The First Federal Congress
The Congress of the United States established by the new Constitution met for the first time at New York City’s Federal Hall on March 4, 1789.
"Federal Hall, The Seat of Congress," showing the inauguration of President George Washington, April 30, 1789
By Amos Doolittle, 1790
Courtesy of the Winterthur Museum
Not to be used without permission
On April 30th 1789, George Washington came to Federal Hall in New York City to be inaugurated by Congress as the first President of the United States. The ceremony was held outside so the large crowd attending could witness the event.
"An Act for establishing the SALARIES of the EXECUTIVE OFFICERS of Government with their Assistants and Clerks," August 31, 1789
National Archives and Records Administration, Records of the U.S. Senate
The Constitution briefly described the establishment of the executive and judicial branches, but the responsibility for organizing and funding the two branches of Government was left to Congress. This bill established the salaries of the first executive office holders. Separate legislation set the annual salary of the President of the United States at $25,000.
"The Petition of Tradesmen, Manufacturers, and others of Baltimore," April 11, 1789
National Archives and Records Administration, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives
Shortly after Congress convened, constituents began sending it petitions. For the next several decades, matters largely came before Congress through the presentation of a petition followed by the establishment of a select committee to address the issue. This 1789 petition from citizens of Baltimore asking for duties on certain imported goods is one of the earliest.
First Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, entry for April 6, 1789
National Archives and Records Administration, Records of the U.S. Senate
March 4, 1789, was the opening date for the new Congress. Unfortunately, when the representatives and senators gathered that day, there were not enough members of either body to constitute a quorum. The House began its business on April 1 and the Senate on April 6. After electing its temporary President, the Senate fulfilled its constitutional duty, counting the electoral ballots for President and Vice President of the United States. This page shows the results of that election: George Washington of Virginia was elected President and John Adams of Massachusetts, who finished second in the balloting, was elected Vice President.
Amendment to the Bill, "An Act to establish the Seat of Government …" on the "banks of the Susquehannah in the State of Pennsylvania," September 26, 1789
National Archives and Records Administration, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives
The choice of a location for the capital of the new republic was hotly contested. The First Congress considered sites in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. In September 1789 the House passed a bill locating the capital on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania. The specific site was not mentioned but most people assumed it would be Wright’s Ferry, recently renamed Columbia in hopes of attracting Congress. In the Senate, Robert Morris of Philadelphia successfully amended the bill, changing the location to the northern suburbs of Philadelphia. The House almost agreed, but just before Congress adjourned, Representative James Madison of Virginia secured a postponement of the matter. In the 1790 session, he and other supporters of a site on the Potomac River prevailed.
“Scarcely a day passes without some striking evidence of the delays and perplexities springing merely from the want of precedents.”
Representative James Madison to Edmund Randolph, May 31, 1789
The Congress of the United States established by the new Constitution met for the first time at New York City’s Federal Hall on March 4, 1789. It is arguably the most important Congress in U.S. history. To this new legislature fell the responsibility of passing all the legislation needed to implement the new system, solving the difficult political questions left by the Constitutional Convention, setting up the rules and procedures of the House and Senate, and establishing the roles of its officers such as Speaker of the House and President of the Senate.
Most actions of the First Congress broke new ground. The first law passed set oaths of office not only for Congress but for state legislators, Federal executive officers, and state and Federal judges. Other early legislation raised revenues by setting duties on imported goods; established the Departments of State, War, and Treasury (and a temporary post office department); created a Federal judiciary; set compensation for government officials; provided for lighthouses; authorized expenses for negotiating with Indian tribes; and reenacted the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. At the end of the first session, an attempt to locate a capital-or seat of government-failed.
Serving in Congress in the 18th century was a distinct honor, but also a hardship. Traveling between home states and New York City or Philadelphia, where Congress met between 1785 and 1800, could be arduous. Living in these cities, while stimulating, was expensive and congressmen received pay of only $6 a day. It also meant several months of each year living away from livelihood and usually from family. During the 1790s, one-third of the members of the Senate resigned while in office.