62nd New York State Legislature

The 62nd New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 1 to May 7, 1839, during the first year of William H. Seward's governorship, in Albany.

62nd New York State Legislature
←61st 63rd→
The Old State Capitol (1879)
Overview
Legislative bodyNew York State Legislature
JurisdictionNew York, United States
TermJanuary 1 – December 31, 1839
Senate
Members32
PresidentLt. Gov. Luther Bradish (W)
Party controlDemocratic (18-14)
Assembly
Members128
SpeakerGeorge W. Patterson (W)
Party controlWhig (82-46)
Sessions
1stJanuary 1 – May 7, 1839

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.

In 1838, Fulton County was split from Montgomery County. Fulton and Hamilton counties were joined in one Assembly district and apportioned 1 seat, the remaining 2 seats of the previous Hamilton-Montgomery district were apportioned to the now smaller Montgomery County.

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

On September 12, 1838, the Whig state convention met at Utica, and nominated William H. Seward for Governor, and Speaker Luther Bradish for Lieutenant Governor. On the same day, the Democratic state convention met at Herkimer, and nominated Gov. William L. Marcy and Lt. Gov. John Tracy unanimously for re-election.

On October 3, 1838, a state convention of former Democrats met under the name of "Conservatives" (among them U.S. Senator Nathaniel P. Tallmadge) at Syracuse, and endorsed the Whig nominees Seward and Bradish.

Elections

The State election was held from November 5 to 7, 1838. William H. Seward and Luther Bradish were elected Governor and Lieutenant Governor.

State Senator Chester Loomis (7th D.) was defeated for re-election.

1838 New York State Senate election result
District Whig Democrat
First Gabriel Furman 23,398 Minthorne Tompkins 22,731
Second Ebenezer Lounsbery 23,256 Daniel Johnson 24,524
Third Harvey Watson 24,516 Alonzo C. Paige 24,563
Fourth Bethuel Peck 24,185 Hiram Barber 23,244
Fifth Jonathan D. Ledyard 21,311 Joseph Clark 23,645
Sixth Alvah Hunt 24,324 Ebenezer Mack 23,025
Seventh Robert C. Nicholas 24,129 Chester Loomis 22,428
Eighth Henry Hawkins 26,711 Addison Gardiner 17,360

Sessions

The Legislature met for the regular session at the Old State Capitol in Albany on January 1, 1839; and the Assembly adjourned on May 6, the Senate on May 7.

On January 1, George W. Patterson (W) was elected Speaker. In the Senate, the mode of appointing the standing committees was changed. The committees had usually been appointed by the lieutenant governor (who is ex officio President of the Senate). At this session, the lieutenant governor was a member of the minority party, and the Democratic majority voted to appoint the committees by ballot.

On January 26, Canal Commissioner Stephen Van Rensselaer died.

On February 4, the Legislature elected John C. Spencer (W) to succeed John A. Dix (D) as Secretary of State; Bates Cooke (W) to succeed Azariah C. Flagg (D) as State Comptroller; Willis Hall (W) to succeed Samuel Beardsley (D) as Attorney General; and Jacob Haight (W) to succeed Gamaliel H. Barstow (W) as State Treasurer.

On February 5, the Legislature failed to elect a U.S. Senator to succeed Nathaniel P. Tallmadge, and the seat became vacant on March 4, 1839.

On February 18, the Legislature elected Samuel B. Ruggles (W) a Canal Commissioner, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Van Rensselaer.

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 Henry Floyd-Jones* 1 year Democrat resided in Queens Co., elected in the old 1st D.
Frederick A. Tallmadge* 2 years Whig
Gulian C. Verplanck* 3 years Whig
Gabriel Furman 4 years Whig
Second John Hunter* 1 year Democrat
Henry H. Van Dyck* 2 years Democrat
Henry A. Livingston* 3 years Whig
Daniel Johnson 4 years Democrat
Third James Powers* 1 year Democrat
Noadiah Johnson* 2 years Democrat died on April 4, 1839
Edward P. Livingston* 3 years Democrat resigned on October 9, 1839
Alonzo C. Paige 4 years Democrat
Fourth David Spraker* 1 year Democrat
Samuel Young* 2 years Democrat also a Canal Commissioner
Martin Lee* 3 years Whig
Bethuel Peck 4 years Whig
Fifth Micah Sterling* 1 year Democrat
David Wager* 2 years Democrat
Avery Skinner* 3 years Democrat also Postmaster of Union Square
Joseph Clark 4 years Democrat
Sixth George Huntington* 1 year Democrat
Daniel S. Dickinson* 2 years Democrat
Laurens Hull* 3 years Whig
Alvah Hunt 4 years Whig
Seventh John Beardsley* 1 year Democrat
Samuel L. Edwards* 2 years Democrat
John Maynard* 3 years Whig
Robert C. Nicholas 4 years Whig
Eighth Chauncey J. Fox* 1 year Whig resided in Cattaraugus Co., elected in the old 8th D.
Samuel Works* 2 years Whig
William A. Moseley* 3 years Whig
Henry Hawkins 4 years Whig

Employees
  • Clerk: John F. Bacon
  • Deputy Clerk: Chauncey Wasson
  • Sergeant-at-Arms: James Livingston
  • Doorkeeper: James D. Wasson

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.

District Assemblymen Party Notes
Albany John Davis
James S. Lowe
Rufus Watson
Allegany Seth H. Pratt* Whig
William Welch Whig
Broome John Stoughton
Cattaraugus George A. S. Crooker Whig
Hollis Scott
Cayuga Henry R. Filley* Whig
John McIntosh Whig
Nathan G. Morgan*
Chautauqua Waterman Ellsworth[1] Whig
Timothy Judson Whig
Abner Lewis* Whig
Chemung Jonathan P. Crouch
Chenango Samuel Drew
Demas Hubbard, Jr.* Whig
Josiah G. Olney
Clinton Abijah North Democrat
Columbia Harry Cornwell
Henry Hogeboom
Peter R. Livingston Whig
Cortland George S. Green
George Isaacs
Delaware Ichabod Bartlett
Jonas More
Dutchess Henry Conklin Whig
Jacob Sisson*
Daniel Toffey Whig
Erie Jacob A. Barker Whig
Truman Cary Whig
Henry Johnson Whig
Essex Gideon Hammond* Whig
Franklin Asa Hascall Whig
Fulton and Hamilton James Yawney
Genesee Andrew H. Green* Whig
John Head* Whig
Horace Healy Whig
Alva Jefferson Whig
Greene Platt Adams
Thomas B. Cooke* Whig
Herkimer Benjamin Carver
Atwater Cooke Jr.
Jefferson Calvin Clark Whig
Charles E. Clarke Whig
Philip P. Gaige Whig
Kings Cornelius Bergen* Whig
Jeremiah Lott
Lewis Sanford Coe
Livingston Elias Clark Whig
George W. Patterson* Whig elected Speaker
Madison Friend Barnard
Benjamin Enos Democrat
Uriah Leland
Monroe William S. Bishop
Henry P. Norton
John P. Stull
Montgomery Isaac S. Frost
Isaac Jackson
New York George W. Bruen Whig
Alfred Carhart* Whig
Loring D. Chapin Whig
Heman W. Childs* Whig
Noah Cook Whig
Thomas J. Doyle Whig
John I. Labagh* Whig
Thomas McElrath Whig
Samuel T. McKinney Whig
Frederick Pentz Whig
Stephen Potter Whig
John B. Scoles* Whig
George Zabriskie* Whig
Niagara Davis Hurd* Whig
Peter B. Porter, Jr.* Whig
Oneida Jesse Armstrong
Ward Hunt Democrat
Amasa S. Newberry
Israel Stoddard
Onondaga Phares Gould* Whig
James R. Lawrence* Whig
Azariah Smith* Whig
James L. Voorhees
Ontario Augustus Sawyer
Z. Barton Stout
Henry W. Taylor* Whig
Orange Edward Blake Democrat
Robert Denniston Democrat
Joseph Slaughter
Orleans Horatio Reed* Whig
Oswego Samuel Hawley
Edward B. Judson
Otsego Jonathan W. Brewer
Levi S. Chatfield Democrat
Daniel Gilchrist
Putnam Herman R. Stephens
Queens Elias Hicks
Rensselaer Richard P. Herrick Whig
Day O. Kellogg[2]
Gideon Reynolds Whig
Richmond Israel Oakley*
Rockland Benjamin Blackledge
St. Lawrence Myron G. Peck* Democrat
Asa Sprague Democrat
Saratoga John Stewart Whig
Calvin Wheeler* Whig
Schenectady Silas H. Marsh* Whig
Schoharie Harvey Bliss
George F. Fox
Seneca Gardner Welles
Steuben Andrew G. Chatfield Democrat
Abram M. Lybolt Democrat
Johnson N. Reynolds
Suffolk J. Wickham Case
Joshua B. Smith Democrat
Sullivan William F. Brodhead
Tioga Wright Dunham Democrat
Tompkins David Bower
Jesse McKinney
Ulster Jacob H. DeWitt Whig
Henry C. Hornbeck Whig
Warren William Griffing
Washington Salmon Axtell
Jesse S. Leigh
Wayne Thomas Armstrong Democrat
Ambrose Salisbury Democrat
Westchester Samuel B. Ferris Democrat
Joseph Strang Democrat
Yates Miles Benham* Whig

Employees
  • Clerk: Jarvis N. Lake
  • Sergeant-at-Arms: William DeForest
  • Doorkeeper: Samuel Francis Jr.
  • Assistant Doorkeeper: Washington P. Lewis

Notes
  1. Waterman Ellsworth (b. 1797), son of State Senator Stukely Ellsworth
  2. Day Otis Kellogg (b. 1796), son of Congressman Charles Kellogg

Sources
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