32nd United States Congress

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United States Capitol

The Thirty-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1851 to March 3, 1853, during the last two years of the administration of U.S. President Millard Fillmore.

The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Sixth Census of the United States in 1840. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.

Dates of sessions

March 4, 1851 - March 3, 1853

  • Special session of the Senate: March 4, 1851 -March 13, 1851
  • First session: December 1, 1851 - August 31, 1852
  • Second session: December 6, 1852 -March 3, 1853
  • Previous congress: 31st Congress
  • Next congress: 33rd Congress

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

TOTAL members: 62

House of Representatives

TOTAL members: 233

Leadership

Senate
House of Representatives

Major events

Events of 1851, 1852 and 1853

Major legislation

List of United States federal legislation in the 32nd Congress

Membership highlights by chamber

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

Senate

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 with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1856; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1852; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1854.

Alabama
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Mississippi
Missouri
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Wisconsin

House of Representatives

The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide on the general ticket or otherwise at-large, are preceded by an "A/L," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.

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.

Alabama
Arkansas
California [1]
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Mississippi
Missouri
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Wisconsin

Delegates

Minnesota Territory
New Mexico Territory
Oregon Territory
Utah Territory


Membership detail by state

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 with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1856; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1852; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1854.

The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide on the general ticket or otherwise at-large, are preceded by an "A/L," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.

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.

The list below is arranged by state, then by chamber. Senators are shown in order of seniority, House members in district order.

Alabama

Senate
House of Representatives (7 seats)

Arkansas

Senate
House of Representatives (1 seat)

California

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats) [2]

Connecticut

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Delaware

Senate
House of Representatives (1 seat)

Florida

Senate
House of Representatives (1 seat)

Georgia

Senate
House of Representatives (8 seats)

Illinois

Senate
House of Representatives (7 seats)

Indiana

Senate
House of Representatives (10 seats)

Iowa

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

Kentucky

House of Representatives (10 seats)

Louisiana

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Maine

Senate
House of Representatives (7 seats)

Maryland

Senate
House of Representatives (6 seats)

Massachusetts

Senate
House of Representatives (10 seats)

Michigan

Senate
House of Representatives (3 seats)

Mississippi

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Missouri

Senate
House of Representatives (5 seats)

New Hampshire

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

New Jersey

Senate
House of Representatives (5 seats)

New York

Senate
House of Representatives (34 seats)

North Carolina

Senate
House of Representatives (9 seats)

Ohio

Senate
House of Representatives (21 seats)

Pennsylvania

Senate
House of Representatives (24 seats)

Rhode Island

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

South Carolina

Senate
House of Representatives (7 seats)

Tennessee

Senate
House of Representatives (11 seats)

Texas

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

Vermont

Senate
House of Representatives (4 seats)

Virginia

Senate
House of Representatives (15 seats)

Wisconsin

Senate
House of Representatives (2 seats)

Delegates

Minnesota Territory
New Mexico Territory
Oregon Territory
Utah Territory
  • A/L: John M. Bernhisel (1799-1881), …newly created territory, seated December 1, 1851


Membership detail by Chamber/Party

The list below is arranged by chamber, then by political party. Members are shown in alphabetical order.

Senate

Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six year terms with each Congress.

Democratic
A-F

G-R

S-Z
Whig
A-F
G-R
S-Z
Free Soil

House of Representatives

Members of the House of Representatives were elected by popular vote, variously to single member districts or at-large.

Democratic
A-B-C
D-E-F
G-H-I
J-K-L
M-N-O
P-Q-R
S-T-U-V
W-X-Y-Z
Whig
A-B-C
D-E-F
G-H-I
J-K-L
M-N-O
P-Q-R
S-T-U-V
W-X-Y-Z
Independent Democratic
Free Soil
Independent Whig
States Rights
Unionist
A-O
P-Z

Membership Changes

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

Senate
House of Representatives

Officers

Senate
Other
House of Representatives

References

  1. Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
  2. Both representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.