39th United States Congress

39th United States Congress


38th ←	→ 40th
United States Capitol (1869)
Duration: March 4, 1865 – March 4, 1867

Senate President:	Andrew Johnson (Mar.–Apr. 1865) Vacant (1865–1867)
Senate Pres. pro tem:	Lafayette S. Foster Benjamin Wade
House Speaker:	Schuyler Colfax
Members:	54 Senators 193 Representatives 9 Non-voting members
Senate Majority:	Republican
House Majority:	Republican

Sessions
Special: March 4, 1865 – March 11, 1865 1st: December 4, 1865 – July 28, 1866 2nd: December 3, 1866 – March 4, 1867

The Thirty-ninth 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, 1865 to March 4, 1867, during the first month of Abraham Lincoln's fifth year as president, and the first two years of his successor, U.S. President Andrew Johnson.

The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Eighth Census of the United States in 1860. Both chambers had a Republican majority.

1 Major events
2 Major legislation
3 Constitutional amendments
4 States admitted
5 Party summary
- 5.1 Senate
- 5.2 House of Representatives
6 Leadership
- 6.1 Senate
- 6.2 House of Representatives
7 Members
- 7.1 Senate
- 7.2 House of Representatives
8 Changes in membership
- 8.1 Senate
- 8.2 House of Representatives
9 Employees
- 9.1 Senate
- 9.2 House of Representatives
10 References
11 Further reading
12 External links

Major events

March 4, 1865: Second inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln.
April 9, 1865: Surrender of Confederate forces at Appomattox Court House, effectively ending the American Civil War
April 15, 1865: Assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson became President of the United States
December 11, 1865: Creation of the House Appropriations Committee and the House Committee on Banking and Commerce, reducing the tasks of the House Committee on Ways and Means
January, 1866: The second and current United States Capitol dome completed after 11 years of work.
July 24, 1866: Tennessee became the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War.
November 5, 1866: United States House of Representatives elections, 1866
January 8, 1867: African-American men are granted the right to vote in the District of Columbia

Major legislation

April 9, 1866: Civil Rights Act of 1866, Sess. 1, ch. 31, 14 Stat. 27
July 16, 1866: Freedmen's Bureau Bill, Sess. 1, ch. 200, 14 Stat. 173
July 23, 1866: Judicial Circuits Act, Sess. 1, ch. 210, 14 Stat. 209, reduced the number of United States circuit courts to nine and the number of Supreme Court justices to seven
July 25, 1866: An Act to revive the Grade of General in the United States Army, Sess. 1, ch. 232, 14 Stat. 223, (now called "5-star general"); Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant became the first to have this rank.
July 28, 1866: Metric Act of 1866, Sess. 1, ch. 301, 14 Stat. 339, legalized the use of the metric system for weights and measures in the United States.

Constitutional amendments

December 18, 1865: Thirteenth Amendment declared ratified
June 13, 1866: Fourteenth Amendment passed Congress and sent to the states for ratification.^[1]

States admitted

March 1, 1867: Nebraska admitted as the 37th state, Sess. 2, ch. 36, 14 Stat. 391 (over president's veto)

Party summary

The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this Congress, and includes members from vacancies and newly admitted states, when they were first seated. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.

During this Congress, Tennessee was readmitted to representation.

Senate

During this Congress, two seats were added for the new state of Nebraska.

	Party (Shading shows control)				Total	Vacant

	Democratic (D)	Republican (R)	Unionist (U)	Unconditional Unionist (UU)
End of the previous congress	10	33	3	4	50	22

Begin	11	37	0	1	49	23
End	9	41	1	3	54	20
Final voting share	700116700000000000016.7%	700175900000000000075.9%	70001900000000000001.9%	70005600000000000005.6%

Beginning of the next congress	8	45	0	0	53	21

House of Representatives

During this Congress, one seat was added for the new state of Nebraska.

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority/plurality caucus)						Total

	Democratic (D)	Republican (R)	Independent Republican (IR)	Unionist (U)	Unconditional Unionist (UU)	Other		Vacant
End of previous Congress	72	84	2	9	16	0	183	56

Begin	40	132	1	4	14	0	191	51
End	41	134	1	4	13	0	193	49
Final voting share	21.2%	69.9%		2.1%	6.7%	0.0%

Beginning of the next Congress	45	140	1	0	0	2	188	55

Leadership

President of the Senate
Andrew Johnson

Senate

President: Andrew Johnson (D), succeeded to the U.S. Presidency April 15, 1865, vacant thereafter.
President pro tempore: Lafayette S. Foster (R), until March 2, 1867
- Benjamin F. Wade (R), elected March 2, 1867

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

President pro tempore
Lafayette S. Foster

President pro tempore
Benjamin F. Wade

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 reelection in 1868; Class 2 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1870; and Class 3 meant their term ended in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1866.

Alabama

2. Vacant
3. Vacant

Arkansas

2. Vacant
3. Vacant

Florida

1. Vacant
3. Vacant

Georgia

2. Vacant
3. Vacant

Illinois

3. Lyman Trumbull (R)
2. Richard Yates (R)

Indiana

3. Henry S. Lane (R)
1. Thomas A. Hendricks (D)

Iowa

3. James Harlan (R), until May 15, 1865
- Samuel J. Kirkwood (R), from January 13, 1866
2. James W. Grimes (R)

Kansas

3. Samuel C. Pomeroy (R)
2. James H. Lane (R), until July 11, 1866
- Edmund G. Ross (R), from July 19, 1866

Kentucky

3. Garrett Davis (D)
2. James Guthrie (D)

Louisiana

2. Vacant
3. Vacant

Maine

1. Lot M. Morrill (R)
2. William Pitt Fessenden (R)

Maryland

1. Reverdy Johnson (D)
3. John A. J. Creswell (UU), from March 9, 1865

Massachusetts

1. Charles Sumner (R)
2. Henry Wilson (R)

Michigan

1. Zachariah Chandler (R)
2. Jacob M. Howard (R)

Minnesota

1. Alexander Ramsey (R)
2. Daniel S. Norton (R)

Mississippi

1. Vacant
2. Vacant

Missouri

1. John B. Henderson (R)
3. B. Gratz Brown (R)

Nebraska

2. John M. Thayer (R), from March 1, 1867
1. Thomas Tipton (R), from March 1, 1867

Nevada

1. William M. Stewart (R)
3. James W. Nye (R)

New Hampshire

3. Daniel Clark (R), until July 27, 1866
- George G. Fogg (R), from August 31, 1866
2. Aaron H. Cragin (R)

New Jersey

1. William Wright (D), until November 1, 1866
- Frederick T. Frelinghuysen (R), from November 12, 1866
2. John P. Stockton (D), March 15, 1865 – March 27, 1866
- Alexander G. Cattell (R), from September 19, 1866

New York

3. Ira Harris (R)
1. Edwin D. Morgan (R)

North Carolina

2. Vacant
3. Vacant

Ohio

1. Benjamin F. Wade (R)
3. John Sherman (R)

Oregon

3. James W. Nesmith (D)
2. George H. Williams (R)

Pennsylvania

3. Edgar Cowan (R)
1. Charles R. Buckalew (D)

Rhode Island

2. Henry B. Anthony (R)
1. William Sprague (R)

South Carolina

2. Vacant
3. Vacant

Tennessee

2. Joseph S. Fowler (UU), from July 24, 1866
1. David T. Patterson (U), from July 28, 1866

Texas

1. Vacant
2. Vacant

Vermont

1. Solomon Foot (R), until March 28, 1866
- George F. Edmunds (R), from April 3, 1866
3. Jacob Collamer (R), until November 9, 1865
- Luke P. Poland (R), from November 21, 1865

Virginia

1. Vacant
2. Vacant

West Virginia

1. Peter G. Van Winkle (UU)
2. Waitman T. Willey (R)

Wisconsin

1. James R. Doolittle (R)
3. Timothy O. Howe (R)

House of Representatives

Speaker of the House
Schuyler Colfax

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

Alabama

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant
5. Vacant
6. Vacant

Arkansas

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant

At-large. John A. Nicholson (D)

Florida

At-large. Vacant

Georgia

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant
5. Vacant
6. Vacant
7. Vacant

Illinois

Indiana

1. William E. Niblack (D)
2. Michael C. Kerr (D)
3. Ralph Hill (R)
4. John H. Farquhar (R)
George W. Julian (R)
6. Ebenezer Dumont (R)
7. Daniel W. Voorhees (D), until February 23, 1866
- Henry D. Washburn (R), from February 23, 1866
8. Godlove S. Orth (R)
9. Schuyler Colfax (R)
10. Joseph H. Defrees (R)
11. Thomas N. Stilwell (R)

Iowa

Kansas

At-large. Sidney Clarke (R)

Kentucky

1. Lawrence S. Trimble (D)
2. Burwell C. Ritter (D)
3. Henry Grider (D), until September 7, 1866
- Elijah Hise (D), from December 3, 1866
4. Aaron Harding (D)
5. Lovell H. Rousseau (UU), until July 21, 1866 and from December 3, 1866
6. Green C. Smith (UU), until July ??, 1866
- Andrew H. Ward (D), from December 3, 1866
George S. Shanklin (D)
8. William H. Randall (UU)
9. Samuel McKee (UU)

Louisiana

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant
5. Vacant

Maine

Maryland

1. Hiram McCullough (D)
2. Edwin H. Webster (UU), until July ??, 1865
- John L. Thomas, Jr. (UU), from December 4, 1865
3. Charles E. Phelps (UU)
4. Francis Thomas (UU)
5. Benjamin G. Harris (D)

Massachusetts

1. Thomas D. Eliot (R)
2. Oakes Ames (R)
3. Alexander H. Rice (R)
4. Samuel Hooper (R)
5. John B. Alley (R)
6. Daniel W. Gooch (R), until September 1, 1865
- Nathaniel P. Banks (R), from December 4, 1865
George S. Boutwell (R)
8. John D. Baldwin (R)
9. William B. Washburn (R)
10. Henry L. Dawes (R)

Michigan

Minnesota

1. William Windom (R)
2. Ignatius L. Donnelly (R)

Mississippi

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant
5. Vacant

Missouri

Nebraska

At-large. Turner M. Marquette (R), from March 2, 1867

Nevada

At-large. Delos R. Ashley (R)

1. Stephen Taber (D)
2. Teunis G. Bergen (D)
3. James Humphrey (R), until June 16, 1866
- John W. Hunter (D), from December 4, 1866
Morgan Jones (D)
5. Nelson Taylor (D)
6. Henry J. Raymond (R)
7. John W. Chanler (D)
8. James Brooks (D), until April 7, 1866
- William E. Dodge (R), from April 7, 1866
9. William A. Darling (R)
10. William Radford (D)
11. Charles H. Winfield (D)
12. John H. Ketcham (R)
13. Edwin N. Hubbell (D)
14. Charles Goodyear (D)
15. John A. Griswold (R)
16. Orlando Kellogg (R), until August 24, 1865
- Robert S. Hale (R), from December 3, 1866
17. Calvin T. Hulburd (R)
18. James M. Marvin (R)
19. Demas Hubbard, Jr. (R)
20. Addison H. Laflin (R)
21. Roscoe Conkling (R)
22. Sidney T. Holmes (R)
23. Thomas T. Davis (R)
24. Theodore M. Pomeroy (R)
25. Daniel Morris (R)
26. Giles W. Hotchkiss (R)
27. Hamilton Ward, Sr. (R)
28. Roswell Hart (R)
29. Burt Van Horn (R)
30. James M. Humphrey (D)
31. Henry H. Van Aernam (R)

North Carolina

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant
5. Vacant
6. Vacant
7. Vacant

Ohio

Oregon

At-large. James H. D. Henderson (R)

Pennsylvania

1. Samuel J. Randall (D)
2. Charles O'Neill (R)
3. Leonard Myers (R)
4. William D. Kelley (R)
5. M. Russell Thayer (R)
6. Benjamin M. Boyer (D)
7. John M. Broomall (R)
8. Sydenham E. Ancona (D)
9. Thaddeus Stevens (R)
10. Myer Strouse (D)
11. Philip Johnson (D), until January 29, 1867
12. Charles Denison (D)
13. Ulysses Mercur (R)
George F. Miller (R)
15. Adam J. Glossbrenner (D)
16. Alexander H. Coffroth (D), until February 19, 1866
- William H. Koontz (R), from July 18, 1866
17. Abraham A. Barker (R)
18. Stephen F. Wilson (R)
19. Glenni W. Scofield (R)
20. Charles V. Culver (R)
21. John L. Dawson (D)
22. James K. Moorhead (R)
23. Thomas Williams (R)
George V. Lawrence (R)

Rhode Island

1. Thomas A. Jenckes (R)
2. Nathan F. Dixon, Jr. (R)

South Carolina

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant

Tennessee

1. Nathaniel G. Taylor (U), from July 24, 1866
2. Horace Maynard (UU), from July 24, 1866
3. William B. Stokes (UU), from July 24, 1866
4. Edmund Cooper (U), from July 24, 1866
5. William B. Campbell (U), from July 24, 1866
6. Samuel M. Arnell (UU), from July 24, 1866
7. Isaac R. Hawkins (U), from July 24, 1866
8. John W. Leftwich (UU), from July 24, 1866

Texas

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant

Vermont

Virginia

1. Vacant
2. Vacant
3. Vacant
4. Vacant
5. Vacant
6. Vacant
7. Vacant
8. Vacant

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Non-voting members

Arizona Territory. John N. Goodwin (R)
Colorado Territory. Allen A. Bradford (R)
Dakota Territory. Walter A. Burleigh (R)
Idaho Territory. Edward D. Holbrook (D)
Montana Territory. Samuel McLean (D)
Nebraska Territory. Phineas W. Hitchcock (R), until March 1, 1867
New Mexico Territory. J. Francisco Chaves (R)
Utah Territory. William H. Hooper (D)
Washington Territory. Arthur A. Denny (R)

Changes in membership

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

Senate

replacements: 8
- Democratic: 2-seat net loss
- Republican: 2-seat net gain
- Unionist: no net change
- Unconditional Union: no net change
deaths: 4
resignations: 2
vacancy: 1
seats of newly admitted states: 2
seats of re-admitted states: 2

Total seats with changes: 12

State (class)	Vacator	Reason for change	Successor	Date of successor's formal installation
Maryland (3)	Vacant	Sen. Thomas H. Hicks died during previous congress	John Creswell (UU)	March 9, 1865
New Jersey (2)	Vacant	Presented credentials as Sen-elect	John P. Stockton (D)	March 15, 1865
Tennessee (2)	Vacant	Tennessee re-admitted to the Union	Joseph S. Fowler (UU)	July 24, 1866
Tennessee (1)	Vacant	Tennessee re-admitted to the Union	David T. Patterson (U)	July 28, 1866
Iowa (3)	James Harlan (R)	Resigned May 15, 1865 after being appointed United States Secretary of the Interior	Samuel J. Kirkwood (R)	January 13, 1866
Vermont (3)	Jacob Collamer (R)	Died November 9, 1865	Luke P. Poland (R)	November 21, 1865
New Jersey (2)	John P. Stockton (D)	Election was in dispute. Senate declared seat vacant March 27, 1966 and new election called.	Alexander G. Cattell (R)	September 16, 1866
Vermont (1)	Solomon Foot (R)	Died March 28, 1866	George F. Edmunds (R)	April 3, 1866
Kansas (2)	James H. Lane (R)	Died July 11, 1866 after being mortally wounded from a self-inflicted gunshot 10 days earlier	Edmund G. Ross (R)	July 19, 1866
New Hampshire (3)	Daniel Clark (R)	Resigned July 27, 1866 after being appointed a judge for a US district court in NH	George G. Fogg (R)	August 31, 1866
New Jersey (1)	William Wright (D)	Died November 1, 1866	Frederick T. Frelinghuysen (R)	November 12, 1866
Nebraska (1)	New seat	Nebraska admitted to the Union March 1, 1867.	Thomas Tipton (R)	March 1, 1867
Nebraska (2)	New seat	Nebraska admitted to the Union March 1, 1867.	John M. Thayer (R)	March 1, 1867

House of Representatives

replacements: 9
- Democratic: 1-seat net gain
- Republican: 2-seat net gain
- Unconditional Unionist: 1 seat net loss
- Unionist: 0 net change
deaths: 4
resignations: 4
contested election: 3
seats from newly admitted states: 1
seats from re-admitted states: 8
Total seats with changes: 21

District	Vacator	Reason for change	Successor	Date successor seated
Tennessee 1st	Vacant	Tennessee re-admitted into the Union	Nathaniel G. Taylor (U)	July 24, 1866
Tennessee 2nd			Horace Maynard (UU)
Tennessee 3rd			William B. Stokes (UU)
Tennessee 4th			Edmund Cooper (U)
Tennessee 5th			William B. Campbell (U)
Tennessee 6th			Samuel M. Arnell (UU)
Tennessee 7th			Isaac R. Hawkins (U)
Tennessee 8th			John W. Leftwich (UU)
Maryland 2nd	Edwin H. Webster (UU)	Resigned some time in July, 1865 after being appointed Collector of Customs for the port of Baltimore	John L. Thomas, Jr. (UU)	December 4, 1865
New York 16th	Orlando Kellogg (R)	Died August 24, 1865	Robert S. Hale (R)	December 3, 1865
Massachusetts 6th	Daniel W. Gooch (R)	Resigned September 1, 1865 after being appointed Navy Agent for the port of Boston	Nathaniel P. Banks (R)	December 4, 1865
Pennsylvania 16th	Alexander H. Coffroth (D)	Lost contested election February 19, 1866	William H. Koontz (R)	July 18, 1866
Indiana 7th	Daniel W. Voorhees (D)	Lost contested election February 23, 1866	Henry D. Washburn (R)	February 23, 1866
New York 8th	James Brooks (D)	Lost contested election April 7, 1866	William E. Dodge (R)	April 7, 1866
New York 3rd	James Humphrey (R)	Died June 16, 1866	John W. Hunter (D)	December 4, 1866
Kentucky 6th	Green C. Smith (UU)	Resigned some time in July, 1866 after being appointed Governor of the Montana Territory.	Andrew H. Ward (D)	December 3, 1866
Kentucky 5th	Lovell Rousseau (UU)	Resigned July 21, 1866 after being reprimanded for his assault of Iowa Rep. Josiah B. Grinnell. Was re-elected to fill his own seat.	Lovell Rousseau (UU)	December 3, 1866
Kentucky 3rd	Henry Grider (D)	Died September 7, 1866	Elijah Hise (D)	December 3, 1866
Pennsylvania 11th	Philip Johnson (D)	Died January 29, 1867	Vacant	Not filled this term
Nebraska Territory At-large	Phineas Hitchcock (R)	Nebraska achieved statehood March 1, 1867	District eliminated
Nebraska At-large	New State	Nebraska admitted to the Union March 1, 1867. Seat remained vacant until March 2, 1867	Turner M. Marquette (R)	March 2, 1867