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People Who Served in Congress
Sketches of famous and not-so-famous Senators and Representatives
Habersham, John (1754-1799), (brother of Joseph Habersham and uncle of Richard Wylly Habersham), a Delegate from Georgia; born at “Beverly,” near Savannah, Ga., December 23, 1754; completed preparatory studies and later attended Princeton College; engaged in mercantile pursuits; served in the Revolutionary War as first lieutenant and brigade major of the First Georgia Continental Regiment; twice a prisoner of war; Member of the Continental Congress in 1785; appointed Indian agent by General Washington; appointed commissioner to the Beaufort convention to adjust the Georgia-South Carolina boundary; member of the first board of trustees to establish the University of Georgia; secretary of the Georgia branch of the Society of the Cincinnati upon its organization; collector of customs at Savannah from 1789 until his death near Savannah, Ga., December 17, 1799; interment in Colonial Park Cemetery.
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Sources:
Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress: http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=H000001
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African-Americans in Congress:
Image courtesy of Library of Congress |
Langston, John Mercer (1829-1897), a Representative from Virginia; born in Louisa, Louisa County, Va., December 14, 1829; attended the common schools in Ohio; was graduated from the literary department of Oberlin College in 1849 and from the theological department in 1852; studied law in Elyria, Ohio; was admitted to the bar in 1854 and commenced practice in Oberlin, Ohio; took an active part in recruiting black troops during the Civil War, especially for the Fifty-fourth and Fifty-fifth Massachusetts and Fifth Ohio Regiments; member of the council of Oberlin 1865-1867; member of the city board of education in 1867 and 1868; appointed inspector general of the Bureau of Freedmen, Refugees, and Abandoned Lands in 1868; moved to Washington, D.C., and practiced law; dean of the law department of Howard University 1869-1876; appointed and commissioned by President Grant a member of the Board of Health of the District of Columbia in 1871; appointed by President Hayes Minister Resident and consul general to Haiti and Chargé d’Affaires to Santo Domingo; elected vice president and acting president of Howard University in 1872; delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1876; returned to Virginia, having been elected president of the Virginia Normal and Collegiate Institute, Petersburg, Va., in 1885; delegate to the Republican State convention in 1890; successfully contested as a Republican the election of Edward C. Venable to the Fifty-first Congress and served from September 23, 1890, to March 3, 1891; unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1890 to the Fifty-second Congress; died in Washington, D.C., on November 15, 1897; interment in Woodlawn Cemetery.
Sources:
Black Americans in Congress: http://baic.house.gov/member-profiles/profile.html?intID=18
Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=L000074 |
Women in Congress:
Image courtesy of the Library of Congress |
Long, Rose McConnell (1892-1970), wife of Huey Pierce Long, mother of Russell B. Long, sister-in-law of George S. Long, and cousin of Gillis W. Long; a Senator from Louisiana; born in Greensburg, Decatur County, Ind., April 8, 1892; moved with her parents to Shreveport, La., in 1901; attended the public schools of Shreveport; appointed on January 31, 1936, and subsequently elected on April 21, 1936, in a special election as a Democrat to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of her husband, Huey P. Long, and served from January 31, 1936, to January 2, 1937; was not a candidate for reelection in 1936 for the full term; retired from public life to Shreveport, La.; died in Boulder, Colo., May 27, 1970; interment in Forrest Park Cemetery, Shreveport, La.
Sources:
Women in Congress: http://womenincongress.house.gov/member-profiles/profile.html?intID=143
Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress: http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=L000427 |
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Congress
Definied
Words and phrases that describe congressional processes
Earmark. To set aside funds for a specific purpose, use, or recipient. Virtually every appropriation is earmarked, but the term is often applied to funds set aside for such purposes as research projects, demonstration projects, parks, laboratories, academic grants, and contracts in particular congressional districts or states or for certain specified organizations.
Source: Congressional Quarterly’s American Congressional Dictionary, 3rd edition (2001):87-88. |
