray (R), from January 8, 1881

New Jersey

George M. Robeson (R)
2. Hezekiah Smith (D)
3. Miles Ross (D)
4. Alvah A. Clark (D)
5. Charles H. Voorhis (R)
6. John L. Blake (R)
7. Lewis A. Brigham (R)

New York

1. James W. Covert (D)
2. Daniel O'Reilly (ID)
3. Simeon B. Chittenden (R)
4. Archibald Bliss (D)
5. Nicholas Muller (D)
6. Samuel S. Cox (D)
7. Edwin Einstein (R)
8. Anson G. McCook (R)
9. Fernando Wood (D), until February 14, 1881
10. James O'Brien (ID)
11. Levi P. Morton (R)
12. Waldo Hutchins (D), from November 4, 1879
13. John H. Ketcham (R)
14. John W. Ferdon (R)
15. William Lounsbery (D)
16. John Bailey (R)
17. Walter A. Wood (R)
18. John Hammond (R)
19. Amaziah B. James (R)
20. John H. Starin (R)
21. David Wilber (R)
22. Warner Miller (R)
23. Cyrus D. Prescott (R)
24. Joseph Mason (R)
25. Frank Hiscock (R)
26. John H. Camp (R)
27. Elbridge G. Lapham (R)
28. Jeremiah W. Dwight (R)
29. David P. Richardson (R)
30. John Van Voorhis (R)
31. Richard Crowley (R)
32. Ray V. Pierce (R), until September 18, 1880
- Jonathan Scoville (D), from November 12, 1880
33. Henry H. Van Aernam (R)

North Carolina

1. Joseph Martin (R), until January 29, 1881
- Jesse Yeates (D), from January 29, 1881
2. William H. Kitchin (D)
3. Daniel Russell (NG)
4. Joseph J. Davis (D)
5. Alfred Scales (D)
6. Walter Steele (D)
7. Robert Armfield (D)
8. Robert B. Vance (D)

Ohio

1. Benjamin Butterworth (R)
2. Thomas L. Young (R)
3. John A. McMahon (D)
4. J. Warren Keifer (R)
5. Benjamin Le Fevre (D)
6. William D. Hill (D)
7. Frank H. Hurd (D)
8. Ebenezer B. Finley (D)
George L. Converse (D)
10. Thomas Ewing, Jr. (D)
11. Henry L. Dickey (D)
12. Henry S. Neal (R)
13. Adoniram J. Warner (D)
14. Gibson Atherton (D)
George W. Geddes (D)
16. William McKinley (R)
17. James Monroe (R)
18. Jonathan T. Updegraff (R)
19. James A. Garfield (R), until ????, 1880
- Ezra B. Taylor (R), from December 13, 1880
20. Amos Townsend (R)

Oregon

At-large. John Whiteaker (D)

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

1. Nelson W. Aldrich (R)
2. Latimer W. Ballou (R)

South Carolina

1. John S. Richardson (D)
2. Michael P. O'Connor (D)
3. D. Wyatt Aiken (D)
4. John H. Evins (D)
George D. Tillman (D)

Tennessee

1. Robert Taylor (D)
2. Leonidas C. Houk (R)
George Dibrell (D)
4. Benton McMillin (D)
John Bright (D)
6. John House (D)
7. Washington C. Whitthorne (D)
8. John Atkins (D)
9. Charles Simonton (D)
10. H. Casey Young (D)

Texas

1. John Reagan (D)
2. David B. Culberson (D)
3. Olin Wellborn (D)
4. Roger Q. Mills (D)
NG)
6. Christopher C. Upson (D), from April 15, 1879

Vermont

Virginia

1. Richard Lee T. Beale (D)
2. John Goode, Jr. (D)
3. Joseph E. Johnston (D)
Joseph Jorgensen (R)
George Cabell (D)
6. John Tucker (D)
7. John T. Harris (D)
8. Eppa Hutton, II (D)
9. James Richmond (D)

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Non-voting delegates

Arizona Territory. John G. Campbell (D)
Dakota Territory. Granville G. Bennett (R)
George Ainslie (D)
Montana Territory. Martin Maginnis (D)
New Mexico Territory. Mariano S. Otero (R)
George Q. Cannon (R)
Washington Territory. Thomas H. Brents (R)
Wyoming Territory. Stephen Downey (R)

Changes in membership

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

Senate

replacements: 4
- Democratic: no net change
- Republican: no net change
deaths: 3
resignations: 1
interim appointments: 2
Total seats with changes: 5

State (class)	Vacator	Reason for change	Successor	Date of successor's formal installation
New Hampshire (3)	Vacant	Vacancy in term. An interim successor was appointed.	Charles H. Bell (R)	March 13, 1879
New Hampshire (3)	Charles H. Bell (R)	Successor elected June 18, 1879	Henry W. Blair (R)	June 20, 1879
Michigan (1)	Zachariah Chandler (R)	Died November 1, 1879	Henry P. Baldwin (R)	November 17, 1879
Alabama (3)	George S. Houston (D)	Died December 31, 1879. An interim successor was appointed.	Luke Pryor (D)	January 7, 1880
Georgia (3)	John B. Gordon (D)	Resigned My 26, 1880 to promote building of the Georgia Pacific Railway	Joseph E. Brown (D)	May 26, 1880
Alabama (3)	Luke Pryor (D)	Successor elected November 23, 1880.	James L. Pugh (D)	November 24, 1880
Wisconsin (3)	Matthew H. Carpenter (R)	Died February 24, 1881	Vacant	Not filled this term

House of Representatives

replacements: 8
- Democratic: 1 seat net gain
- Republican: 1 seat net loss
deaths: 4
resignations: 3
contested election: 2
Total seats with changes: 11

District	Vacator	Reason for change	Successor	Date successor seated
Texas 6th	Vacant	Rep. Gustav Schleicher died during previous congress	Christopher C. Upson (D)	April 15, 1879
New York 12th	Vacant	Rep.-elect Alexander Smith died during previous congress	Waldo Hutchins (D)	November 4, 1879
Iowa 5th	Rush Clark (R)	Died April 29, 1879	William G. Thompson (R)	October 14, 1879
Ohio 19th	James A. Garfield (R)	Resigned ????, 1880	Ezra B. Taylor (R)	December 13, 1880
Missouri 7th	Alfred M. Lay (D)	Died December 8, 1879	John F. Philips (D)	January 10, 1880
New York 32nd	Ray V. Pierce (R)	Resigned September 18, 1880	Jonathan Scoville (D)	November 12, 1880
Alabama 6th	Burwell B. Lewis (D)	Resigned October 1, 1880 to accept presidency of the University of Alabama	Newton N. Clements (D)	December 8, 1880
New Hampshire 3rd	Evarts W. Farr (R)	Died November 30, 1880	Ossian Ray (R)	January 8, 1881
Florida 2nd	Noble A. Hull (D)	Lost contested election January 22, 1881	Horatio Bisbee, Jr. (R)	January 22, 1881
North Carolina 1st	Joseph J. Martin (R)	Lost contested election January 29, 1881	Jesse J. Yeates (D)	January 29, 1881
New York 9th	Fernando Wood (D)	Died February 14, 1881	Vacant	Not filled this term
Michigan 7th	Omar D. Conger (R)	Resigned March 3, 1881 after being elected to the US Senate	Vacant	Not filled this term

Employees

Architect of the Capitol: Edward Clark

Senate

George C. Gorham
- John C. Burch elected March 24, 1879
Sergeant at Arms: John R. French
- Richard J. Bright, elected March 23, 1879
Chaplain: Joseph J. Bullock (Presbyterian)

House of Representatives

George M. Adams
Sergeant at Arms: John G. Thompson
Doorkeeper: Charles W. Field
Postmaster: James M. Steuart
Clerk at the Speaker’s Table: J. Randolph Tucker, Jr.
- George P. Miller
- Michael Sullivan
Chaplain: W.P. Harrison (Methodist)

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.