5th United States Congress

The Fifth 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 at Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from March 4 1797 to March 3 1799, during the first two years of John Adams's presidency.

The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the First Census of the United States in 1790. Both chambers had a Federalist majority.

Dates of sessions

March 4 1797 - March 3 1799
*Special session of the Senate: March 4 1797
*First session: May 15 1797 - July 10 1797
*Second session: November 13 1797 - July 16 1798
*Special session of the Senate: July 17 1798 - July 19 1798
*Third session: December 3 1798 - March 3 1799 — a lame duck sessionPrevious: 4th Congress • Next: 6th Congress

Major events

*March 4 1797 – John Adams and Thomas Jefferson became President and Vice President of the United States
*July 8 1797 - The Senate expelled Senator William Blount for conspiring with the British
*July 11 1798 - The United States Marine Corps was established
*XYZ Affair in the U.S., followed by naval skirmishes but no war is declared

Major legislation

* April 30, 1798 — The U.S. Department of the Navy was established, Sess. 2, ch. 35, USStat|1|553
* June 18, 1798 — Alien and Sedition Acts: An Act to establish a uniform rule of naturalization (Naturalization Act of 1798), Sess. 2, ch. 54, USStat|1|566
* June 25, 1798 — Alien and Sedition Acts: An Act concerning Aliens, Sess. 2, ch. 58, USStat|1|570
* July 6, 1798 — Alien and Sedition Acts: An Act respecting Alien Enemies, Sess. 2, ch. 66, USStat|1|577
* July 9, 1798 — Act Further to Protect the Commerce of the United States, Sess. 2, ch. 68, USStat|1|578
* July 11, 1798 — The Marine Corps was established, Sess. 2, ch. 72, USStat|1|594
* July 14, 1798 — Alien and Sedition Acts: An Act for the punishment of certain crimes against the United States (Sedition Act), Sess. 2, ch. 74, USStat|1|596

Territories organized

* April 7, 1798 - Mississippi Territory was organized, Sess. 2, ch. 28, USStat|1|549. It was formerly a portion of Georgia and South Carolina

Treaties

* June 7, 1797 — The Treaty of Tripoli was ratified.Fact|date=October 2008
* July 7, 1797 — Existing treaties with France were rescinded, Sess. 2, ch. 67, USStat|1|578

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

*Federalist (F): 22 (majority)
*Republican (DR): 10TOTAL members: 32

House of Representatives

*Federalist (F): 57 (majority)
*Republican (DR) 49TOTAL members: 106

Leadership

Senate

*President: Thomas Jefferson (DR)
* President "pro tempore" of the Senate:
** William Bradford (F) elected July 6 1797
** Jacob Read (F) elected November 22 1797
** Theodore Sedgwick (F) elected June 27 1798
** John Laurance (F) elected December 6 1798
** James Ross (F) elected March 1 1799

House of Representatives

* Speaker: Jonathan Dayton (F) of New Jersey

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.

enate

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 this Congress, requiring reelection in 1802; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1798; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1800.

= Connecticut =

*1: James Hillhouse (F)
*3: Uriah Tracy (F)

= Delaware =

*2: John Vining (F)
*: Joshua Clayton (F)
*: William H. Wells (F)
*1: Henry Latimer (F)

= Georgia =

*3: James Gunn (F)
*2: Josiah Tattnall (DR)

= Kentucky =

*2: John Brown (DR)
*3: Humphrey Marshall (F)

= Maryland =

*3: John Henry (F)
*: James Lloyd (F)
*1: John Eager Howard (F)

= Massachusetts =

*1: Benjamin Goodhue (F)
*2: Theodore Sedgwick (F)

= New Hampshire =

*3: John Langdon (DR)
*2: Samuel Livermore (F)

= New Jersey =

*1: John Rutherfurd (F)
*: Franklin Davenport (F)
*2: Richard Stockton (F)

= New York =

*3: John Laurance (F)
*1: Philip John Schuyler (F)
*: John Sloss Hobart (F)
*: William North (F)
*: James Watson (F)

= North Carolina =

*2: Alexander Martin (DR)
*3: Timothy Bloodworth (DR)

= Pennsylvania =

*1: James Ross (F)
*3: William Bingham (F)

= Rhode Island =

*1: Theodore Foster (F)
*2: William Bradford (F)
*: Ray Greene (F)

= South Carolina =

*3: Jacob Read (F)
*2: John Hunter (DR)
*: Charles Pinckney (DR)

= Tennessee =

*2: William Blount (DR)
*: Joseph Anderson (DR)
*1: William Cocke (DR)
*: Andrew Jackson (DR)
*: Daniel Smith (DR)

= Vermont =

*3: Elijah Paine (F)
*1: Isaac Tichenor (F)
*: Nathaniel Chipman (F)

= Virginia =

*2: Henry Tazewell (DR)
*1: Stevens T. Mason (DR)

House of Representatives

Many of the congressional district numbers are linked to articles describing the district itself. Since the boundaries of the districts have changed often and substantially, the linked article may only describe the district as it exists today, and not as it was at the time of this Congress.

= Connecticut =

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: John Allen (F)
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: Joshua Coit (F)
*: Jonathan Brace (F)
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: Samuel W. Dana (F)
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: James Davenport (F)
*: William Edmond (F)
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: Chauncey Goodrich (F)
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: Roger Griswold (F)
*ushr|Connecticut|AL|A/L: Nathaniel Smith (F)

= Delaware =

*ushr|Delaware|AL|A/L: James A. Bayard (F)

= Georgia =

Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
*ushr|Georgia|AL|A/L: Abraham Baldwin (DR)
*ushr|Georgia|AL|A/L: John Milledge (DR)

= Kentucky =

*ushr|Kentucky|1|1: Thomas T. Davis (DR)
*ushr|Kentucky|2|2: John Fowler (DR)

= Maryland =

*ushr|Maryland|1|1: George Dent (F)
*ushr|Maryland|2|2: Richard Sprigg, Jr. (DR)
*ushr|Maryland|3|3: William Craik (F)
*ushr|Maryland|4|4: George Baer, Jr. (F)
*ushr|Maryland|5|5: Samuel Smith (DR)
*ushr|Maryland|6|6: William Matthews (F)
*ushr|Maryland|7|7: William Hindman (F)
*ushr|Maryland|8|8: John Dennis (F)

= Massachusetts =

*ushr|Massachusetts|1|1: Thomson J. Skinner (DR)
*ushr|Massachusetts|2|2: William Shepard (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|3|3: Samuel Lyman (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|4|4: Dwight Foster (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|5|5: Nathaniel Freeman, Jr. (DR)
*ushr|Massachusetts|6|6: John Reed, Sr. (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|7|7: Stephen Bullock (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|8|8: Harrison Gray Otis (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|9|9: Joseph Bradley Varnum (DR)
*ushr|Massachusetts|10|10: Samuel Sewall (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|11|11: Theophilus Bradbury (F)
*: Bailey Bartlett (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|12|12: Isaac Parker (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|13|13: Peleg Wadsworth (F)
*ushr|Massachusetts|14|14: George Thatcher (F)

= New Hampshire =

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
*ushr|New Hampshire|AL|A/L: Abiel Foster (F)
*ushr|New Hampshire|AL|A/L: Jonathan Freeman (F)
*ushr|New Hampshire|AL|A/L: William Gordon (F)
*ushr|New Hampshire|AL|A/L: Jeremiah Smith (F)
*: Peleg Sprague (F)

= New Jersey =

All representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
*ushr|New Jersey|AL|A/L: Jonathan Dayton (F)
*ushr|New Jersey|AL|A/L: James H. Imlay (F)
*ushr|New Jersey|AL|A/L: James Schureman (F)
*ushr|New Jersey|AL|A/L: Thomas Sinnickson (F)
*ushr|New Jersey|AL|A/L: Mark Thomson (F)

= New York =

*ushr|New York|1|1: Edward Livingston (DR)
*ushr|New York|2|2: Jonathan N. Havens (DR)
*ushr|New York|3|3: Philip Van Cortlandt (DR)
*ushr|New York|4|4: Lucas C. Elmendorf (DR)
*ushr|New York|5|5: David Brooks (F)
*ushr|New York|6|6: Hezekiah L. Hosmer (F)
*ushr|New York|7|7: John E. Van Alen (F)
*ushr|New York|8|8: Henry Glen (F)
*ushr|New York|9|9: John Williams (F)
*ushr|New York|10|10: James Cochran (F)

= North Carolina =

*ushr|North Carolina|1|1: Joseph McDowell (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|2|2: Matthew Locke (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|3|3: Robert Williams (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|4|4: Richard Stanford (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|5|5: Nathaniel Macon (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|6|6: James Gillespie (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|7|7: William Barry Grove (F)
*ushr|North Carolina|8|8: Dempsey Burges (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|9|9: Thomas Blount (DR)
*ushr|North Carolina|10|10: Nathan Bryan (DR)
*: Richard Dobbs Spaight (DR)

= Pennsylvania =

The 4th district was a plural district with two representatives.
*ushr|Pennsylvania|1|1: John Swanwick (DR)
*: Robert Waln (F)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|2|2: Blair McClenachan (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|3|3: Richard Thomas (F)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|4|4: John Chapman (F)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|4|4: Samuel Sitgreaves (F)
*: Robert Brown (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|5|5: George Ege (F)
*: Joseph Hiester (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|6|6: John A. Hanna (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|7|7: John Wilkes Kittera (F)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|8|8: Thomas Hartley (F)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|9|9: Andrew Gregg (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|10|10: David Bard (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|11|11: William Findley (DR)
*ushr|Pennsylvania|12|12: Albert Gallatin (DR)

= Rhode Island =

Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
*ushr|Rhode Island|AL|A/L: Christopher G. Champlin (F)
*ushr|Rhode Island|AL|A/L: Elisha R. Potter (F)
*: Thomas Tillinghast (F)

= South Carolina =

*ushr|South Carolina|1|1: William L. Smith (F)
*: Thomas Pinckney (F)
*ushr|South Carolina|2|2: John Rutledge, Jr. (F)
*ushr|South Carolina|3|3: Lemuel Benton (DR)
*ushr|South Carolina|4|4: Thomas Sumter (DR)
*ushr|South Carolina|5|5: Robert Goodloe Harper (F)
*ushr|South Carolina|6|6: William Smith (DR)

= Tennessee =

*ushr|Tennessee|AL|A/L: William C. C. Claiborne (DR)

= Vermont =

*ushr|Vermont|1|1: Matthew Lyon (DR)
*ushr|Vermont|2|2: Lewis R. Morris (F)

= Virginia =

*ushr|Virginia|1|1: Daniel Morgan (F)
*ushr|Virginia|2|2: David Holmes (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|3|3: James Machir (F)
*ushr|Virginia|4|4: Abram Trigg (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|5|5: John J. Trigg (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|6|6: Matthew Clay (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|7|7: Abraham B. Venable (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|8|8: Thomas Claiborne (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|9|9: William B. Giles (DR)
*: Joseph Eggleston (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|10|10: Carter B. Harrison (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|11|11: Josiah Parker (F)
*ushr|Virginia|12|12: Thomas Evans (F)
*ushr|Virginia|13|13: John Clopton (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|14|14: Samuel J. Cabell (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|15|15: John Dawson (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|16|16: Anthony New (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|17|17: Richard Brent (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|18|18: John Nicholas (DR)
*ushr|Virginia|19|19: Walter Jones (DR)

Changes in membership

The count below reflects changes from the beginning of this Congress

Senate

There were 9 resignations, 2 deaths, 1 expulsion, 1 late selection, and 2 elections to replace appointees. Neither party had a net gain of seats.

House of Representatives

There were 8 resignations and 3 deaths. The Federalists had a 1 seat net loss and the Democratic-Republicans had a 1 seat net gain.

Employees

* Architect of the Capitol: William Thornton

Senate

* Secretary: Samuel A. Otis of Massachusetts, elected April 8 1789
* Doorkeeper: James Mathers of New York, elected April 7 1789
* Chaplain: William White, "Episcopalian", elected December 9 1790

House of Representatives

* Clerk: Jonathan W. Condy of Pennsylvania, elected May 15 1797
* Sergeant at Arms: Joseph Wheaton of Rhode Island, elected May 15 1797
* Doorkeeper: Thomas Claxton, elected May 15 1797
* Chaplain: Ashbel Green, "Presbyterian", elected May 15 1797

References

*cite book|title = The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress|last = Martis|first = Kenneth C.|authorlink =|coauthors =|year = 1989|publisher = Macmillan Publishing Company|location = New York|id =
*cite book|title = The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts|last = Martis|first = Kenneth C.|authorlink =|coauthors =|year = 1982|publisher = Macmillan Publishing Company|location = New York|id =

External links

* [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwsllink.html Statutes at Large, 1789-1875]
* [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwsjlink.html Senate Journal, First Forty-three Sessions of Congress]
* [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwhjlink.html#anchor2 House Journal, First Forty-three Sessions of Congress]
* [http://www.gpoaccess.gov/serialset/cdocuments/hd108-222/index.html Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress]
* [http://clerk.house.gov/art_history/house_history/index.html U.S. House of Representatives: House History]
* [http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/two_column_table/stats_and_lists.htm U.S. Senate: Statistics and Lists]