Called early due the exigencies of war, the Thirty-seventh Congress of the United States opens in Washington, D.C. Its numbers have been decimated by secession and only 183 representatives will sit in the House, along with seven territorial delegates. There are 108 Republicans, 44 Democrats, and 26 Unionists. Two representatives, slave owner James S. Rollins of Missouri and William Appleton, sit as Constitutional Unionists, two are Union Party members, and one, James Kerrigan of New York, sits as an Independent Democrat. Republican Galusha A. Grow is elected Speaker of the House on this opening day. (By John Osborne)
Source Citation
Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, "House History." http://clerk.house.gov/art_history/house_history/index.html
Record Data
Date Certainty
Exact
Type
Lawmaking/Litigating
