61st United States Congress

61st United States Congress


60th ←	→ 62nd
United States Capitol (1906)
Duration: March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1911

Senate President:	James S. Sherman
Senate Pres. pro tem:	William P. Frye
House Speaker:	Joseph G. Cannon
Members:	92 Senators 391 Representatives 7 Non-voting members
Senate Majority:	Republican
House Majority:	Republican

Sessions
Special: March 4, 1909 – March 6, 1909 1st: March 15, 1909 – August 5, 1909 2nd: December 6, 1909 – June 25, 1910 3rd: December 5, 1910 – March 3, 1911

The Sixty-first 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, 1909 to March 4, 1911, during the first two years of William H. Taft's Presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Twelfth Census of the United States in 1900. Both chambers had a Republican majority.

Major events 1
Major legislation 2
Constitutional amendments 3
Party summary 4
- Senate 4.1
- House of Representatives 4.2
Leadership 5
- Senate 5.1
- House of Representatives 5.2
  - Majority (Republican) leadership 5.2.1
  - Minority (Democratic) leadership 5.2.2
Members 6
- Senate 6.1
  - Alabama 6.1.1
  - Arkansas 6.1.2
  - California 6.1.3
  - Colorado 6.1.4
  - Connecticut 6.1.5
  - Delaware 6.1.6
  - Florida 6.1.7
  - Georgia 6.1.8
  - Idaho 6.1.9
  - Illinois 6.1.10
  - Indiana 6.1.11
  - Iowa 6.1.12
  - Kansas 6.1.13
  - Kentucky 6.1.14
  - Louisiana 6.1.15
  - Maine 6.1.16
  - Maryland 6.1.17
  - Massachusetts 6.1.18
  - Michigan 6.1.19
  - Minnesota 6.1.20
  - Mississippi 6.1.21
  - Missouri 6.1.22
  - Montana 6.1.23
  - Nebraska 6.1.24
  - Nevada 6.1.25
  - New Hampshire 6.1.26
  - New Jersey 6.1.27
  - New York 6.1.28
  - North Carolina 6.1.29
  - North Dakota 6.1.30
  - Ohio 6.1.31
  - Oklahoma 6.1.32
  - Oregon 6.1.33
  - Pennsylvania 6.1.34
  - Rhode Island 6.1.35
  - South Carolina 6.1.36
  - South Dakota 6.1.37
  - Tennessee 6.1.38
  - Texas 6.1.39
  - Utah 6.1.40
  - Vermont 6.1.41
  - Virginia 6.1.42
  - Washington 6.1.43
  - West Virginia 6.1.44
  - Wisconsin 6.1.45
  - Wyoming 6.1.46
- House of Representatives 6.2
  - Alabama 6.2.1
  - Arkansas 6.2.2
  - California 6.2.3
  - Colorado 6.2.4
  - Connecticut 6.2.5
  - Delaware 6.2.6
  - Florida 6.2.7
  - Georgia 6.2.8
  - Idaho 6.2.9
  - Illinois 6.2.10
  - Indiana 6.2.11
  - Iowa 6.2.12
  - Kansas 6.2.13
  - Kentucky 6.2.14
  - Louisiana 6.2.15
  - Maine 6.2.16
  - Maryland 6.2.17
  - Massachusetts 6.2.18
  - Michigan 6.2.19
  - Minnesota 6.2.20
  - Mississippi 6.2.21
  - Missouri 6.2.22
  - Montana 6.2.23
  - Nebraska 6.2.24
  - Nevada 6.2.25
  - New Hampshire 6.2.26
  - New Jersey 6.2.27
  - New York 6.2.28
  - North Carolina 6.2.29
  - North Dakota 6.2.30
  - Ohio 6.2.31
  - Oklahoma 6.2.32
  - Oregon 6.2.33
  - Pennsylvania 6.2.34
  - Rhode Island 6.2.35
  - South Carolina 6.2.36
  - South Dakota 6.2.37
  - Tennessee 6.2.38
  - Texas 6.2.39
  - Utah 6.2.40
  - Vermont 6.2.41
  - Virginia 6.2.42
  - Washington 6.2.43
  - West Virginia 6.2.44
  - Wisconsin 6.2.45
  - Wyoming 6.2.46
  - Non-voting members 6.2.47
Officers 7
- Senate 7.1
- House of Representatives 7.2
References 8

Major events

March 4, 1909 – William Howard Taft became President of the United States

Major legislation

August 5, 1909 – Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act, ch. 6, 36 Stat. 11
June 18, 1910 – Mann-Elkins Act, ch. 309, 36 Stat. 539
June 25, 1910 – Mann Act, ch. 395, 36 Stat. 825
March 3, 1911 – Judicial Code of 1911, ch. 231, 36 Stat. 1087

Constitutional amendments

July 12, 1909 – Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution passed by Congress and submitted to the states for ratification.

Party summary

Senate

Republican: 60 (majority)
Democratic: 32

TOTAL members: 92

House of Representatives

Republican: 219 (majority)
Democratic: 171
Independent Democratic: 1

TOTAL members: 391

Leadership

Senate President James S. Sherman

Senate President pro tempore William P. Frye

Speaker of the House Joseph Gurney Cannon

Senate

President: James S. Sherman (R)
President pro tempore: William P. Frye (R)

House of Representatives

Speaker: Joseph Gurney Cannon (R)

Majority (Republican) leadership

Minority (Democratic) leadership

Minority Leader: Champ Clark
Minority Whip: vacant

Members

Senate

At this time, most Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. A few senators were elected directly by the residents of the state. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election.

Alabama

2. John H. Bankhead (D)
3. Joseph F. Johnston (D)

Arkansas

3. James P. Clarke (D)
2. Jeff Davis (D)

California

3. George C. Perkins (R)
1. Frank P. Flint (R)

Colorado

2. Simon Guggenheim (R)
3. Charles J. Hughes, Jr. (D), until January 11, 1911 (died), seat remained vacant

Connecticut

1. Morgan G. Bulkeley (R)
3. Frank B. Brandegee (R)

Delaware

1. Henry A. du Pont (R)
2. Harry A. Richardson (R)

Florida

1. James P. Taliaferro (D)
3. Duncan U. Fletcher (D)

Georgia

2. Augustus O. Bacon (D)
3. Alexander S. Clay (D), until November 10, 1910 (died)
- Joseph M. Terrell (D), from November 17, 1910 (elected)

Idaho

3. Weldon B. Heyburn (R)
2. William E. Borah (R)

Illinois

2. Shelby Moore Cullom (R)
3. William C. Lorimer (R), from June 18, 1909 (failure to elect)

Indiana

1. Albert J. Beveridge (R)
3. Benjamin F. Shively (D)

Iowa

2. Jonathan P. Dolliver (R), until October 15, 1910 (died)
- Lafayette Young (R), from November 12, 1910 (appointed)
3. Albert B. Cummins (R)

Kansas

2. Charles Curtis (R)
3. Joseph L. Bristow (R)

Kentucky

2. Thomas H. Paynter (D)
3. William O. Bradley (R)

Louisiana

3. Samuel D. McEnery (D), until June 10, 1910 (died)
- John Thornton (D), from December 10, 1910 (elected)
2. Murphy J. Foster (D)

Mississippi

1. Hernando D. Money (D)
2. Anselm J. McLaurin (D), until December 22, 1909 (died)
- James Gordon (D), December 27, 1909 (appointed) – February 22, 1910
- LeRoy Percy (D), from February 23, 1910 (elected)

Missouri

3. William J. Stone (D)
1. William Warner (R)

Montana

1. Thomas H. Carter (R)
2. Joseph M. Dixon (R)

Nebraska

1. Elmer J. Burkett (R)
2. Norris Brown (R)

Nevada

3. Francis G. Newlands (D)
1. George S. Nixon (R)

New Hampshire

3. Jacob H. Gallinger (R)
2. Henry E. Burnham (R)

New Jersey

1. John Kean (R)
2. Frank O. Briggs (R)

New York

1. Chauncey Mitchell Depew (R)
3. Elihu A. Root (R)

North Carolina

2. Furnifold M. Simmons (D)
3. Lee S. Overman (D)

North Dakota

1. Porter J. McCumber (R)
3. Martin N. Johnson (R), until October 21, 1909 (died)
- Fountain L. Thompson (D), from November 10, 1909 (appointed) until January 31, 1910 (resigned)
- William E. Purcell (D), from February 1, 1910 until February 1, 1911 (appointed)
- Asle Gronna (R), from February 2, 1911

Ohio

1. Charles W. F. Dick (R)
3. Theodore E. Burton (R)

Oklahoma

3. Thomas P. Gore (D)
2. Robert L. Owen (D)

Oregon

2. Jonathan Bourne, Jr. (R)
3. George E. Chamberlain (D)

Pennsylvania

3. Boies Penrose (R)
1. Philander C. Knox (R), until March 4, 1909 (resigned)
- 1. George T. Oliver (R), from March 17, 1909 (elected)

Rhode Island

1. Nelson W. Aldrich (R)
2. George P. Wetmore (R)

South Carolina

2. Benjamin R. Tillman (D)
3. Ellison D. Smith (D)

South Dakota

2. Robert J. Gamble (R)
3. Coe I. Crawford (R)

Tennessee

1. James B. Frazier (D)
2. Robert L. Taylor (D)

Texas

1. Charles A. Culberson (D)
2. Joseph W. Bailey (D)

Utah

3. Reed Smoot (R)
1. George Sutherland (R)

Vermont

3. William P. Dillingham (R)
1. Carroll S. Page (R)

Virginia

1. John W. Daniel (D), until June 29, 1910 (died)
- Claude A. Swanson (D), from August 1, 1910 (appointed)
2. Thomas S. Martin (D)

Washington

1. Samuel H. Piles (R)
3. Wesley L. Jones (R)

West Virginia

2. Stephen B. Elkins (R), until January 4, 1911 (died)
- Davis Elkins (R), from January 9, 1911 until January 31, 1911 (appointed)
- Clarence W. Watson (D), from February 1, 1911 (elected)
1. Nathan Bay Scott (R)

Wisconsin

1. Robert M. La Follette, Sr. (R)
3. Isaac Stephenson (R)

Wyoming

1. Clarence D. Clark (R)
2. Francis E. Warren (R)

House of Representatives

Alabama

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

A/L. William H. Heald (R)

Florida

Georgia

1. Charles G. Edwards (D)
2. James M. Griggs (D), died January 5, 1910
- Seaborn Roddenbery (D), from February 6, 1910
3. Dudley M. Hughes (D)
4. William C. Adamson (D)
5. Leonidas F. Livingston (D)
6. Charles L. Bartlett (D)
7. Gordon Lee (congressman) (D)
8. William M. Howard (D)
9. Thomas Montgomery Bell (D)
10. Thomas W. Hardwick (D)
11. William G. Brantley (D)

Idaho

A/L. Thomas Ray Hamer (R)

Illinois

1. Martin B. Madden (R)
2. James R. Mann (R)
3. William W. Wilson (R)
4. James T. McDermott (D)
5. Adolph J. Sabath (D)
6. William Lorimer (R), until June 17, 1909
- William J. Moxley (R), from November 23, 1909
7. Frederick Lundin (R)
8. Thomas Gallagher (D)
9. Henry S. Boutell (R)
George E. Foss (R)
11. Howard M. Snapp (R)
12. Charles Eugene Fuller (R)
13. Frank O. Lowden (R)
14. James McKinney (R)
George W. Prince (R)
16. Joseph V. Graff (R)
17. John A. Sterling (R)
18. Joseph G. Cannon (R)
19. William B. McKinley (R)
20. Henry T. Rainey (D)
21. James M. Graham (D)
22. William A. Rodenberg (R)
23. Martin D. Foster (D)
24. Pleasant T. Chapman (R)
25. Napoleon B. Thistlewood (R)

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

1. Albert Estopinal (D)
2. Samuel Louis Gilmore (D), from March 30, 1909 until July 18, 1910
- Henry Garland Dupré (D), from November 8, 1910
3. Robert Foligny Broussard (D)
4. John Thomas Watkins (D)
5. Joseph Eugene Ransdell (D)
6. Robert Charles Wickliffe (D)
7. Arsène Paulin Pujó (D)

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

George P. Lawrence (R)
2. Frederick H. Gillett (R)
3. Charles G. Washburn (R)
4. Charles Q. Tirrell (R), died July 31, 1910
- John Joseph Mitchell (D), from November 8, 1910
5. Butler Ames (R)
6. Augustus P. Gardner (R)
7. Ernest W. Roberts (R)
8. Samuel W. McCall (R)
9. John A. Keliher (D)
10. Joseph F. O'Connell (D)
11. Andrew J. Peters (D)
12. John W. Weeks (R)
13. William S. Greene (R)
14. William C. Lovering (R), died February 4, 1910
- Eugene Foss (D), from March 22, 1910; resigned January 4, 1911; vacant to end

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

1. James Tilghman Lloyd (D)
2. William W. Rucker (D)
3. Joshua Willis Alexander (D)
4. Charles F. Booher (D)
5. William Patterson Borland (D)
6. David A. De Armond (D), died November 23, 1909
- Clement C. Dickinson (D), from February 1, 1910
7. Courtney W. Hamlin (D)
8. Dorsey W. Shackleford (D)
9. James Beauchamp Clark (D)
10. Richard Bartholdt (R)
11. Patrick F. Gill (D)
12. Harry M. Coudrey (R)
13. Politte Elvins (R)
14. Charles A. Crow (R)
Charles Henry Morgan (R)
16. Arthur P. Murphy (R)

Montana

A/L. Charles N. Pray (R)

Nebraska

1. John A. Maguire (D)
2. Gilbert M. Hitchcock (D)
3. James P. Latta (D)
4. Edmund H. Hinshaw (R)
George W. Norris (R)
6. Moses P. Kinkaid (R)

Nevada

George A. Bartlett (D)

New Hampshire

1. Cyrus Adams Sulloway (R)
2. Frank Dunklee Currier (R)

New Jersey

New York

1. William W. Cocks (R)
George H. Lindsay (D)
3. Otto G. Foelker (R)
4. Charles B. Law (R)
5. Richard Young (R)
6. William M. Calder (R)
7. John J. Fitzgerald (D)
8. Daniel J. Riordan (D)
9. Henry M. Goldfogle (D)
10. William Sulzer (D)
11. Charles V. Fornes (D)
12. Michael F. Conry (D)
13. Herbert Parsons (R)
14. William Willet, Jr. (D)
15. J. Van Vechten Olcott (R)
16. Francis B. Harrison (D)
17. William S. Bennet (R)
18. Joseph A. Goulden (D)
19. John E. Andrus (R)
20. Thomas W. Bradley (R)
21. Hamilton Fish II (R)
22. William H. Draper (R)
George N. Southwick (R)
George W. Fairchild (R)
25. Cyrus Durey (R)
George R. Malby (R)
27. Charles S. Millington (R)
28. Charles L. Knapp (R)
29. Michael E. Driscoll (R)
30. John W. Dwight (R)
31. Sereno E. Payne (R)
32. James B. Perkins (R), died March 11, 1910
- James Smith Havens (D), from April 19, 1910
33. J. Sloat Fassett (R)
34. James S. Simmons (R)
35. Daniel A. Driscoll (D)
36. De Alva S. Alexander (R)
37. Edward B. Vreeland (R)

North Carolina

North Dakota

1. Louis B. Hanna (R)
2. Asle Gronna (R), until February 11, 1911, vacant thereafter

Ohio

1. Nicholas Longworth (R)
2. Herman P. Goebel (R)
3. James M. Cox (D)
4. William E. Tou Velle (D)
5. Timothy T. Ansberry (D)
6. Matthew R. Denver (D)
7. J. Warren Keifer (R)
8. Ralph D. Cole (R)
9. Isaac R. Sherwood (D)
10. Adna R. Johnson (R)
11. Albert Douglas (R)
12. Edward L. Taylor, Jr. (R)
13. Carl C. Anderson (D)
14. William G. Sharp (D)
15. James Joyce (R)
16. David Hollingsworth (R)
17. William A. Ashbrook (D)
18. James Kennedy (R)
19. W. Aubrey Thomas (R)
20. L. Paul Howland (R)
21. James H. Cassidy (R), from April 20, 1909

Oklahoma

1. Bird Segle McGuire (R)
Dick Thompson Morgan (R)
3. Charles E. Creager (R)
4. Charles D. Carter (D)
5. Scott Ferris (D)

Oregon

1. Willis C. Hawley (R)
2. William R. Ellis (R)

Pennsylvania

1. Henry H. Bingham (R)
2. Joel Cook (R), died December 15, 1910, vacant to end
3. J. Hampton Moore (R)
4. Reuben O. Moon (R)
5. William W. Foulkrod (R), died November 13, 1910, vacant to end
George D. McCreary (R)
7. Thomas S. Butler (R)
8. Irving P. Wanger (R)
9. William W. Griest (R)
10. Thomas D. Nicholls (Independent Democrat)
11. Henry W. Palmer (R)
12. Alfred B. Garner (R)
13. John H. Rothermel (D)
14. Charles C. Pratt (R)
15. William B. Wilson (D)
16. John G. McHenry (D)
17. Benjamin K. Focht (R)
18. Marlin E. Olmsted (R)
19. John M. Reynolds (R), resigned January 17, 1911, vacant to end of term
20. Daniel F. Lafean (R)
21. Charles F. Barclay (R)
George F. Huff (R)
23. Allen F. Cooper (R)
24. John K. Tener (R), resigned January 16, 1911, vacant to end of term
25. Arthur L. Bates (R)
26. A. Mitchell Palmer (D)
27. J. N. Langham (R)
28. Nelson P. Wheeler (R)
29. William H. Graham (R)
30. John Dalzell (R)
31. James F. Burke (R)
32. Andrew J. Barchfeld (R)

Rhode Island

1. William P. Sheffield (R)
2. Adin B. Capron (R)

South Carolina

George S. Legare (D)
2. James O'H. Patterson (D)
3. Wyatt Aiken (D)
4. Joseph T. Johnson (D)
5. David E. Finley (D)
6. J. Edwin Ellerbe (D)
7. Asbury F. Lever (D)

South Dakota

A/L. Charles H. Burke (R)
A/L. Eben Martin (R)

Tennessee

1. Walter P. Brownlow (R), died July 8, 1910
- Zachary D. Massey (R), from November 8, 1910
2. Richard W. Austin (R)
3. John Austin Moon (D)
4. Cordell Hull (D)
5. William C. Houston (D)
6. Joseph W. Byrns (D)
7. Lemuel Phillips Padgett (D)
8. Thetus Willrette Sims (D)
9. Finis J. Garrett (D)
George W. Gordon (D)

Texas

1. John Morris Sheppard (D)
2. Martin Dies (D)
3. Gordon J. Russell (D), resigned June 14, 1910
- Robert M. Lively (D), from July 23, 1910
4. Choice Boswell Randell (D)
5. James Andrew Beall (D)
6. Rufus Hardy (D)
7. Alexander W. Gregg (D)
8. John M. Moore (D)
George Farmer Burgess (D)
10. Albert Sidney Burleson (D)
11. Robert L. Henry (D)
12. Oscar W. Gillespie (D)
13. John Hall Stephens (D)
14. James L. Slayden (D)
15. John Nance Garner (D)
16. William R. Smith (D)

Utah

A/L. Joseph Howell (R)

Vermont

1. David J. Foster (R)
2. Frank Plumley (R)

Virginia

1. William Atkinson Jones (D)
2. Harry Lee Maynard (D)
3. John Fletcher Lamb (D)
4. Francis R. Lassiter (D), died October 31, 1909
- Robert Turnbull (D), from March 8, 1910
5. Edward W. Saunders (D)
6. Carter Glass (D)
7. James Hay (D)
8. Charles Creighton Carlin (D)
9. C. Bascom Slemp (R)
10. Henry De Flood (D)

Washington

1. William E. Humphrey (R)
2. Francis W. Cushman (R), died July 6, 1909
- William W. McCredie (R), from November 2, 1909
3. Miles Poindexter (R)

West Virginia

1. William P. Hubbard (R)
George Cookman Sturgiss (R)
3. Joseph Holt Gaines (R)
4. Harry C. Woodyard (R)
5. James Anthony Hughes (R)

Wisconsin

Wyoming

A/L. Franklin Wheeler Mondell (R)

Non-voting members

Alaska Territory. James Wickersham (R)
Arizona Territory. Ralph Henry Cameron (D)
Hawaii Territory. Jonah Kunio Kalanianaole (R)
New Mexico Territory. William Henry Andrews (R)
Philippines. Benito Legarda
Philippines. Pablo Ocampo, resigned November 22, 1909
- Manuel Quezon, (Unionist), November 23, 1909 – End
Puerto Rico. Tulio Larrinaga, (Unionist)

Officers

Architect of the Capitol: Elliott Woods

Senate

Secretary: Charles G. Bennett of New York
Sergeant at Arms: Daniel M. Ransdell of Indiana
Chaplain:
- Edward E. Hale, Unitarian, until June 10, 1909
- Ulysses G.B. Pierce, Unitarian, elected June 18, 1909

House of Representatives

Clerk: Alexander McDowell of Pennsylvania
Sergeant at Arms: Henry Casson of Wisconsin
Doorkeeper: Frank B. Lyon of New York
Postmaster: Samuel Langum of New York
Clerk at the Speaker’s Table: Asher C. Hinds
Chaplain: Henry N. Couden, Universalist

References

Gould, Lewis L. (2005). The Most Exclusive Club. Cambridge, MA: Perseus Books Group.
Remini, Robert V. (2006). The House. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
U.S. Congress (2005). "Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress". Archived from the original on June 1, 2006. Retrieved 2006-06-01.
U.S. House of Representatives (2006). "Congressional History". Archived from the original on June 1, 2006. Retrieved 2006-06-01.
U.S. Senate (2006). "Statistics and Lists". Archived from the original on June 1, 2006. Retrieved 2006-06-01.