29th United States Congress

The Twenty-ninth 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, 1845 to March 3, 1847, during the first two years of the administration of James Polk's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Sixth Census of the United States in 1840. Both chambers had a Democratic majority.

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[edit] Major events

Main articles: 1845 in the United States, 1846 in the United States, and 1847 in the United States

March 4, 1845: James K. Polk became President of the United States
October 10, 1845: The Naval School (later renamed the United States Naval Academy) opened in Annapolis, Maryland
December 2, 1845: President Polk announced to Congress that the Monroe Doctrine should be strictly enforced and that the United States should aggressively expand into the West.
April 25, 1846: Open conflict over border disputes of Texas's boundaries began the Mexican-American War

[edit] Major legislation

Main article: List of United States federal legislation#29th United States Congress

May 13, 1846: Mexican-American War declared, ch. 16, 9 Stat. 9
July 9, 1846: District of Columbia retrocession, ch. 35, 9 Stat. 35
July 30, 1846: Walker tariff, ch. 74, 9 Stat. 42

[edit] Treaties

June 15, 1846: Oregon Treaty established the 49th parallel as the border between the United States and Canada, from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca
January 13, 1847: Treaty of Cahuenga ended the fighting in the Mexican-American War in California (not a formal treaty between nations but an informal agreement between rival military forces)

[edit] States admitted

December 29, 1845: Texas admitted as the 28th state
December 28, 1846: Iowa admitted as the 29th state

[edit] Party summary

[edit] Senate

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

	Party (Shading indicates majority/plurality caucus)				Total	Vacant

	Democratic (D)	Liberty (L)	Whig (W)	Other
End of the previous congress	23	0	27	1	51	3

Begin	26	0	24	0	50	4
End	31	1	24	0	56	2
Final voting share	55.4%	1.8%	42.9%	0.0%

Beginning of the next congress	34	0	20	1	55	3

[edit] House of Representatives

During this congress, two House seats were added for each of the new states of Texas and Iowa.

	Party (Shading indicates majority/plurality caucus)				Total	Vacant

	American (A)	Democratic (D)	Whig (W)	Other
End of the previous congress	0	141	78	4	223	1

Begin	12	132	78	0	222	2
End	12	137	77	0	226	2
Final voting share	5.3%	60.6%	34.1%	0.0%

Beginning of the next congress	1	107	116	3	227	1

[edit] Leadership

President of the Senate
George M. Dallas

President pro tempore
Ambrose H. Sevier

President pro tempore
David R. Atchison

[edit] Senate

President: George M. Dallas (D)
President pro tempore: Willie P. Mangum (W)
- Ambrose Hundley Sevier (D), elected December 27, 1845
- David R. Atchison (D), elected August 8, 1846

[edit] House of Representatives

Speaker: John W. Davis (D)

[edit] Members

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

[edit] 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 with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1850; Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1846; and Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1848.