63rd New York State Legislature

63rd New York State Legislature

The Old State Capitol (1879)
Duration: January 1 – December 31, 1840
President of the State Senate: Lt. Gov. Luther Bradish (W)
Temporary President of the State Senate:
Speaker of the State Assembly: George W. Patterson (W)
Members: 32 Senators
128 Assemblymen
Senate Majority: Whig (20-12)
Assembly Majority: Whig (70-58)
Sessions
1st: January 7 – May 14, 1840
<62nd 64th>

The 63rd New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 7 to May 14, 1840, during the second year of William H. Seward's governorship, in Albany.

Background

Under the provisions of the New York Constitution of 1821, 32 Senators were elected on general tickets in eight senatorial districts for four-year terms. They were divided into four classes, and every year eight Senate seats came up for election. Assemblymen were elected countywide on general tickets to a one-year term, the whole Assembly being renewed annually.

State Senator Noadiah Johnson died on April 4, 1839; and State Senator Edward P. Livingston resigned on October 9, 1839; leaving two vacancies in the Third District.

At this time there were two political parties: the Democratic Party and the Whig Party.

Elections

The State election was held from November 4 to 6, 1839.

State Senator John Hunter (2nd D.) was re-elected.

1839 New York State Senate election result
District Whig Democrat
First Philip Hone 21,396 Minthorne Tompkins 23,385
Second Pierre Van Cortlandt, Jr. 22,152 John Hunter 23,669
Third Friend Humphrey 24,716 William K. Wilson 24,549
Mitchell Sanford 24,675 Henry W. Strong 24,533
Erastus Root 24,551 Amasa J. Parker 24,517
Fourth James G. Hopkins 24,312 Sidney Lawrence 22,933
Fifth James Brackett 21,150 Sumner Ely 22,792
Sixth Andrew B. Dickinson 23,893 William Maxwell 23,517
Seventh Mark H. Sibley 24,049 Joshua Lee 22,831
Eighth Abram Dixon 21,927 Isaac R. Elwood 15,603

Sessions

The Legislature met for the regular session at the Old State Capitol in Albany on January 7, 1840; and adjourned on May 14.

George W. Patterson (W) was re-elected Speaker with 68 votes against 56 for Levi S. Chatfield (D).

Upon taking their seats in the Senate, Humphrey, Sanford and Root drew lots to decide which one of the three senators elected in the Third District would serve which term. Sanford drew the one-year term, Humphrey the two-year term, and Root the full term.[1]

On January 14, the Legislature elected Nathaniel P. Tallmadge (W) to the seat in the U.S. Senate which he had vacated on March 4, 1839.

On January 20, Mayor of Rochester Samuel G. Andrews was elected Clerk of the Senate, to succeed John F. Bacon who had been Clerk since 1814.[2]

The Legislature appointed Thurlow Weed to succeed Edwin Croswell as State Printer.

On February 3, Lt. Gov. Bradish did not attend the session, and Frederick A. Tallmadge was elected President pro tempore of the Senate. On the same day, Jacob Haight (W) was re-elected State Treasurer.

On February 22, the Legislature elected George H. Boughton, Simon Newton Dexter, Henry Hamilton, David Hudson and Asa Whitney to succeed William Baker, William C. Bouck, John Bowman, Jonas Earll, Jr. and State Senator Samuel Young as Canal Commissioners.

On September 2, the Democratic state convention met at Syracuse, and nominated William C. Bouck for Governor, and State Senator Daniel S. Dickinson for Lieutenant Governor.

The Whig state convention nominated Gov. Seward and Lt. Gov. Bradish for re-election.

State Senate

Districts

Note: There are now 62 counties in the State of New York. The counties which are not mentioned in this list had not yet been established, or sufficiently organized, the area being included in one or more of the abovementioned counties.

Members

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature.

District Senators Term left Party Notes
First Frederick A. Tallmadge* 1 year Whig on February 3, 1840, elected President pro tempore
Gulian C. Verplanck* 2 years Whig
Gabriel Furman* 3 years Whig
Minthorne Tompkins 4 years Democrat
Second Henry H. Van Dyck* 1 year Democrat
Henry A. Livingston* 2 years Whig
Daniel Johnson* 3 years Democrat
John Hunter* 4 years Democrat
Third Mitchell Sanford 1 year Whig elected to fill vacancy, in place of Noadiah Johnson
Friend Humphrey 2 years Whig elected to fill vacancy, in place of Edward P. Livingston
Alonzo C. Paige* 3 years Democrat
Erastus Root 4 years Whig
Fourth Samuel Young* 1 year Democrat until February 13, 1840, also a Canal Commissioner
Martin Lee* 2 years Whig
Bethuel Peck* 3 years Whig
James G. Hopkins 4 years Whig
Fifth David Wager* 1 year Democrat
Avery Skinner* 2 years Democrat also Postmaster of Union Square
Joseph Clark* 3 years Democrat
Sumner Ely 4 years Democrat
Sixth Daniel S. Dickinson* 1 year Democrat
Laurens Hull* 2 years Whig
Alvah Hunt* 3 years Whig
Andrew B. Dickinson 4 years Whig
Seventh Samuel L. Edwards* 1 year Democrat
John Maynard* 2 years Whig in November 1840 elected to the 27th U.S. Congress
Robert C. Nicholas* 3 years Whig
Mark H. Sibley 4 years Whig
Eighth Samuel Works* 1 year Whig
William A. Moseley* 2 years Whig
Henry Hawkins* 3 years Whig
Abram Dixon 4 years Whig

Employees

State Assembly

Districts

Note: There are now 62 counties in the State of New York. The counties which are not mentioned in this list had not yet been established, or sufficiently organized, the area being included in one or more of the abovementioned counties.

Assemblymen

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued as members of this Legislature.

Party affiliations follow the result given in The New Yorker.

District Assemblymen Party Notes
Albany Frederick Bassler Jr. Whig
Peter Flagler Whig
Henry G. Wheaton Whig
Allegany Lorenzo Dana Whig
William Welch* Whig
Broome Cornelius Mersereau Whig
Cattaraugus George A. S. Crooker* Whig
Timothy H. Porter Whig
Cayuga Artemas Cady Democrat
John W. McFadden Whig
Andrews Preston Democrat
Chautauqua Odin Benedict Whig
George A. French Whig
William Rice Whig
Chemung Guy Hulett Democrat
Chenango William Church Whig
Demas Hubbard, Jr.* Whig
Samuel Plumb Whig
Clinton Abijah North* Democrat
Columbia Robert McKinstry Whig
Jonas H. Miller Whig
Justin Niles Whig
Cortland William Barnes Whig
Jabez B. Phelps Whig
Delaware Orson M. Allaben Democrat
Nathan Bristol Democrat
Dutchess Amos Bryan Whig
Henry Conklin* Whig
Daniel Toffey* Whig
Erie Seth C. Hawley Whig
Stephen Osborn Whig
Aaron Salisbury Whig
Essex George A. Simmons Whig
Franklin John S. Eldridge Whig
Fulton and Hamilton Langdon I. Marvin Whig
Genesee John W. Brownson Whig
Horace Healy* Whig
Alva Jefferson* Whig
George W. Lay Whig
Greene Gilbert Bedell Democrat
Sylvester Nichols Democrat
Herkimer Daniel Bellinger Democrat
George Burch Democrat
Jefferson Calvin Clark* Whig
Charles E. Clarke* Whig
Stephen Johnson Whig
Kings Jeremiah Johnson Whig
Adrian Hegeman Democrat
Lewis Chester Buck Whig
Livingston Elias Clark* Whig
George W. Patterson* Whig re-elected Speaker
Madison Daniel Barker Democrat
Daniel Dickey Democrat
Benjamin Enos* Democrat
Monroe George Brown Whig
Derick Sibley Whig
Enoch Strong Whig
Montgomery John S. Veeder Democrat
Peter Wood Democrat
New York Cornelius H. Bryson Democrat
Ulysses D. French Democrat
Paul Grout Democrat
Thomas Herttell Democrat
Norman Hickok Democrat
Francis W. Lasak Democrat
William B. Maclay Democrat
John J. Morgan Democrat
Edmund J. Porter Democrat
James J. Roosevelt Jr. Democrat in November 1840 elected to the 27th U.S. Congress
Thomas Spofford Democrat
Solomon Townsend Democrat
George Weir Democrat
Niagara Peter B. Porter, Jr.* Whig
Francis O. Pratt Whig
Oneida Nelson Dawley Democrat
Anson Knibloe Democrat
Charles A. Mann Democrat
John F. Trowbridge Democrat
Onondaga Victory Birdseye Whig in November 1840 elected to the 27th U.S. Congress
Phares Gould* Whig
James R. Lawrence* Whig
Azariah Smith* Whig
Ontario Reynold Peck Whig
Abraham A. Post Whig
Henry W. Taylor* Whig
Orange Benjamin Brown Democrat
Robert Denniston* Democrat
William S. Little Democrat
Orleans John J. Walbridge Whig
Oswego Peter Devendorf Democrat
William Duer Whig
Otsego Levi S. Chatfield* Democrat
Charles Walker Democrat
Arnold B. Watson Democrat
Putnam Saxton Smith Democrat
Queens John A. King Whig
Rensselaer Garrardus Deyoe Whig
Samuel W. Hoag Whig
William H. Van Schoonhoven Whig
Richmond Bornt P. Winant Democrat
Rockland William F. Fraser Democrat
St. Lawrence Zenas Clark Democrat
Asa Sprague* Democrat
Saratoga Daniel Stewart Whig
John Stewart* Whig
Schenectady Theodore W. Sanders Whig unsuccessfully contested by John I. De Graff (D)[3]
Schoharie Seymour Boughton Democrat
Charles Goodyear Democrat
Seneca Orange W. Wilkinson Democrat
Steuben Richard Brower Democrat
Andrew G. Chatfield* Democrat
Abram M. Lybolt* Democrat
Suffolk David Halsey Democrat
John M. Williamson Democrat
Sullivan Daniel B. St. John Whig
Tioga Thomas Farrington Democrat until January 20, 1840, also Surrogate of Tioga Co.
Tompkins William H. L. Bogart Whig
Robert Swartwout Whig
Ulster David L. Bernard Whig
John V. L. Overbagh Whig
Warren Joseph Russell Democrat
Washington John H. Boyd Whig
Anderson Simpson Whig
Wayne Horace Morley Whig
Durfee Osband Whig
Westchester Samuel B. Ferris* Democrat
Joseph Strang* Democrat
Yates Samuel S. Ellsworth Democrat

Employees

Notes

  1. ↑ see Journal of the Senate (63rd Session) (1840; pg. 4)
  2. ↑ see Senate Journal, pg. 100ff
  3. ↑ see A Compilation of Cases of Contested Elections to Seats in the Assembly of the State of New York (1871; pg. 119–141)

Sources

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