First United States Congress

First United States Congress

1789-1791

Major Political Events

• Senate and House of Representatives of eleven States first convene in New York, 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 Augustus Conrad 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 (Defense) Department Established, August 7, 1789
• Treasury Department Established, September 2, 1789
• Judiciary Act established Office of Attorney General and composition of Supreme Court, September 24, 1789
• North Carolina ratifies Constitution, November 21, 1789.
• 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

Members of the First United States Congress

• Fisher Ames (Representative), Pro-Administration, MA
• John Baptista Ashe[?] (Representative), -, NC
• Abraham Baldwin[?] (Representative), -, GA
• Richard Bassett[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, DE
• Egbert Benson[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, NY
• Theodorick Bland[?] (Representative), -, VA
• Timothy Bloodworth[?] (Representative), -, NC
• Elias Boudinot (Representative), -, NJ
• Benjamin Bourne[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, RI
• John Brown[?] (Representative), -, KY
• Aedanus Burke[?] (Representative), -, SC
• Pierce Butler[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, SC
• Lambert Cadwalader[?] (Representative), -, NJ
• Charles Carroll of Carrollton (Senator), Pro-Administration, MD
• Daniel Carroll[?] (Representative), -, MD
• George Clymer (Representative), -, PA
• Isaac Coles[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, VA
• Benjamin Contee[?] (Representative), -, MD
• Tristram Dalton[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, MA
• Philemon Dickinson[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NJ
• Oliver Ellsworth[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, CT
• Jonathan Elmer[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NJ
• William Few[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, GA
• Thomas Fitzsimons[?] (Representative), -, PA
• William Floyd (Representative), -, NY
• Abiel Foster[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, NH
• Theodore Foster[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, RI
• George Gale[?] (Representative), -, MD
• Elbridge Gerry (Representative), -, MA
• William Branch Giles[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, VA
• Nicholas Gilman[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, NH
• Benjamin Goodhue[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, MA
• William Grayson[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, VA
• Samuel Griffin[?] (Representative), -, VA
• Jonathan Grout[?] (Representative), -, MA
• James Gunn[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, GA
• Thomas Hartley[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, PA
• John Hathorn[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, NY
• Benjamin Hawkins[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NC
• John Henry (Senator), Pro-Administration, MD
• Daniel Hiester[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, PA
• Daniel Huger[?] (Representative), -, SC
• Benjamin Huntington[?] (Representative), -, CT
• Ralph Izard[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, SC
• James Jackson[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, GA
• William Samuel Johnson[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, CT
• Samuel Johnston[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NC
• Rufus King (Senator), Pro-Administration, NY
• John Langdon[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NH
• John Laurance[?] (Representative), -, NY
• Richard Bland Lee[?] (Representative), -, VA
• Richard Henry Lee (Senator), Anti-Administration, VA
• George Leonard[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, MA
• Samuel Livermore[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, NH
• William Maclay[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, PA
• James Madison (Representative), Anti-Administration, VA
• George Mathews[?] (Representative), -, GA
• James Monroe (Senator), Anti-Administration, VA
• Andrew Moore[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration[?], VA
• Robert Morris (Senator), Pro-Administration, PA
• Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg (Representative, Speaker of the House), Pro-administration, PA
• John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg (Representative), -, PA
• John Page[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, VA
• Josiah Parker[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, VA
• George Partridge[?] (Representative), -, MA
• William Paterson[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NJ
• George Read (Senator), Pro-Administration, DE
• James Schureman[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, NJ
• Philip John Schuyler[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, NY
• Thomas Scott[?] (Representative), -, PA
• Theodore Sedgwick[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, MA
• Joshua Seney[?] (Representative), -, MD
• John Sevier[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, NC
• Roger Sherman (Representative), -, CT
• Peter Silvester[?] (Representative), -, NY
• Thomas Sinnickson[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, NJ
• William Smith[?] (Representative), -, MD
• William Loughton Smith[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, SC
• Joseph Stanton, Jr.[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, RI
• John Steele[?] (Representative), -, NC
• Michael Jenifer Stone[?] (Representative), -, MD
• Caleb Strong[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, MA
• Jonathan Sturges[?] (Representative), -, CT
• Thomas Sumter[?] (Representative), Anti-Administration, SC
• George Thatcher[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, MA
• Jonathan Jr Trumbull[?] (Representative), -, CT
• Thomas Tudor Tucker[?] (Representative), -, SC
• Jeremiah Van Rensselaer[?] (Representative), -, NY
• John Vining[?] (Representative), -, DE
• Jeremiah Wadsworth[?] (Representative), -, CT
• John Walker[?] (Senator), Pro-Administration, VA
• Alexander White[?] (Representative), -, VA
• Hugh Williamson[?] (Representative), Pro-Administration, NC
• Paine Wingate[?] (Senator), Anti-Administration, NH
• Henry Wynkoop[?] (Representative), -, PA

External Links

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