48th United States Congress
47th 
 49th

March 4, 1883 – March 4, 1885
Members76 senators
325 representatives
8 non-voting delegates
Senate majorityRepublican
Senate PresidentVacant
House majorityDemocratic
House SpeakerJohn G. Carlisle (D)
Sessions
1st: December 3, 1883 – July 7, 1884
2nd: December 1, 1884 – March 3, 1885

The 48th 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 in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1883, to March 4, 1885, during the last two years of Chester A. Arthur's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1880 United States census. The Senate had a Republican majority, and the House had a Democratic majority.

Major events

Washington Monument (seen here in 2006) was completed December 6, 1884.

Major legislation

Territories organized

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

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Readjuster
(RA)
Republican
(R)
Other
End of previous congress 37 1 37 1[lower-alpha 1] 76 0
Begin 36 2 37 0 75 1
End 38 760
Final voting share 47.4% 2.6% 50.0% 0.0%
Beginning of next congress 34 2 37 0 73 3

House of Representatives

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Independent
Democratic

(ID)
Readjuster
(RA)
Independent
(I)
Greenback
(GB)
Independent
Republican

(IR)
Republican
(R)
Anti-
Monopoly

(AM)
End of previous congress 130 1 0 1 9 1 150 0 292 1
Begin 192 3 5 1 2 1 120 0 324 1
End 197 4 2 113 1 3232
Final voting share 61.0% 0.9% 1.2% 0.6% 0.6% 0.3% 35.0% 0.3%
Non-voting members 5 0000030 8 0
Beginning of next congress 128 1 0 0 10 1 151 128 419 0
House seats by party holding plurality in state
  80+% to 100% Democratic
  80+% to 100% Republican
  60+% to 80% Democratic
  60+% to 80% Republican
  Up to 60% Democratic
  Up to 60% Republican

Leadership

Senate

House of Representatives

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state.

Skip to House of Representatives, below

Senate

Senators are listed by their states and Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election.

House of Representatives

Members of the House of Representatives are preceded by their district numbers.

Changes in membership

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

Senate

  • Replacements: 1
  • Deaths: 1
  • Resignations: 0
  • Interim appointment: 1
  • Late election: 1
  • Total seats with changes: 3
Senate changes
State
(class)
Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[lower-alpha 2]
New Hampshire (2) Vacant Legislature had failed to elect.
Senator elected August 2, 1883.
Austin F. Pike (R) August 2, 1883
Rhode Island (2) Henry B. Anthony (R) Incumbent died September 2, 1884.
Successor appointed November 19, 1884.
William P. Sheffield (R) November 19, 1884
Rhode Island (2) William P. Sheffield (R) Interim appointee replaced by successor elected January 20, 1885. Jonathan Chace (R) January 20, 1885

House of Representatives

House changes
District Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[lower-alpha 2]
Mississippi 2nd Vacant Chalmers took seat after an election contest with Van H. Manning who challenged his election James R. Chalmers (I) June 25, 1884
West Virginia 3rd John E. Kenna (D) Resigned March 4, 1883, when elected U.S. Senator. Charles P. Snyder (D) May 15, 1883
Alabama 1st Thomas H. Herndon (D) Died March 28, 1883. James T. Jones (D) December 3, 1883
Iowa 6th Marsena E. Cutts (R) Died September 1, 1883. John C. Cook (D) October 9, 1883
Virginia 7th John Paul (D) Resigned September 5, 1883, to become judge of the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Virginia. The House election was subsequently contested. Charles T. O'Ferrall (D) May 5, 1884
Kansas 2nd Dudley C. Haskell (R) Died December 16, 1883. Edward H. Funston (R) March 21, 1884
North Carolina 1st Walter F. Pool (R) Died August 25, 1883. Thomas G. Skinner (D) November 20, 1883
Massachusetts 12th George D. Robinson (R) Resigned January 7, 1884, when elected Governor of Massachusetts. Francis W. Rockwell (R) January 17, 1884
South Carolina 7th Edmund W. M. Mackey (R) Died January 27, 1884. Robert Smalls (R) March 18, 1884
New Mexico Territory At-large Tranquilino Luna (R) Lost contested election March 5, 1884. Francisco A. Manzanares (D) March 5, 1884
Virginia 1st Robert M. Mayo (RA) Lost contested election March 20, 1884. George T. Garrison (D) March 20, 1884
Indiana 7th Stanton J. Peelle (R) Lost contested election May 22, 1884. William E. English (D) May 22, 1884
Ohio 18th William McKinley (R) Lost contested election May 27, 1884. Jonathan H. Wallace (D) May 27, 1884
Ohio 7th Henry L. Morey (R) Lost contested election June 20, 1884. James E. Campbell (D) June 20, 1884
Iowa 7th John A. Kasson (R) Resigned July 13, 1884, to become U.S. Minister to Germany. Hiram Y. Smith (R) December 2, 1884
Indiana 13th William H. Calkins (R) Resigned October 20, 1884. Benjamin F. Shively (AM) December 1, 1884
South Carolina 4th John H. Evins (D) Died October 20, 1884. John Bratton (D) December 8, 1884
Pennsylvania 19th William A. Duncan (D) Died November 14, 1884. John A. Swope (D) December 23, 1884
North Carolina 5th Alfred M. Scales (D) Resigned December 30, 1884, when elected Governor of North Carolina. James W. Reid (D) January 28, 1885
Alabama 4th Charles M. Shelley (D) Lost contested election January 9, 1885. George H. Craig (R) January 9, 1885
Ohio 9th James S. Robinson (R) Resigned January 12, 1885, to become Ohio Secretary of State. Vacant Not filled this term
Rhode Island 2nd Jonathan Chace (R) Resigned January 26, 1885, when elected U.S. Senator. Nathan F. Dixon III (R) February 12, 1885
Arkansas 2nd James K. Jones (D) Resigned February 19, 1885, when elected U.S. Senator. Vacant Not filled this term
Iowa 5th James Wilson (R) Lost contested election March 3, 1885. Benjamin T. Frederick (D) March 3, 1885

Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.

Joint committees

Caucuses

Employees

Legislative branch agency directors

Senate

House of Representatives

See also

Notes

  1. Independent
  2. 1 2 When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.

References

    • Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
    • Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
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