55th United States Congress.html |
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| 55th United States Congress | |||
 United States Capitol |
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| Duration: March 4, 1897 – March 3, 1899 | |||
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| President of the Senate: | Garret Hobart | ||
| President pro tempore: | William P. Frye | ||
| Speaker of the House: | Thomas B. Reed | ||
| Members: | 90 Senators 357 Representatives 3 Non-voting members |
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| Senate Majority: | Republican | ||
| House Majority: | Republican | ||
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| Sessions | |||
| 1st: March 15, 1897 – July 24, 1897 2nd: December 6, 1897 – July 8, 1898 3rd: December 5, 1898 – March 3, 1899 |
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The Fifty-fifth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1897 to March 4, 1899, during the first two years of the first administration of U.S. President William McKinley.
The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Eleventh Census of the United States in 1890. Both chambers had a Republican majority.
Dates of sessions
March 4, 1897 - March 4, 1899
- Special session of the Senate: March 4, 1897 – March 10, 1897
- First session: March 15, 1897 – July 24, 1897
- Second session: December 6, 1897 - July 8, 1898
- Third session: December 5, 1898 - March 3, 1899 — a lame duck session
Previous: 54th Congress • Next: 56th 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
- Republican: 44 (majority)
- Democratic: 34
- Populist: 5
- Silver Republican: 5
- Silver: 2
TOTAL members: 90
House of Representatives
- Republican: 206 (majority)
- Democratic: 124
- Populist: 22
- Silver: 1
- Silver Republican: 3
- Independent Republican: 1
TOTAL members: 357
Leadership
Senate
House of Representatives
Major events
- March 4, 1897: William McKinley became President of the United States.
- February 15, 1898: Spanish-American War: USS Maine exploded in Havana harbor.
- April 25, 1898: Spanish-American War: The United States declared war on Spain.
- February 6, 1899: Spanish-American War: U.S. Senate ratified the Treaty of Paris, ending the Spanish-American War.
Major legislation
- July 24, 1897 —- Dingley tariff, ch. 11, 30 Stat. 151, increased trade duties for revenue and protection
- June 1, 1898 -- Erdman Act of 1898
- July 1, 1898 —- Bankruptcy Act of 1898, ch. 541, 30 Stat. 544, or Nelson Act, gave companies an option of gaining protection from creditors.
- July 7, 1898 —- Newlands Resolution, No. 55, 30 Stat. 750, authorized the annexation of the Republic of Hawaii
- March 3, 1899 —- Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, Ch. 425, 33 Stat. 401, § 9, 30 Stat. 1151
Members
This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.
- See also: 55th United States Congress - political parties
- See also: 55th United States Congress - State Delegations
- See also: United States House election, 1896
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 ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1898; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1900; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1902.
- See also: U.S. Senators
- See also: U.S. Congressional Delegations by state
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.
- See also:U.S. Representatives
- See also:U.S. Congressional Delegations by state