74th United States Congress
The 74th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January 3, 1935, to January 3, 1937, during the third and fourth years of Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1930 United States census.
| 74th United States Congress | |
|---|---|
73rd ← → 75th | |
 United States Capitol (1956) | |
January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1937 | |
| Members | 96 senators 435 representatives 5 non-voting delegates |
| Senate majority | Democratic |
| Senate President | John N. Garner (D) |
| House majority | Democratic |
| House Speaker | Jo Byrns (D) (until June 4, 1936) William B. Bankhead (D) (from June 4, 1936) |
| Sessions | |
| 1st: January 3, 1935 – August 26, 1935 2nd: January 3, 1936 – June 20, 1936 | |
The Democrats increased their majorities in both the House and Senate, resulting in a supermajority in both chambers, and along with President Franklin D. Roosevelt maintained an overall federal government trifecta.[1][2]
Major events
- April 14, 1935: Dust Bowl: The great dust storm hit eastern New Mexico, Colorado, and western Oklahoma
- May 6, 1935: Executive Order 7034 created the Works Progress Administration (WPA).
- May 27, 1935: Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States: the U.S. Supreme Court declared the National Industrial Recovery Act unconstitutional
- June 12, 1935 – June 13, 1935: Senator Huey Long gave the second longest filibuster speech in Senate history up to that time, 15 hours and 30 minutes to retain a provision, opposed by President Franklin Roosevelt, requiring Senate confirmation for the National Recovery Administration's senior employees.[3]
- July 1, 1935: Charles Watkins was appointed as the first officially recognized Parliamentarian.[4]
- September 10, 1935: Senator Huey Long of Louisiana died, as the result of being shot by an assassin on September 8.
- March 1, 1936: Construction of Hoover Dam was completed.
- March 2, 1936: Judge Halsted L. Ritter impeached by the U.S. House (H.Res. 422)
- April 17, 1936: Judge Halsted L. Ritter convicted by the U.S. Senate
- June 4, 1936: Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Jo Byrns died. William B. Bankhead was then elected later that day.
- November 3, 1936: General elections
- President: Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) was reelected with 60.8% of the vote over Alf Landon (R).
- Senate: Democrats gained 5 net seats during the election, and in combination with Democratic and Farmer–Labor interim appointments and the defection of George W. Norris from the Republican Party to become independent, the Republicans were reduced to 16 seats, the most lopsided Senate since Reconstruction.
- House: Democrats gained twelve more net seats from the Republicans, bringing them above a three-fourths majority. This was the largest majority since Reconstruction. The last time a party won so decisively was in 1866.
- November 25, 1936: Abraham Lincoln Brigade sailed from New York City on its way to the Spanish Civil War
President Roosevelt signs the Social Security Act, at approximately 3:30pm ET on August 14, 1935.[5] Standing with Roosevelt are Rep. Robert Doughton (D-NC); unknown person in shadow; Sen. Robert Wagner (D-NY); Rep. John Dingell Sr. (D-MI); unknown man in bowtie; Secretary of Labor, Frances Perkins; Sen. Pat Harrison (D-MS); and Rep. David Lewis (D-MD).
Major legislation
- April 27, 1935: Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, Sess. 1, ch. 85, 49 Stat. 163
- July 5, 1935: National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act), Sess. 1, ch. 372, 49 Stat. 449
- August 9, 1935: Motor Carrier Act, Sess. 1, ch. 498, 49 Stat. 546 (renamed part II of the Interstate Commerce Act)
- August 14, 1935: Social Security Act, including Aid to Dependent Children, Old Age Pension Act, Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 74–271, Sess. 1, ch. 531, 49 Stat. 620
- August 23, 1935: Banking Act of 1935 49 Stat. 694
- August 26, 1935: Public Utility Act (including: Title I: Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935, Title II: Federal Power Act), Sess. 1, ch. 687, 49 Stat. 803
- August 30, 1935: Revenue Act of 1935, Sess. 1, ch. 829, 49 Stat. 1014
- August 31, 1935: Neutrality Act of 1935, Sess. 1, ch. 837, 49 Stat. 1081[6]
- February 29, 1936: Neutrality Act of 1936, Sess. 2, ch. 106, 49 Stat. 1153
- May 20, 1936: Rural Electrification Act, Sess. 2, ch. 432, 49 Stat. 1363
- June 15, 1936: Commodity Exchange Act, Sess. 2, ch. 545, 49 Stat. 1491
- June 19, 1936: Robinson Patman Act, Sess. 2, ch. 592, 49 Stat. 1526
- June 22, 1936: Flood Control Act of 1936, Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 74–738, Sess. 2, ch. 688
- June 29, 1936: Merchant Marine Act, Sess. 2, ch. 250, 49 Stat. 1985
- June 30, 1936: Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act, Sess. 2, ch. 881, 49 Stat. 2036
Party summary
Senate
| Party (shading shows control) |
Total | Vacant | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic (D) |
Farmer– Labor (FL) | Wisconsin Progressive (P) | Republican (R) | Other | |||
| End of previous congress | 60 | 1 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 96 | 0 |
| Begin | 68 | 1 | 1 | 25 | 0 | 95 | 1 |
| End | 72 | 22 | 96 | 0 | |||
| Final voting share | 75.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 22.9% | 0.0% | ||
| Beginning of next congress | 75 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 1 | 95 | 1 |
House
| Party (shading shows control) |
Total | Vacant | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic (D) |
Farmer– Labor (FL) | Wisconsin Progressive (P) | Republican (R) | Other | |||
| End of previous congress | 309 | 5 | 0 | 113 | 0 | 427 | 8 |
| Begin | 322 | 3 | 7 | 102 | 0 | 434 | 1 |
| End | 308 | 100 | 418 | 17 | |||
| Final voting share | 73.7% | 0.7% | 1.7% | 23.9% | 0.0% | ||
| Beginning of next congress | 333 | 5 | 7 | 89 | 1 | 435 | 0 |
Leaders
Section contents: Senate: Majority (D), Minority (R) • House: Majority (D), Minority (R)
Senate
Majority (Democratic) leadership
Minority (Republican) leadership
House of Representatives
- Speaker: Jo Byrns (D), died June 4, 1936
- William B. Bankhead (D), elected June 4, 1936
Majority (Democratic) leadership
Minority (Republican) leadership
Members
Senate
Senators are popularly elected statewide 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 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, facing re-election in 1936; Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1938; and Class 1 meant their term began in this Congress, facing re-election in 1940.
Percentage of members from each party by state at the opening of the 74th Congress, ranging from dark blue (most Democratic) to dark red (most Republican).
House of Representatives
The names of members are preceded by their district numbers.
Changes of membership
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of this Congress.
Senate
| State (class) |
Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's formal installation[lower-alpha 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Virginia (1) |
Vacant | Senator-elect Holt qualified late due to age having not yet been constitutionally old enough to serve. Holt was seated when he turned 30 | Rush D. Holt Sr. (D) | June 21, 1935 |
| New Mexico (1) |
Bronson M. Cutting (R) | Died May 6, 1935. Successor was appointed to serve until the next election, and was subsequently elected. |
Dennis Chavez (D) | May 11, 1935 |
| Louisiana (2) |
Huey Long (D) | Died September 10, 1935. Successor was appointed to serve until a special election, and was subsequently elected. |
Rose McConnell Long (D) | January 31, 1936 |
| Minnesota (2) |
Thomas D. Schall (R) | Died December 22, 1935. Successor was appointed to serve until a special election. |
Elmer Austin Benson (FL) | December 27, 1935 |
| Florida (1) |
Park Trammell (D) | Died May 8, 1936. Successor was appointed to serve until a special election. |
Scott Loftin (D) | May 26, 1936 |
| Florida (3) |
Duncan U. Fletcher (D) | Died June 17, 1936. Successor was appointed to serve until a special election. |
William Luther Hill (D) | July 1, 1936 |
| Iowa (3) |
Richard L. Murphy (D) | Died July 16, 1936. Successor was elected to finish the term. |
Guy Gillette (D) | November 4, 1936 |
| Michigan (2) |
James J. Couzens (R) | Died October 22, 1936. Successor was appointed to finish the remaining term having already been elected to the next term. |
Prentiss M. Brown (D) | November 19, 1936 |
| Minnesota (2) |
Elmer Austin Benson (FL) | Successor was elected November 3, 1936. | Guy V. Howard (R) | November 4, 1936 |
| Florida (1) |
Scott Loftin (D) | Successor was elected November 3, 1936. | Charles O. Andrews (D) | November 4, 1936 |
| Florida (3) |
William Luther Hill (D) | Successor was elected November 3, 1936. | Claude Pepper (D) | November 4, 1936 |
| South Dakota (3) |
Peter Norbeck (R) | Died December 20, 1936. Successor was appointed to serve until the next election. |
Herbert E. Hitchcock (D) | December 29, 1936 |
House of Representatives
| District | Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's formal installation[lower-alpha 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana 2nd | Vacant | Rep.-elect Frederick Landis died before being sworn in | Charles A. Halleck (R) | January 29, 1935 |
| Rhode Island 1st | Francis Condon (D) | Resigned January 10, 1935, after being appointed associate justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court | Charles Risk (R) | August 6, 1935 |
| New York 22nd | Anthony J. Griffin (D) | Died January 13, 1935 | Edward W. Curley (D) | November 5, 1935 |
| Alabama 1st | John McDuffie (D) | Resigned March 2, 1935, after being appointed judge in US district court | Frank W. Boykin (D) | July 30, 1935 |
| Illinois at-large | Michael L. Igoe (D) | Resigned June 2, 1935, after being appointed a US attorney for the Northern District of Illinois | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Kentucky 4th | Cap R. Carden (D) | Died June 13, 1935 | Edward W. Creal (D) | November 5, 1935 |
| Ohio at-large | Charles V. Truax (D) | Died August 9, 1935 | Daniel S. Earhart (D) | November 3, 1936 |
| Illinois 23rd | William W. Arnold (D) | Resigned September 16, 1935, after being appointed a member of the US Board of Tax Appeals | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| New York 2nd | William F. Brunner (D) | Resigned September 27, 1935, after being elected Sheriff of Queens County, New York | William B. Barry (D) | November 5, 1935 |
| Michigan 3rd | Henry M. Kimball (R) | Died October 19, 1935 | Verner Main (R) | December 17, 1935 |
| Washington 6th | Wesley Lloyd (D) | Died January 10, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Philippines Resident Commissioner | Francisco A. Delgado (NAC) | Resigned February 14, 1936, after a successor qualified in accordance to a new form of government | Quintin Paredes (NAC) | February 14, 1936 |
| Philippines Resident Commissioner | Pedro Guevara (NAC) | Resigned February 14, 1936, after the 2nd seat was abolished | None | |
| New York 9th | Stephen A. Rudd (D) | Died March 31, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Ohio 11th | Mell G. Underwood (D) | Resigned April 10, 1936, after being appointed to the US District Court for the Southern District of Ohio | Peter F. Hammond (D) | November 3, 1936 |
| Illinois 12th | John T. Buckbee (R) | Died April 23, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| New York 29th | William D. Thomas (R) | Died May 17, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| New Jersey 7th | Randolph Perkins (R) | Died May 25, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Massachusetts 6th | A. Piatt Andrew (R) | Died June 3, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Tennessee 5th | Jo Byrns (D) | Died June 4, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Washington 5th | Samuel B. Hill (D) | Resigned June 25, 1936, after being appointed a member of the US Board of Tax Appeals | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Iowa 2nd | Bernhard M. Jacobsen (D) | Died June 30, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Ohio 9th | Warren J. Duffey (D) | Died July 7, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| South Carolina 4th | John J. McSwain (D) | Died August 6, 1936 | Gabriel H. Mahon Jr. (D) | November 3, 1936 |
| Washington 1st | Marion Zioncheck (D) | Died August 7, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Kentucky 1st | William V. Gregory (D) | Died October 10, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Iowa 9th | Guy Gillette (D) | Resigned November 3, 1936, after being elected to the U.S. Senate | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Michigan 11th | Prentiss M. Brown (D) | Resigned November 18, 1936, after being appointed to the U.S. Senate having already been elected. | Vacant until the next Congress | |
| Kentucky 2nd | Glover H. Cary (D) | Died December 5, 1936 | Vacant until the next Congress | |
Committees
Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.
Joint committees
- Conditions of Indian Tribes (Special)
- Disposition of (Useless) Executive Papers
- The Library (Chairman: Sen. Alben W. Barkley; Vice Chairman: Rep. )
- Printing (Chairman: Sen. Duncan U. Fletcher; Vice Chairman: Rep. J. Walter Lambeth)
- Taxation (Chairman: Rep. Robert L. Doughton; Vice Chairman: Sen. Pat Harrison)
Caucuses
- Democratic (House)
- Democratic (Senate)
Employees
Legislative branch agency directors
- Architect of the Capitol: David Lynn
- Attending Physician of the United States Congress: George Calver
- Comptroller General of the United States: John R. McCarl, until June 30, 1936
- vacant thereafter
- Librarian of Congress: Herbert Putnam
- Public Printer of the United States: Augustus E. Giegengack
Senate
- Secretary: Edwin A. Halsey
- Librarian: Ruskin McArdle
- Chaplain: ZeBarney Thorne Phillips (Episcopalian)
- Parliamentarian:[4] Charles Watkins, from 1935
- Sergeant at Arms: Chesley W. Jurney
- Democratic Party Secretary: Leslie Biffle
- Republican Party Secretary: Carl A. Loeffler
House of Representatives
- Clerk: South Trimble
- Doorkeeper: Joseph J. Sinnott
- Postmaster: Finis E. Scott
- Parliamentarian: Lewis Deschler
- Reading Clerks: Patrick Joseph Haltigan (D) (until 1936) and Alney E. Chaffee (R)
- Sergeant at Arms: Kenneth Romney
- Chaplain: James Shera Montgomery - Methodist
See also
- 1934 United States elections (elections leading to this Congress)
- 1936 United States elections (elections during this Congress, leading to the next Congress)
Notes
- When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.
References
- Herring, E. Pendleton (1935). "First Session of the Seventy-fourth Congress, January 3, 1935, to August 26, 1935". American Political Science Review. 29 (6): 985–1005. doi:10.2307/1947314. ISSN 0003-0554. JSTOR 1947314. S2CID 147264484.
- Altman, O. R. (1936). "Second Session of the Seventy-fourth Congress, January 3, 1936, to June 20, 1936". American Political Science Review. 30 (6): 1086–1107. doi:10.2307/1948290. ISSN 0003-0554. JSTOR 1948290. S2CID 145809315.
- "Huey Long Filibusters". senate.gov.
- "First Official Parliamentarian". senate.gov.
- "Social Security History".
- Bradley, Phillips (1935). "Current Neutrality Problems—Some Precedents, an Appraisal, and a Draft Statute". American Political Science Review. 29 (6): 1022–1041. doi:10.2307/1947317. ISSN 0003-0554. JSTOR 1947317. S2CID 146983611.
- The Vice President of the United States serves as the President of the Senate. See U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 3, Clause 4
- No Republican whips were appointed from 1935 to 1944 since only 17 Republicans were in the Senate following the landslide reelection of President Franklin Roosevelt in 1936. Accordingly, the minutes of the Republican Conference for the period state: "On motion of Senator Hastings, duly seconded and carried, it was agreed that no Assistant Leader or Whip be elected but that the chairman be authorized to appoint Senators from time to time to assist him in taking charge of the interests of the minority." A note attached to the conference minutes added: "The chairman of the conference, Senator McNary, apparently appointed Senator Austin of Vermont as assistant leader in 1943 and 1944, until the conference adopted Rules of Organization." Source: Party Whips Archived 2010-03-09 at the Wayback Machine, via Senate.gov
- Party divisions, via senate.gov
- House of Representatives Session Calendar for the 74th Congress (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
- Official Congressional Directory for the 74th Congress, 1st Session. 1935.
- Official Congressional Directory for the 74th Congress, 1st Session (Revision). 1935.
- Official Congressional Directory for the 74th Congress, 2nd Session. 1936.
- Official Congressional Directory for the 74th Congress, 2nd Session (Revision). 1936.
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