{{Short description|New York state legislative session}} {{Use American English|date=February 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Infobox New York Legislature |number = 101st |image = Old State Capitol at Albany NY.jpg |imagename = The Old State Capitol |imagedate = 1879 |start = January 1 |end = December 31, 1878 |vp = Lt. Gov. William Dorsheimer (D) |pro tem = William H. Robertson (R) |speaker = James W. Husted (R) |senators = 32 |reps = 128 |s-majority = Republican (19-13) |h-majority = Republican (65-57-6) |sessionnumber1 = 1st |sessionstart1 = January 1 |sessionend1 = May 15, 1878 |previous = 100th |next = 102nd }}
The '''101st New York State Legislature''', consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 1 to May 15, 1878, during the second year of Lucius Robinson's governorship, in Albany.
==Background== Under the provisions of the New York Constitution of 1846, 32 Senators and 128 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts; senators for a two-year term, assemblymen for a one-year term. The senatorial districts were made up of entire counties, except New York County (five districts) and Kings County (two districts). The Assembly districts were made up of entire towns, or city wards,<ref>Except New York City where the wards were apportioned into election districts, and then some whole wards and some election districts of other wards were gerrymandered together into Assembly districts.</ref> forming a contiguous area, all within the same county.
At this time there were two major political parties: the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The Prohibition Party and the Greenback Party also nominated tickets. The growing agitation in favor of bettering the conditions of the working class led to the first nomination of labor tickets, by the "Working Men Party", the "Social Democratic Party" and the "Bread-Winners League".
==Elections== The 1877 New York state election was held on November 6. All five statewide elective offices up for election were carried by the Democrats. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Secretary of State, was: Democratic 383,000; Republican 372,000; Working Men 20,000; Prohibition 7,000; Social Democratic 1,800; and Greenback 800.
==Sessions== The Legislature met for the regular session at the Old State Capitol in Albany on January 1, 1878; and adjourned on May 15.
James W. Husted (R) was again elected Speaker with 64 votes against 55 for Erastus Brooks (D).
==State Senate== ===Districts=== {{colbegin}} * 1st District: Queens, Richmond and Suffolk counties * 2nd District: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 11th, 13th, 15th, 19th and 20th wards of the City of Brooklyn * 3rd District: 6th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 12th, 14th, 16th, 17th and 18th wards of the City of Brooklyn; and all towns in Kings County * 4th District: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 13th and 14th wards of New York City * 5th District: 8th, 9th, 15th and 16th wards of New York City * 6th District: 10th, 11th and 17th wards of New York City * 7th District: 18th, 20th and 21st wards of New York City * 8th District: 12th, 19th and 22nd wards of New York City * 9th District: Putnam, Rockland and Westchester counties * 10th District: Orange and Sullivan counties * 11th District: Columbia and Dutchess counties * 12th District: Rensselaer and Washington counties * 13th District: Albany County * 14th District: Greene and Ulster counties * 15th District: Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, Saratoga and Schenectady counties * 16th District: Clinton, Essex and Warren counties * 17th District: Franklin and St. Lawrence counties * 18th District: Jefferson and Lewis counties * 19th District: Oneida County * 20th District: Herkimer and Otsego counties * 21st District: Madison and Oswego counties * 22nd District: Onondaga and Cortland counties * 23rd District: Chenango, Delaware and Schoharie counties * 24th District: Broome, Tompkins and Tioga counties * 25th District: Cayuga and Wayne counties * 26th District: Ontario, Seneca and Yates counties * 27th District: Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben counties * 28th District: Monroe County * 29th District: Genesee, Niagara and Orleans counties * 30th District: Allegany, Livingston and Wyoming counties * 31st District: Erie County * 32nd District: Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties {{colend}}
<small>'''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.</small>
===Senators=== The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Thomas C. E. Ecclesine changed from the Assembly to the Senate.
'''Note:''' For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."
{| class=wikitable ! District ! Senator ! Party ! Notes |- |1st |James M. Oakley |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |James F. Pierce |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |3rd |John C. Jacobs* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |4th |Edward Hogan |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |5th |Alfred Wagstaff Jr.* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |re-elected |- |6th |Louis S. Goebel |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Claims, and of Public Expenditures |- |7th |John Morrissey* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Anti-Tam. Dem. |died on May 1, 1878 |- |8th |Thomas C. E. Ecclesine* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |9th |William H. Robertson* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |re-elected President pro tempore; Chairman of Judiciary |- |10th |Daniel B. St. John* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |11th |Stephen H. Wendover |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Banks |- |12th |Charles Hughes |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |13th |Hamilton Harris* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Finance; of Public Buildings, and of Apportionment |- |14th |Addison P. Jones |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |15th |Webster Wagner* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Railroads |- |16th |William W. Rockwell |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Insurance, and of Erection and Division of Towns and Counties |- |17th |Dolphus S. Lynde |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Manufactures, of Agriculture, and of Salt |- |18th |Henry E. Turner |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Privileges and Elections, and of Militia |- |19th |Alexander T. Goodwin |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |20th |Samuel S. Edick |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Villages, and of Joint Library |- |21st |John W. Lippitt |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Roads and Bridges |- |22nd |Dennis McCarthy* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Canals |- |23rd |Nathaniel C. Marvin |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Miscellaneous Corporations, and of Poor Laws |- |24th |Peter W. Hopkins |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Internal Affairs of Towns and Counties, and of Retrenchment |- |25th |Theodore M. Pomeroy |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Cities, and of Rules |- |26th |Edwin Hicks |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Literature |- |27th |Ira Davenport |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Commerce and Navigation |- |28th |George Raines |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |29th |Lewis S. Payne |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |30th |James H. Loomis |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Printing, of Indian Affairs, and of Grievances |- |31st |Ray V. Pierce |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |Chairman of Public Health; <br>on November 5, 1878, elected to the 46th U.S. Congress |- |32nd |Loren B. Sessions |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |also Supervisor of the Town of Harmony; <br>Chairman of State Prisons, and of Engrossed Bills |- |}
===Employees=== * Clerk: John W. Vrooman * Sergeant-at-Arms: Weidman Dominick * Doorkeeper: James G. Caw * Stenographer: Hudson C. Tanner
==State Assembly== ===Assemblymen=== The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued as members of this Legislature.
{| class=wikitable ! colspan="2" | District ! Assemblymen ! Party ! Notes |- |rowspan="4" | Albany |1st |Hiram Griggs |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |John N. Foster |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |3rd |James T. Story |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |4th |Edward Curran |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Allegany |Hiram H. Wakely |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Broome |Alexander E. Andrews |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Cattaraugus |1st |Thomas J. King* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Simeon V. Pool |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Cayuga |1st |Howell B. Converse |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |William Leslie Noyes |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Chautauqua |1st |Sherman Williams* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Temple A. Parker |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Chemung |George M. Baird |{{Party shading/Greenback}} | Greenback<ref>[https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1877/10/22/80666241.pdf ''STATE POLITICAL NOTES; ...A Greenback, Labor, and Reform convention...nominated...George M. Baird for the Assembly''] in ''The New York Times'' on October 22, 1877</ref> |voted for Elias Mapes as Speaker |- |colspan="2" | Chenango |B. Gage Berry |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Clinton |William P. Mooers |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Columbia |1st |Jacob H. Proper* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |Samuel Wilbor |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Cortland |Orris U. Kellogg |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="2" | Delaware |1st |Albert H. Sewell |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Robert P. Cormack |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="2" | Dutchess |1st |Obed Wheeler |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Peter Hulme |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="5" | Erie |1st |John L. Crowley* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |John G. Langner* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |3rd |David F. Day |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |4th |Harvey J. Hurd |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |5th |Henry F. Allen |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Essex |Benjamin D. Clapp* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Franklin |John I. Gilbert* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Fulton and Hamilton |John W. Peek |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Genesee |Eli Taylor* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Greene |Cicero C. Peck |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Herkimer |Titus Sheard |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Jefferson |1st |Charles R. Skinner* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |William M. Thomson |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="9" | Kings |1st |John M. Clancy |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |contested by Daniel Bradley (Ind. D) |- |2nd |John B. Meyenborg |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |3rd |John Shanley* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |4th |Charles J. Henry |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |5th |William H. Waring |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |6th |Jacob Worth |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |7th |Maurice B. Flynn |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |8th |John H. Douglass |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |9th |John H. Bergen |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Lewis |Cyrus L. Sheldon |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Livingston |James W. Wadsworth |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Madison |1st |Lambert B. Kern |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Willard A. Crandall |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="3" | Monroe |1st |Albert C. Hobbie |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Elias Mapes |{{Party shading/Greenback}} | Working Men<ref>Mapes's party affiliation is stated in several different ways. In one place it says "United Working Men Party", see [https://archive.org/stream/eveningjournalal1878slsn#page/121/mode/1up ''The Albany Evening Journal Almanac''] (1878; pg. 121); in another place it says "Greenback and Labor Reform", see [https://books.google.com/books?id=tMgJAAAAMAAJ&q=mapes ''Albany Evening Journal Almanac''] (1879; pg. 132)</ref> |voted for George M. Baird as Speaker |- |3rd |James Chappell |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Montgomery |Edward Wemple* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="22" | New York |1st |John F. Berrigan* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |contested by John or Thomas Foley (Anti-Tam. D) |- |2nd |Thomas F. Grady* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |3rd |James Hayes |{{Party shading/Independent}} | Ind. Dem. |voted for James Daly as Speaker |- |4th |John Galvin* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |5th |Peter A. Crawford |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |6th |Jacob Seebacher |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |7th |Isaac Israel Hayes* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |8th |Daniel Patterson |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |9th |John W. Browning |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |10th |Joseph P. Strack |{{Party shading/Independent}} | Ind. Dem. |voted for James Daly as Speaker |- |11th |William W. Astor |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |12th |Maurice F. Holahan* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="2" | 13th |John Clark |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |contested; seat vacated on April 2 |- |Charles H. Duell |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |seated on April 2<ref>[https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1878/04/03/81724075.pdf ''THE STATE LEGISLATURE; THE CLARK-DUELL CONTESTED CASE''] in NYT on April 3, 1878</ref> |- |14th |James Daly |{{Party shading/Independent}} | Ind. Dem. |voted for Samuel D. Halliday as Speaker |- |15th |Christopher Bathe |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |16th |James Fitzgerald |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |17th |James T. Taylor |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |voted for Sherburne B. Piper as Speaker |- |18th |Joseph P. McDonough |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |19th |David L. Baker |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |20th |Marks L. Frank |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |21st |Alexander Thain |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="2" | Niagara |1st |Joseph D. Loveland |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |Sherburne B. Piper* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="4" | Oneida |1st |William Jones |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |A. DeVerney Townsley |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |3rd |Cyrus D. Prescott |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |on November 5, 1878, elected to the 46th U.S. Congress |- |4th |Robert H. Roberts |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="3" | Onondaga |1st |Thomas G. Alvord* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Samuel Willis |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |3rd |Josiah G. Holbrook |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Ontario |1st |David Cosad Jr. |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |Amasa T. Winch* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Orange |1st |James G. Graham* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |James W. Hoyt |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Orleans |Charles H. Mattison |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="3" | Oswego |1st |Charles North |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |George M. Case* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |3rd |DeWitt C. Peck* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Otsego |1st |Azro Chase |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |Daniel F. Pattengill |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Putnam |Hamilton Fish II* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Queens |1st |Elbert Floyd-Jones* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |John Keegan |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |previously a member from New York County |- |rowspan="3" | Rensselaer |1st |John H. Burns* |{{Party shading/Independent}} | Dem./Work. Men |did not vote for Speaker |- |2nd |Solomon V. R. Miller |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |3rd |William H. Sliter* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Richmond |Erastus Brooks |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |voted for Sherburne B. Piper as Speaker |- |colspan="2" | Rockland |James M. Nelson |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="3" | St. Lawrence |1st |George F. Rowland |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |A. Barton Hepburn* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |3rd |Rufus S. Palmer |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Saratoga |1st |George W. Neilson* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |Daniel H. Deyoe |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Schenectady |Arthur D. Mead |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Schoharie |Charles Bouck |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Schuyler |Abram V. Mekeel |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Seneca |Diedrich Willers Jr. |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="2" | Steuben |1st |Azariah C. Brundage |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |George R. Sutherland |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Suffolk |Charles S. Havens |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Sullivan |Thornton A. Niven* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Tioga |John Theodore Sawyer |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Tompkins |Samuel D. Halliday |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |rowspan="3" | Ulster |1st |Seaman G. Searing |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |2nd |Nathan Keator* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |3rd |Isaac Hamilton |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |colspan="2" | Warren |Alson B. Abbott |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Washington |1st |Abram Reynolds |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |George L. Terry |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="2" | Wayne |1st |Jackson Valentine* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |2nd |James H. Miller |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |rowspan="3" | Westchester |1st |Ambrose H. Purdy* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat |contested by Fordham Morris |- |2nd |William F. Moller* |{{Party shading/Democratic}} | Democrat | |- |3rd |James W. Husted* |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican |elected Speaker |- |colspan="2" | Wyoming |John E. Lowing |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |colspan="2" | Yates |Joel M. Clark |{{Party shading/Republican}} | Republican | |- |}
===Employees=== * Clerk: Edward M. Johnson * Sergeant-at-Arms: Charles A. Orr * Doorkeeper: Henry Wheeler * First Assistant Doorkeeper: Sandford Reynolds * Second Assistant Doorkeeper: Michael Maher * Stenographer: Worden E. Payne
==Notes== <references/>
==Sources== * [https://archive.org/stream/civillistandcon00unkngoog#page/n335/mode/1up ''Civil List and Constitutional History of the Colony and State of New York''] compiled by Edgar Albert Werner (1884; see pg. 276 for Senate districts; pg. 291 for senators; pg. 298–304 for Assembly districts; and pg. 377f for assemblymen) * [https://archive.org/stream/eveningjournalal1878slsn#page/117/mode/1up ''The Albany Evening Journal Almanac''] (1878; see pg. 64–68 for election results; pg. 111–116 for senators' bios; pg. 116–131 for assemblymen's bios; pg. 131f for Senate and Assembly committees) * [https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1877/10/29/80667166.pdf ''THE ASSEMBLY''] in NYT on October 29, 1877 (gives nominations by all parties) * [http://news2.nnyln.net/plattsburgh-sentinel/1877/plattsburgh-sentinel-1877-october-december%20-%200022.pdf ''The Legislature; Senators Probably Elected'']{{Dead link|date=November 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} in the ''Plattsburgh Sentinel'' on November 9, 1877 * [https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1878/01/01/80371708.pdf ''THE STATE LEGISLATURE; MR. SPEAKER HUSTED''] in NYT on January 1, 1878 * [https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1878/01/02/80371957.pdf ''THE STATE LEGISLATURE; ORGANIZATION OF BOTH HOUSES''] in NYT on January 2, 1878
{{NYLegislatures}}
101 Category:1878 in New York (state) Category:1878 U.S. legislative sessions