Chapter 17: Congressional Profile: 1789-1795

The early composition of the Senate is dominated by men who have been in the forefront of the rebellion against Britain, the Continental Congresses held under the Articles of Confederation, and the creation and passage of the 1787 Constitution.

Five out of twenty-six senators have signed the Declaration of Independence (Gerry, Read, Carroll, Morris, Lee), seven have served in the army during the war, and eleven have been delegates to the Philadelphia Convention. Those in the House have participated less at the national level, but are well known within their own states for their government service.

Elbridge Gerry signs the Declaration of Independence but not the Constitution for its lack of a Bill of Rights. He is Madison’s Vice-President in 1812, but dies after less than two years in office.

Although George Read opposes the initial break with Britain, he plays a leading role in getting the Constitution ratified in his home state of Delaware.

Charles Carroll of Carrollton belongs to an aristocratic family in Maryland, but also faces anti-Catholic bigotry which limits his political career. Nevertheless he leads those in the state who want to break with Britain, and becomes the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence. His inheritance, which includes some 1,100 slaves, makes him one of the wealthiest men in America. He introduces a bill in the Maryland senate in support of “gradual emancipation” and backs various “colonization” plans, but fails to free his own slaves in the end.

Richard Henry Lee is a member of the aristocratic Virginia family who supports rebellion early on and serves in the Continental Congresses under the Articles of Confederation, including a stint as president of that body.

Pennsylvania’s Robert Morris accumulates vast wealth as an international merchant (including slave trading) and funnels much of it into underwriting the costs of the Revolutionary War. Later he joins Alexander Hamilton in setting up America’s banking and financial systems.

Rufus King of New York will serve 19 years in the Senate and run for president or vice-president on three tickets.

Samuel Smith, a hero in two wars, will serve for 39 years in Congress, sixteen in the House and twenty-three in the Senate.

For over 37 years, North Carolina’s Nathaniel Macon will speak in favor of slavery and the sovereign rights of the states vis a vis the federal government.

Roll Call of Leaders Entering Congress Between 1789 and 1795

See Appendix for more details.