38th United States Congress
March 4, 1863 – March 4, 1865
U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., Inauguration Day, March 4, 1861.
52 Senators
184 Representatives
10 Non-Voting Delegates
Sessions:
Special: March 4, 1863 – March 14, 1863
1st: December 7, 1863 – July 4, 1864
2nd: December 5, 1864 – March 3, 1865
The 38th 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, 1863, to March 4, 1865, during the last two years of the first administration of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Eighth Census of the United States in 1860. The Senate had a Republican majority, and the House of Representatives had a Republican plurality.
Leadership
Senate
- President: Hannibal Hamlin (R)
- President pro tempore: Solomon Foot (R), until April 13, 1864
- Daniel Clark (R), elected April 26, 1864
Majority (Republican) leadership
- Republican Conference Chairman: Henry B. Anthony
House of Representatives
- Speaker: Schuyler Colfax (R)
Majority (Republican) leadership
- Republican Conference Chairman: Justin S. Morrill
- Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means: Thaddeus Stevens (R)
Members
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, facing re-election in 1864; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1866; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, facing re-election in 1868.Alabama
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
| Mississippi
Missouri
Nevada (newly admitted state)
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia (newly admitted state)
Wisconsin
|
House of Representatives
Members of the House of Representatives are listed by their districts.Alabama
Arkansas
CaliforniaAll representatives were elected statewide on a general ticket.
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Nevada (newly admitted state)
New Hampshire
New Jersey
| New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia (newly admitted state)
Wisconsin
Non-voting members
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
R - Republican
D - Democrat
U - Unionist
I - Independent
UU - Unconditional Unionist
Major legislation
- April 22, 1864: Coinage Act of 1864, Sess. 1, ch. 66, 13 Stat.54
- June 30, 1864: Yosemite Valley Grant Act, Sess. 1, 16 Stat.48
- March 3, 1865: Freedmen's Bureau, Sess. 2, ch. 90, 13 Stat.507
Major bills not enacted
- Wade–Davis Bill passed both houses July 2, 1864 but Pocket vetoed
Constitutional amendments
- January 31, 1865: Approved an amendment to the United States Constitution abolishing slavery in the United States and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime, and submitted it to the state legislatures for ratification 13 Stat.567
- Amendment was later ratified on December 6, 1865, becoming the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
Treaties ratified
- February 9, 1865: Chippewa Indians, 13 Stat.393
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