The 28th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from November 6, 1804, to April 10, 1805, during the first year of Morgan Lewis's

governorship A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, in Albany.

Background

Under the provisions of the

New York Constitution The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constitut ...

of 1777, amended by the Constitutional Convention of 1801, 32 Senators were elected on general tickets in the four 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 1797, Albany was declared the State capital, and all subsequent Legislatures have been meeting there ever since. In 1799, the Legislature enacted that future Legislatures meet on the last Tuesday of January of each year unless called earlier by the governor. In 1804, Seneca County was split from Cayuga County, and was apportioned one seat in the Assembly, taken from Cayuga. U.S. Senator John Armstrong resigned on June 30, 1804, after his appointment as U.S. Minister to France. At this time the politicians were divided into two opposing political parties: the

Federalists The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of de ...

and the Democratic-Republicans. The Democratic-Republican Party was split into two opposing factions: the "Regulars" who supported Morgan Lewis, and the "Burrites" who supported Vice President Aaron Burr. Lewis, the Chief Justice of the New York Supreme Court, had been nominated for Governor by his party, but Burr, after being dropped from the presidential ticket in favor of Gov. George Clinton, ran against Lewis. Burr also received the support of the majority of the Federalists although his enemy Alexander Hamilton, the leader of the Federalists, advocated against it and supported Lewis.

Elections

The State election was held from April 24 to 26, 1804. Morgan Lewis was elected Governor of New York, and State Senator John Broome was elected Lieutenant Governor of New York. Senators

William Denning William Denning (April 1740October 30, 1819) was a merchant and United States Representative from New York. Early life Denning was likely born in St. John's in the Newfoundland Colony in April 1740. As a youth, he moved to New York City in ...

and Ebenezer Purdy (both Southern D.) were re-elected. Samuel Brewster, Stephen Hogeboom (both Middle D.) and Henry Huntington (Western D.); and Assemblymen Thomas Thomas (Southern D.), Stephen Thorn (Eastern D.) and

Jedediah Peck Jedediah Peck (January 28, 1748 – August 15, 1821) was an American farmer, surveyor, Revolutionary War soldier, and New York State legislator described as a father of the common school system of the State of New York. He was a man of limi ...

(Western D.) were also elected to Senate. All eight were "regular" Democratic-Republicans.

Sessions

The Legislature met at the Old City Hall in Albany on November 6, 1804, to elect

presidential elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia app ...

s; and adjourned on November 12. Dem.-Rep.

Alexander Sheldon Alexander Sheldon (October 23, 1766 in Suffield, Hartford County, Connecticut – September 10, 1836 in Montgomery County, New York) was an American physician and politician. Life He was the son of Phineas Sheldon (1717–1807) and Ruth Harmon ...

was re-elected

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

. On November 9, 1804, the Legislature elected 19 presidential electors, all Democratic-Republicans:

William Floyd William Floyd (December 17, 1734 – August 4, 1821) was an American Founding Father, wealthy farmer, and political leader from New York. Floyd served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and was a signer of the Continental Association and ...

, Sylvester Dering, James Fairlie, Cornelius Bergen,

John Haring John Haring (September 28, 1739 – April 1, 1809) was an American lawyer from New York City. He was a delegate for New York to the Continental Congress. John was born to a large Dutch family at Tappan, New York which was then part of Orange ...

Ezra Thompson Ezra Thompson (1850–1923) was the 12th and 14th mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, who was elected three times and served two non-consecutive terms. He was mayor from 1900 to 1903 and 1906 to 1907. Early life Thompson was born on July 17, 185 ...

, Major John Wood, Conrad E. Elmendorf, Stephen Miller, Albert Pawling, Isaac Sargent,

Thomas Brooks Thomas, Thom, Tom, or Tommy Brooks may refer to: Politics and religion * Thomas Brooks (Puritan) (1608–1680), Puritan minister and author * Thomas Brooks, American minister after whom Brookfield, Connecticut, was named * Thomas Brooks, 1st Ba ...

, Matthias B. Hildreth, Jonas Earll, Sr.,

Joseph Ellicott Joseph Ellicott (November 1, 1760 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania – August 19, 1826 in New York City) was an American surveyor, city planner, land office agent, lawyer and politician of the Quaker faith. Life Ellicott was born in Bucks Co ...

, Henry Quackenbos, Adam Comstock, Abraham Bancker and ???. They cast their votes for

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

and George Clinton. On November 9, 1804, the Legislature elected Samuel L. Mitchill (Dem.-Rep.) to succeed John Armstrong in the U.S. Senate. The Legislature met for the regular session on January 23, 1805; and adjourned on April 10. During this session the Merchant's Bank of New York was chartered. The bank had been founded by Federalists in competition to the

Bank of the Manhattan Company The Manhattan Company was a New York bank and holding company established on September 1, 1799. The company merged with Chase National Bank in 1955 to form the Chase Manhattan Bank. It is the oldest of the predecessor institutions that eventually ...

which was run by Democratic-Republicans. The Democratic-Republican majority of the Assembly of 1804 had not only refused to grant a charter, but actually ordered the Merchant's Bank to shut down by May 1805. During this session, the bank bribed enough legislators to have the charter approved, although the Democratic-Republican leaders advocated strongly against it. Gov. Morgan Lewis, who had been Chief Justice and who was wealthy beyond corruptibility, spoke out in favor of granting the charter. This was resented by the party leaders DeWitt Clinton and

Ambrose Spencer Ambrose Spencer (December 13, 1765March 13, 1848) was an American lawyer and politician. Early life Ambrose Spencer was born on December 13, 1765 in Salisbury in the Connecticut Colony. He was the son of Philip Spencer and Mary ( née Moore) S ...

, and eventually led to a split of the party into "Lewisites" and "Clintonians".see Hammond, pg. 219f

State Senate

Districts

*The Southern District (6 seats) consisted of Kings, New York,

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, Richmond, Suffolk and Westchester counties. *The Middle District (8 seats) consisted of Dutchess,

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

, Columbia,

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, Rockland and

Greene Greene may refer to: Places United States *Greene, Indiana, an unincorporated community *Greene, Iowa, a city *Greene, Maine, a town ** Greene (CDP), Maine, in the town of Greene *Greene (town), New York ** Greene (village), New York, in the town ...

counties. *The Eastern District (9 seats) consisted of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, Clinton, Rensselaer, Albany, Saratoga,

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

and Montgomery counties. *The Western District (9 seats) consisted of Herkimer,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Otsego, Tioga, Onondaga, Schoharie, Steuben, Chenango, Oneida, Cayuga,

Genesee Genesee, derived from the Seneca word for "pleasant valley", may refer to: Geographic features Canada *Genesee, Alberta, an unincorporated community United States *Genesee, California *Genesee, Colorado *Genesee County, Michigan *Genesee Co ...

and

Seneca Seneca may refer to: People and language * Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America ** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people Places Extrat ...

counties. 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. Thomas Thomas, Stephen Thorn and Jedediah peck changed from the Assembly to the Senate.

Employees

*Clerk: Henry I. Bleecker

State Assembly

Districts

* Albany County (6 seats) *

Cayuga County Cayuga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 76,248. Its county seat and largest city is Auburn. The county was named for the Cayuga people, one of the Indian tribes in the Iroquois Confed ...

(2 seats) *

Chenango County Chenango County is a county located in the south-central section U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 47,220. Its county seat is Norwich. The county's name originates from an Oneida word meaning 'large bull-thist ...

(4 seats) *

Clinton County Clinton County may refer to: *Counties named for George Clinton, first and third Governor of New York, and later the fourth Vice President of the United States: **Clinton County, New York ** Clinton County, Ohio *Counties named for DeWitt Clinton, ...

(1 seat) * Columbia County (4 seats) * Delaware County (2 seats) * Dutchess County (7 seats) * Essex County (1 seat) *

and

counties (3 seats) * Greene County (2 seats) *

Herkimer County Herkimer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 60,139. Its county seat is Herkimer. The county was created in 1791 north of the Mohawk River out of part of Montgomery County. It is named af ...

(3 seats) * Kings County (1 seat) * Montgomery County (5 seats) *The City and County of New York (9 seats) * Oneida County (4 seats) *

Onondaga County Onondaga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 476,516. The county seat is Syracuse. Onondaga County is the core of the Syracuse, NY MSA. History The name ''Onondaga'' derives from ...

(2 seats) *

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

(4 seats) * Otsego County (4 seats) * Queens County (3 seats) *

Rensselaer County Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the ...

(5 seats) *

Richmond County Richmond County may refer to places: Australia *Richmond County, New South Wales, a cadastral division Canada *Richmond County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom *Richmondshire, the original Richmond County in Yorkshire, England United States ...

(1 seat) *

Rockland County Rockland County is the southernmost county on the west side of the Hudson River in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. It is about from the Bronx at their closest points. The county's population, as of t ...

(1 seat) *

Saratoga County Saratoga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, and is the fastest-growing county in Upstate New York. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was enumerated at 235,509, representing a 7.2% increase from the 2010 popul ...

(4 seats) *

Schoharie County Schoharie County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 29,714, making it the state's fifth-least populous county. The county ...

(2 seats) * Seneca County (1 seat) * Steuben County (1 seat) * Suffolk County (3 seats) * Tioga County (1 seat) *

Ulster County Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster. History ...

(4 seats) * Washington County (6 seats) *

Westchester County Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...

(4 seats) 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.

Employees

*Clerk:

Solomon Southwick Solomon Southwick (December 25, 1773 – November 18, 1839) was an American newspaper publisher and political figure who was a principal organizer of the Anti-Masonic Party. Born in Newport, Rhode Island, Southwick attended the University of Pe ...

*Sergeant-at-Arms: Benjamin Haight *Doorkeeper: Benjamin Whipple

Notes

Sources

''The New York Civil List''
compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858) ee pg. 108f for Senate districts; pg. 119 for senators; pg. 148f for Assembly districts; pg. 178 for assemblymen; pg. 320 and 324 for presidential electionbr>''The History of Political Parties in the State of New-York, from the Ratification of the Federal Constitution to 1840''
by Jabez D. Hammond (4th ed., Vol. 1, H. & E. Phinney, Cooperstown, 1846; pages 202-221)
Election result Assembly, Albany Co.
at project "A New Nation Votes", compiled by Phil Lampi, hosted by

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...