First United States Congress - Definition and Overview

Dates of Sessions

1789-1791

• The first session of this Congress took place in New York City from March 4, 1789 to September 29, 1789.
• The second session took place in New York City from January 4, 1790 to August 12, 1790.
• The third session took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from December 6, 1790 to March 3, 1791.

Major Political Events

• Senate and House of Representatives of eleven States first convene in New York, March 4, 1789.
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Georgia
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Pennsylvania
  • South Carolina
  • Virginia
• House first meets with quorum of members to elect first Speaker, April 1, 1789
  • Frederick Muhlenberg, first House Speaker
• Senate first meets with quorum of members to elect first President pro tempore and tally results of Presidential election
  • John Langdon, first Senate President pro Tempore
• Inauguration of George Washington, first President of the United States, April 30, 1789
• Foreign Affairs (State) Department Established, July 27, 1789
• War Department Established, August 7, 1789
• Adopts provisions of the Northwest Ordinance under the U.S. Constitution, August 7, 1789
• Treasury Department Established, September 2, 1789
• Judiciary Act of 1789 established Office of Attorney General, the composition of Supreme Court, and the entire Judiciary system, September 24, 1789
• North Carolina ratifies Constitution, November 21, 1789
• Makes provisions for the first U.S. Census, March 1, 1790
• Accepts the cession of claims on western territory (which was to become the state of Tennessee) by North Carolina on April 2, 1790
• Passes first legislation regulating Patents, April 10, 1790
• Organizes the Southwest Territory out of territory ceded by North Carolina, May 26, 1790
• Passes first copyright legislation, May 31, 1790
• Rhode Island and Providence Plantations ratifies Constitution, May 29, 1790
• Kentucky admitted to Union, February 4, 1791, effective June 1, 1792
• Vermont admitted to Union, February 18, 1791, effective March 4, 1791

Officers

Senate

• President of the Senate - John Adams
• President pro tempore - John Langdon (6 April 1789-21 April 1789, 7 August 1789-9 August 1789)
• Secretary of the Senate - Samuel Allyne Otis
• Senate Sergeant at Arms - James Mathers
• Senate Chaplain -
  1. Samuel Provoost (April 25, 1789-December 9, 1790
  2. William White (from December 9, 1790)

House of Representatives

• Speaker of the House - Frederick Muhlenberg
• Clerk of the House - John Beckley
• House Doorkeeper - Gifford Dalley
• House Sergeant at Arms - Joseph Wheaton
• Chaplain of the House - William Lynn

Members of the First United States Congress

Senate

• Oliver Ellsworth, Federalist, CT
• William Samuel Johnson, Federalist, CT
• Richard Bassett, Anti-Federalist, DE
• George Read, Federalist, DE
• William Few, Anti-Federalist, GA
• James Gunn, Anti-Federalist, GA
• Charles Carroll of Carrollton, Federalist, MD
• John Henry, Federalist, MD
• Tristram Dalton, Federalist, MA
• Caleb Strong, Federalist, MA

• John Langdon, Federalist, NH
• Paine Wingate, Anti-Federalist, NH
• William Paterson, Federalist, and then Philemon Dickinson, Federalist, NJ
• Jonathan Elmer, Federalist, NJ
• Rufus King, Federalist, NY
• Philip Schuyler, Federalist, NY
• Benjamin Hawkins, Federalist, NC
• Samuel Johnston, Federalist, NC
• William Maclay, Anti-Federalist, PA
• Robert Morris, Federalist, PA
• Theodore Foster, Federalist, RI
• Joseph Stanton, Jr., Anti-Federalist, RI
• Pierce Butler, Federalist, SC
• Ralph Izard, Federalist, SC
• William Grayson, Anti-Federalist, and then John Walker, Federalist and then James Monroe, Anti-Federalist, VA
• Richard Henry Lee, Anti-Federalist, VA

House of Representatives

Connecticut

• Benjamin Huntington, At-Large
• Roger Sherman, At-Large
• Jonathan Sturges, At-Large
• Jonathan Trumbull, Jr., At-Large
• Jeremiah Wadsworth, At-Large

Delaware

• John Vining, At-Large

Georgia

• Abraham Baldwin, At-Large
• James Jackson, At-Large
• George Mathews, At-Large

Maryland

• Daniel Carroll, At-Large
• Benjamin Contee, At-Large
• George Gale, At-Large
• Joshua Seney, At-Large
• William Smith, At-Large
• Michael J. Stone, At-Large

Massachusetts

• Fisher Ames , 1st District
• Benjamin Goodhue, 2nd District
• Elbridge Gerry, 3rd District
• Theodore Sedgwick, 4th District
• George Partridge, 5th District
• George Thatcher, 6th District
• George Leonard, 7th District
• Jonathan Grout, 8th District

New Hampshire

• Abiel Foster, At-Large
• Nicholas Gilman, At-Large
• Samuel Livermore, At-Large

New Jersey

• Eliasi Boudinot, At-Large
• Lambert Cadwalader, At-Large
• James Schureman, At-Large
• Thomas Sinnickson, At-Large

New York

• William Floyd, 1st District
• John Laurance, 2nd District
• Egbert Benson, 3rd District
• John Hathorn, 4th District
• Peter Silvester, 5th District
• Jeremiah Van Rensselaer, 6th District

North Carolina

• John Baptista Ashe, At-Large
• Timothy Bloodworth, At-Large
• John Sevier, At-Large
• John Steele, At-Large
• Hugh Williamson, At-Large

Pennsylvania

• George Clymer, At-Large
• Thomas Fitzsimons, At-Large
• Thomas Hartley, At-Large
• Daniel Hiester, At-Large
• Frederick A. C. Muhlenberg, At-Large
• John P. G. Muhlenberg, At-Large
• Thomas Scott, At-Large
• Henry Wynkoop, At-Large

Rhode Island

• Benjamin Bourne, At-Large

South Carolina

• Aedanus Burke, At-Large
• Daniel Huger, At-Large
• William Loughton Smith, At-Large
• Thomas Sumter, At-Large
• Thomas Tudor Tucker, At-Large

Virginia

• Theodorick Bland and then William B. Giles, At-Large
• John Brown, At-Large
• Isaac Coles, At-Large
• Samuel Griffin, At-Large
• Richard B. Lee, At-Large
• James Madison, At-Large
• Andrew Moore, At-Large
• John Page, At-Large
• Josiah Parker, At-Large
• Alexander White, At-Large

External Links

• First Federal Congress Project (http://www.gwu.edu/~ffcp/) at GWU