Thirty-Seventh Congress of the United States

Date Span
March 4, 1861 March 4, 1863
Date Event
- In Washington, DC, the United States Senate is sitting in Special Session
The U.S. Senate, sitting in extraordinary session, confirms all of President Lincoln's cabinet choices
Federal Income Tax takes effect in the United States
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee votes to expel Missouri Senators Waldo Johnson and Trusten Polk
The United States Senate expels Missouri Senators Waldo Johnson and Trusten Polk for treason
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee finds the evidence insufficient to expel Indiana Senator Jesse Bright
U.S. Senate confirms Edwin M. Stanton's nomination as Secretary of War on a vote of 36-2
The U.S. Senate votes 26-14 to confirm Simon Cameron as the new ambassador to Russia
The U.S. Senate votes 38-1 to confirm Noah Haynes Swayne of Ohio to the U.S. Supreme Court
The U.S. Senate votes to expel Indiana Senator Jesse Bright as a Southern sympathizer
In Washington, the House of Representatives votes 125-7 to establish a Department of Agriculture
President Lincoln signs the Loan and Treasury Act, creating a national paper currency
President Lincoln suggests to Congress ways gradually to end slavery in the United States
Senator Lazarus Powell survives a U.S. Senate vote to expel him for "seducing citizens into rebellion and treason"
Congress votes to join with Britain and France on a commission to preserve Atlantic fishing stocks
The United States Senate passes President Lincoln's suggested resolution to help end slavery gradually
On a party line vote, the U.S. Senate votes to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia
In Washington D.C., the House passes the bill to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia
The U.S. Congress completes a bill to establish a new mint in Denver, Colorado
A congressional committee reports that Senator Benjamin Stark of Oregon is a southern sympathizer
U.S. House censures former Secretary of War Simon Cameron for his lax fiscal dealings while in office
President Lincoln signs the Homestead Act
The U.S. Senate organizes the impeachment trial of U.S. District Judge West H. Humphreys
The U.S. Senate trial of U.S. District Judge West H. Humphreys of Tennessee ends with his removal
President Lincoln signs the Second Confiscation Act authorizing freedom for confiscated slaves
The second session of the 37th Congress ends in Washington, DC
The third session of the 37th Congress opens in Washington, DC
- The third session of the 37th Congress is sitting in Washington, DC between December 1 and December 22, 1862
Senatorial caucus meets to discuss Cabinet crisis
The third session of the 37th Congress adjourns for a two-week holiday recess
- The third session of the 37th Congress is in a two-week holiday recess until January 6, 1863
The third session of the 37th Congress returns from a two-week holiday recess
- The third session of the 37th Congress is sitting in Washington DC until early March 1863
The 37th Congress comes to the end of its term in Washington DC
In Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, recently retired Congressman James Tracy Hale dies of typhoid
Moses Odell, influential New York Democrat and friend of Abraham Lincoln, dies of cancer in Brooklyn.
United States Capitol, Washington DC
How to Cite This Page: "Thirty-Seventh Congress of the United States," House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College, https://hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu/node/42810.