2nd United States Congress

Updated on Nov 20, 2024

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Senate President John Adams (P)		House Majority Pro-Administration

Senate Pres. pro tem Richard Henry Lee (P)John Langdon (P) House Speaker Jonathan Trumbull, Jr. (P) Members 28–30 (two additions) (with one vacancy) Senators67–69 (two additions) (with 1-3 vacancies) Representatives Senate Majority Pro-Administration,then Anti-Administration

The Second United States Congress, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, met at Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from March 4, 1791 to March 4, 1793, during the third and fourth years of George Washington's Presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the provisions of Article I, Section 2, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution. Additional House seats were assigned to the two new states of Vermont and Kentucky. Both chambers had a Pro-Administration majority.

Major events

April 5, 1792: President George Washington used the veto for the first time, vetoing a bill designed to apportion representatives among U.S. states.

October 13, 1792: Foundation of Washington, D.C.: The cornerstone of the United States Executive Mansion, now known as the White House, was laid.

Major legislation

February 20, 1792: Postal Service Act, Sess. 1, ch. 7, 1 Stat. 232, established the U.S. Post Office

April 2, 1792: Coinage Act of 1792, Sess. 1, ch. 16, 1 Stat. 246, established the United States Mint and regulated coinage

April 14, 1792: Apportionment Act of 1792, Sess. 1, ch. 23 1 Stat. 253, increased the size of the House of Representatives from 69 seats in the 2nd Congress to 105 in the 3rd and apportioned those seats among the several states according to the 1790 Census

May 2, 1792: First Militia Act of 1792, Sess. 1, ch. 28, 1 Stat. 264, enabled the President to call in militia in case of invasion or rebellion, while providing for the organizations of state militias

May 8, 1792: Second Militia Act of 1792, Sess. 1, ch. 33, 1 Stat. 271

February 12, 1793: Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, Sess. 2, ch. 7, 1 Stat. 302

March 2, 1793: Judiciary Act of 1793 (including Anti-Injunction Act), Sess. 2, ch. 22, 1 Stat. 333

States admitted

March 4, 1791: Vermont was admitted as the 14th state, 1 Stat. 191

June 1, 1792: Kentucky was admitted as the 15th state, 1 Stat. 189

Constitutional amendments

December 15, 1791: The United States Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution, were ratified by the states.

Party summary

There were no political parties in this Congress. Members are informally grouped into factions of similar interest, based on an analysis of their voting record.

Details on changes are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.

Senate

During this congress, two new Senate seats were added for each of the new states of Vermont and Kentucky.

House of Representatives

During this congress, two new House seats were added for each of the new states of Vermont and Kentucky. (Sess. 3, ch. 9, 1 Stat. 191)

Senate

President: John Adams (P)

President pro tempore:

Richard Henry Lee (P)

John Langdon (P), elected November 5, 1792

House of Representatives

Speaker: Jonathan Trumbull, Jr. (P)

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed in order of seniority, and Representatives are listed by district.

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 began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1796; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1792; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1794.

Skip to House of Representatives, below

House of Representatives

The names of members of the House of Representatives are preceded by their districts.

Membership changes

There were no political parties in this Congress. Members are informally grouped into factions of similar interest, based on an analysis of their voting record.

Vermont and Kentucky were newly admitted as states and are first represented in this Congress.

Senate

There were three resignations, one contested election, and four new seats of admitted states, resulting in a four-seat net gain of the Anti-Administration Senators.

House of Representatives

There were 3 resignations, 1 vacancy of a member-elect, 1 contested election, and 4 new seats of admitted states, resulting in a 3-seat net gain of the Anti-Administration members and a 1-seat net gain of the Pro-Administration members.