The Twenty-fifth 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, 1837 to March 4, 1839, during the first two years of Martin Van Buren's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Fifth Census of the United States in 1830. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.
March 4, 1837: Martin Van Buren became President of the United States
May 10, 1837: Panic of 1837
January 6, 1838: First public demonstration of Samuel Morse's telegraph
May 26, 1838: Trail of Tears: The Cherokee removal began
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States admitted and/or territories organized
June 12, 1838: Iowa Territory was formed from the Wisconsin Territory.
President: Richard Mentor Johnson (D)
President pro tempore: William R. King (D)
Speaker: James K. Polk (D)
This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.
Skip to House of Representatives, below
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, requiring reelection in 1838; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1840; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1842.
The names of members of the House of Representatives are preceded by their district numbers.
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of the first session of this Congress.
Replacements: 6
Democrats: no net change
Whigs: no net change
Deaths: 1
Resignations: 6
Total seats with changes: 7
Replacements: 16
Democrats: 5-seat net loss
Whigs: 5-seat net gain
Deaths: 9
Resignations: 6
Contested election:1
Total seats with changes: 20
Lists of committees and their party leaders.
Agriculture
Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate
Claims
Commerce
Danger of Steam Vessels (Select)
Distributing Public Revenue Among the States (Select)
District of Columbia
Finance
Foreign Relations
Indian Affairs
Judiciary
Letter of Mr. Ruggles (Select)
Manufactures
Memorial of A. B. Quinby (Select)
Memorial of the Citizens of Georgetown (DC) for the Retrocession of that Part of the District (Select)
Memorial of Duff Green (Select)
Memorial of Edward D. Tippett (Select)
Mileage of Members of Congress (Select)
Military Affairs
Militia
Naval Affairs
Occupation of the Columbia River (Select)
Oregon Territory (Select)
Patents and the Patent Office
Pensions
Post Office and Post Roads
Private Land Claims
Public Buildings and Grounds
Public Lands
Purchasing Boyd Reilly's Gas Apparatus (Select)
Revolutionary Claims
Roads and Canals
Tariff Regulation (Select)
Whole
Accounts
Agriculture
Amendment to the Constitution (Select)
Claims
Commerce
District of Columbia
Elections
Expenditures in the Navy Department
Expenditures in the Post Office Department
Expenditures in the State Department
Expenditures in the Treasury Department
Expenditures in the War Department
Expenditures on Public Buildings
Foreign Affairs
Indian Affairs
Invalid Pensions
Manufactures
Mileage
Military Affairs
Militia
Naval Affairs
Patents
Post Office and Post Roads
Public Buildings and Grounds
Public Expenditures
Public Lands
Revisal and Unfinished Business
Revolutionary Claims
Roads and Canals
Rules (Select)
Standards of Official Conduct
Territories
Ways and Means
Whole
Enrolled Bills
Librarian of Congress: John Silva Meehan
Chaplain: John R. Goodman (Episcopalian), elected December 28, 1836
Henry Slicer (Methodist), elected September 11, 1837
Secretary: Asbury Dickens
Sergeant at Arms: John Shackford (died)
Stephen Haight, elected September 4, 1837
Chaplain: Septimus Tustin (Presbyterian), elected September 4, 1837
Levi R. Reese (Methodist), elected December 4, 1837
Clerk: Walter S. Franklin, until September 20, 1838 (died)
Hugh A. Garland, elected December 3, 1838
Doorkeeper: Overton Carr
Postmaster: William J. McCormick
Sergeant at Arms: Roderick Dorsey
