The 48th 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, 1883, to March 4, 1885, during the last two years of Chester A. Arthur's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1880 United States census. The Senate had a Republican majority, and the House had a Democratic majority.
| 48th United States Congress | |
|---|---|
47th ← → 49th | |
 United States Capitol (1906) | |
March 4, 1883 – March 4, 1885 | |
| Members | 76 senators 325 representatives 8 non-voting delegates |
| Senate majority | Republican |
| Senate President | Vacant |
| House majority | Democratic |
| House Speaker | John G. Carlisle (D) |
| Sessions | |
| 1st: December 3, 1883 – July 7, 1884 2nd: December 1, 1884 – March 3, 1885 | |
Major events
- September 5, 1883: Mary F. Hoyt became the first woman appointed to the U.S. federal civil service (and the second person appointed by examination (in which she came top) instituted under the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act) when she became a clerk in the Bank Redemption Agency of the Department of the Treasury.
- October 15, 1883: The Supreme Court of the United States declared part of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional, as the Court allowed private individuals and corporations to discriminate based on race.
- November 18, 1883: U.S. and Canadian railroads instituted 5 standard continental time zones, ending the confusion of thousands of local times.
- August 10, 1884: An earthquake measuring 5.5 Mfa (based on the felt area) affected a very large portion of the eastern United States. The shock had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong). Chimneys were toppled in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Property damage was severe in Jamaica and Amityville in New York.
- October 6, 1884: The United States Naval War College was established in Newport, Rhode Island.
- October 22, 1884: International Meridian Conference in Washington, D.C., fixed the Greenwich meridian as the world's prime meridian.
- November 4, 1884: 1884 United States presidential election: Democratic Governor of New York Grover Cleveland defeated Republican James G. Blaine in a very close contest to win the first of his non-consecutive terms.
- December 6: 1884: The Washington Monument was completed.
Major legislation
Territories organized
- May 17, 1884: District of Alaska was organized.
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.
Senate
| Party (shading shows control) | Total | Vacant | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic (D) | Readjuster (RA) | Republican (R) | Other | |||
| End of previous congress | 37 | 1 | 37 | 1[a] | 76 | 0 |
| Begin | 36 | 2 | 37 | 0 | 75 | 1 |
| End | 38 | 76 | 0 | |||
| Final voting share | 47.4% | 2.6% | 50.0% | 0.0% | ||
| Beginning of next congress | 34 | 2 | 37 | 0 | 73 | 3 |
House of Representatives
| Party (shading shows control) | Total | Vacant | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic (D) | Independent Democratic (ID) | Readjuster (RA) | Independent (I) | Greenback (GB) | Independent Republican (IR) | Republican (R) | Anti- Monopoly (AM) | |||
| End of previous congress | 130 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 150 | 0 | 292 | 1 |
| Begin | 192 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 120 | 0 | 324 | 1 |
| End | 197 | 4 | 2 | 113 | 1 | 323 | 2 | |||
| Final voting share | 61.0% | 0.9% | 1.2% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.3% | 35.0% | 0.3% | ||
| Non-voting members | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Beginning of next congress | 128 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 151 | 128 | 419 | 0 |
| House seats by party holding plurality in state | |
|---|---|
80+% to 100% Democratic | 80+% to 100% Republican |
60+% to 80% Democratic | 60+% to 80% Republican |
Up to 60% Democratic | Up to 60% Republican |
Leadership
Senate
- President: Vacant. Chester Arthur (R), the most recent Senate president, had become U.S. president on the death of his predecessor September 19, 1881, leaving the office vacant through the end of this Congress.
- President pro tempore: George F. Edmunds (R)
- Republican Conference Chairman: John Sherman
- Democratic Caucus Chairman: George H. Pendleton
House of Representatives
Members
This list is arranged by chamber, then by state.
Senate
Senators are listed by their states and Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election.
House of Representatives
Members of the House 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
- Replacements: 1
- Democratic: no net change
- Republican: 1 seat net gain
- Liberal Republican: 1 seat net loss
- Deaths: 1
- Resignations: 0
- Interim appointment: 1
- Late election: 1
- Total seats with changes: 3
| State (class) | Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's formal installation[b] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire (2) | Vacant | Legislature had failed to elect. Senator elected August 2, 1883. | Austin F. Pike (R) | August 2, 1883 |
| Rhode Island (2) | Henry B. Anthony (R) | Incumbent died September 2, 1884. Successor appointed November 19, 1884. | William P. Sheffield (R) | November 19, 1884 |
| Rhode Island (2) | William P. Sheffield (R) | Interim appointee replaced by successor elected January 20, 1885. | Jonathan Chace (R) | January 20, 1885 |
House of Representatives
- Replacements: 15
- Democratic: 1 seat net gain
- Republican: 1 seat net loss
- National Greenback: 1 seat net gain
- Deaths: 9
- Resignations: 9
- Contested election: 8
- Total seats with changes: 25
| District | Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's formal installation[b] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi 2nd | Vacant | Chalmers took seat after an election contest with Van H. Manning who challenged his election | James R. Chalmers (I) | June 25, 1884 |
| West Virginia 3rd | John E. Kenna (D) | Resigned March 4, 1883, when elected U.S. Senator. | Charles P. Snyder (D) | May 15, 1883 |
| Alabama 1st | Thomas H. Herndon (D) | Died March 28, 1883. | James T. Jones (D) | December 3, 1883 |
| Iowa 6th | Marsena E. Cutts (R) | Died September 1, 1883. | John C. Cook (D) | October 9, 1883 |
| Virginia 7th | John Paul (D) | Resigned September 5, 1883, to become judge of the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Virginia. The House election was subsequently contested. | Charles T. O'Ferrall (D) | May 5, 1884 |
| Kansas 2nd | Dudley C. Haskell (R) | Died December 16, 1883. | Edward H. Funston (R) | March 21, 1884 |
| North Carolina 1st | Walter F. Pool (R) | Died August 25, 1883. | Thomas G. Skinner (D) | November 20, 1883 |
| Massachusetts 12th | George D. Robinson (R) | Resigned January 7, 1884, when elected Governor of Massachusetts. | Francis W. Rockwell (R) | January 17, 1884 |
| South Carolina 7th | Edmund W. M. Mackey (R) | Died January 27, 1884. | Robert Smalls (R) | March 18, 1884 |
| New Mexico Territory At-large | Tranquilino Luna (R) | Lost contested election March 5, 1884. | Francisco A. Manzanares (D) | March 5, 1884 |
| Virginia 1st | Robert M. Mayo (RA) | Lost contested election March 20, 1884. | George T. Garrison (D) | March 20, 1884 |
| Indiana 7th | Stanton J. Peelle (R) | Lost contested election May 22, 1884. | William E. English (D) | May 22, 1884 |
| Ohio 18th | William McKinley (R) | Lost contested election May 27, 1884. | Jonathan H. Wallace (D) | May 27, 1884 |
| Ohio 7th | Henry L. Morey (R) | Lost contested election June 20, 1884. | James E. Campbell (D) | June 20, 1884 |
| Iowa 7th | John A. Kasson (R) | Resigned July 13, 1884, to become U.S. Minister to Germany. | Hiram Y. Smith (R) | December 2, 1884 |
| Indiana 13th | William H. Calkins (R) | Resigned October 20, 1884. | Benjamin F. Shively (AM) | December 1, 1884 |
| South Carolina 4th | John H. Evins (D) | Died October 20, 1884. | John Bratton (D) | December 8, 1884 |
| Pennsylvania 19th | William A. Duncan (D) | Died November 14, 1884. | John A. Swope (D) | December 23, 1884 |
| North Carolina 5th | Alfred M. Scales (D) | Resigned December 30, 1884, when elected Governor of North Carolina. | James W. Reid (D) | January 28, 1885 |
| Alabama 4th | Charles M. Shelley (D) | Lost contested election January 9, 1885. | George H. Craig (R) | January 9, 1885 |
| Ohio 9th | James S. Robinson (R) | Resigned January 12, 1885, to become Ohio Secretary of State. | Vacant | Not filled this term |
| Rhode Island 2nd | Jonathan Chace (R) | Resigned January 26, 1885, when elected U.S. Senator. | Nathan F. Dixon III (R) | February 12, 1885 |
| Arkansas 2nd | James K. Jones (D) | Resigned February 19, 1885, when elected U.S. Senator. | Vacant | Not filled this term |
| Iowa 5th | James Wilson (R) | Lost contested election March 3, 1885. | Benjamin T. Frederick (D) | March 3, 1885 |
Committees
Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.
Joint committees
- Conditions of Indian Tribes (Special)
- Enrolled Bills (Chairman: Sen. William J. Sewell; Vice Chairman: Rep. Alfred H. Colquitt)
- The Library (Chairman: Sen. John Sherman; Vice Chairman: Rep. Daniel W. Voorhees)
- Printing (Chairman: Sen. Henry B. Anthony then Joseph R. Hawley; Vice Chairman: Rep. Arthur P. Gorman)
- Public Buildings and Grounds (Chairman: Sen. William Mahone; Vice Chairman: Rep. Charles W. Jones)
- Scientific Bureaus
Caucuses
- Democratic (House)
- Democratic (Senate)
Employees
Legislative branch agency directors
- Architect of the Capitol: Edward Clark
- Librarian of Congress: Ainsworth Rand Spofford
- Public Printer of the United States: Sterling P. Rounds
Senate
- Chaplain: Joseph J. Bullock (Presbyterian), to December 18, 1883
- Elias D. Huntley (Methodist), from December 18, 1883
- Librarian: P. J. Pierce, to 1884
- George M. Weston, from 1884
- Secretary: Francis E. Shober (Acting), to December 18, 1883
- Anson G. McCook, from December 18, 1883
- Sergeant at Arms: Richard J. Bright, to December 18, 1883
- William P. Canady, from December 18, 1883
House of Representatives
- Chaplain: Frederick D. Power (Disciples of Christ), until December 3, 1883
- John S. Lindsay (Episcopalian), elected December 3, 1883
- Clerk: John B. Clark Jr., elected December 3, 1883
- Clerk at the Speaker's Table: Nathaniel T. Crutchfield
- Doorkeeper: James G. Wintersmith, elected December 3, 1883
- Postmaster: Lycurgus Dalton, elected December 3, 1883
- Reading Clerks: T.O. Walker (D) and Neill S. Brown Jr. (R)
- Sergeant at Arms: George W. Hooker, until December 4, 1883
- John P. Leedom, until December 4, 1883
See also
- 1882 United States elections (elections leading to this Congress)
- 1884 United States elections (elections during this Congress, leading to the next Congress)
Notes
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.
External links
- Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress
- U.S. House of Representatives: House History
- U.S. Senate: Statistics and Lists
- Congressional Directory for the 48th Congress, 1st Session.
- Congressional Directory for the 48th Congress, 1st Session (1st Revision).
- Congressional Directory for the 48th Congress, 1st Session (2nd Revision).
- Congressional Directory for the 48th Congress, 2nd Session.
- Congressional Directory for the 48th Congress, 2nd Session (Revision).
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