# 26th New York State Legislature

The 26th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 25 to April 6, 1803, during the 2nd year of George Clinton's second tenure as Governor of New York, in Albany.

## Background

Under the provisions of the New York Constitution 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.
At this time the politicians were divided into two opposing political parties: the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans.

## Elections

The State election was held from April 27 to 29, 1802. Senators John Schenck (Southern D.) and Solomon Sutherland (Middle D.) were re-elected. Joseph Annin, Matthias B. Tallmadge, George Tiffany (all three Western D.); and Assemblymen Abraham Adriance (Middle D.), Asa Danforth and Jacob Snell (both Western D.) were also elected to the Senate. All eight were Democratic-Republicans.

## Sessions

The Legislature met at the Old City Hall in Albany on January 25, 1803; and adjourned on April 6.
Dem.-Rep. Thomas Storm was re-elected Speaker. Solomon Southwick (Dem.-Rep.) was elected Clerk of the Assembly with 42 votes against 31 for the incumbent James Van Ingen (Fed.).
On February 1, 1803, the Legislature elected Theodorus Bailey (Dem.-Rep.) to the U.S. Senate, to succeed Gouverneur Morris (Fed.).
On February 8, 1803, the Legislature elected Abraham G. Lansing (Dem.-Rep.) State Treasurer, to succeed Robert McClellan (Fed.).

## State Senate
### Districts

* The Southern District (6 seats) consisted of Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond, Suffolk and Westchester counties.
* The Middle District (8 seats) consisted of Dutchess, Orange, Ulster, Columbia, Delaware, Rockland and Greene counties.
* The Eastern District (7 seats) consisted of Washington, Clinton, Rensselaer, Albany, Saratoga and Essex counties.
* The Western District (11 seats) consisted of Montgomery, Herkimer, Ontario, Otsego, Tioga, Onondaga, Schoharie, Steuben, Chenango, Oneida, Cayuga and Genesee counties.

### Members

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Abraham Adriance, Asa Danforth and Jacob Snell changed from the Assembly to the Senate.
| District | Senators | Term left | Party | Notes |
| Southern | Richard Hatfield* | 1 year | Federalist | |
| Southern | William Denning* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Southern | Benjamin Huntting* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Southern | Ebenezer Purdy* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment |
| Southern | Ezra L'Hommedieu* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Southern | John Schenck* | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Middle | John Hathorn* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Middle | John Suffern* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Middle | John C. Hogeboom* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment |
| Middle | James W. Wilkin* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Middle | Jacobus S. Bruyn* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Middle | Peter A. Van Bergen* | 3 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Middle | (Solomon Sutherland*) | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | died September 10, 1802, before the Legislature met |
| Middle | Abraham Adriance* | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Eastern | Zina Hitchcock* | 1 year | Federalist | |
| Eastern | Ebenezer Russell* | 1 year | Federalist | |
| Eastern | Edward Savage* | 1 year | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Eastern | James Gordon* | 2 years | Federalist | |
| Eastern | Jacobus Van Schoonhoven* | 3 years | Federalist | elected to the Council of Appointment |
| Eastern | Abraham Van Vechten* | 3 years | Federalist | also Recorder of the City of Albany |
| Eastern | (Christopher Hutton*) | 3 years | Dem.-Rep./Fed. | |
| Western | Vincent Mathews* | 1 year | Federalist | |
| Western | Moss Kent* | 1 year | Federalist | |
| Western | Robert Roseboom* | 2 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Western | Jedediah Sanger* | 2 years | Federalist | also First Judge of the Oneida County Court |
| Western | Lemuel Chipman* | 3 years | Federalist | |
| Western | Isaac Foote | 3 years | Federalist | |
| Western | Joseph Annin | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Western | Asa Danforth* | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Western | Jacob Snell* | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | elected to the Council of Appointment |
| Western | Matthias B. Tallmadge | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Western | George Tiffany | 4 years | Dem.-Rep. | |

### Employees

* Clerk: Henry I. Bleecker

## State Assembly
### Districts

* Albany County (6 seats)
* Cayuga County (3 seats)
* Chenango County (4 seats)
* Clinton County (1 seat)
* Columbia County (4 seats)
* Delaware County (2 seats)
* Dutchess County (7 seats)
* Essex County (1 seat)
* Genesee and Ontario counties (3 seats)
* Greene County (2 seats)
* Herkimer County (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 (2 seats)
* Orange County (4 seats)
* Otsego County (4 seats)
* Queens County (3 seats)
* Rensselaer County (5 seats)
* Richmond County (1 seat)
* Rockland County (1 seat)
* Saratoga County (4 seats)
* Schoharie County (2 seats)
* Steuben County (1 seat)
* Suffolk County (3 seats)
* Tioga County (1 seat)
* Ulster County (4 seats)
* Washington County (6 seats)
* Westchester County (4 seats)

### Assemblymen

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued as members of this Legislature. Stephen Lush changed from the Senate to the Assembly.
| District | Assemblymen | Party | Notes |
| Albany | Johann Jost Dietz* | Federalist | |
| Albany | John Frisby | | |
| Albany | Stephen Lush* | Federalist | |
| Albany | Maus Schermerhorn | | |
| Albany | Peter S. Schuyler* | Federalist | |
| Albany | Jacob Ten Eyck* | Federalist | |
| Cayuga | Salmon Buell* | | |
| Cayuga | Silas Halsey | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Cayuga | Thomas Hewitt | | |
| Chenango | James Green | | |
| Chenango | Stephen Hoxie | | |
| Chenango | Joel Thompson | Federalist | previously a member from Albany Co. |
| Chenango | Uri Tracy | Dem.-Rep. | also Chenango County Clerk |
| Clinton | Peter Sailly | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Columbia | Samuel Edmonds | Federalist | |
| Columbia | Aaron Kellogg | Federalist | |
| Columbia | Moncrief Livingston | Federalist | |
| Columbia | Peter Silvester | Federalist | |
| Delaware | John Lamb | | |
| Delaware | Elias Osborn | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | Joseph C. Field | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | John Jewett | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | John Martin | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | Thomas Mitchell | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | Philip Spencer Jr. | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | Theodorus R. Van Wyck | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Dutchess | James Winchell | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Essex | Thomas Stower | | |
| Genesee and Ontario | Thaddeus Chapin | | |
| Genesee and Ontario | Augustus Porter | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Genesee and Ontario | Polydore B. Wisner | | |
| Greene | George Hale | Federalist | |
| Greene | Martin G. Schuneman | Dem.-Rep. | previously a member from Ulster Co. |
| Herkimer | Stephen Miller | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Herkimer | George Widrig* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Herkimer | Samuel Wright | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Kings | John Hicks | | |
| Montgomery | Henry Kennedy | | |
| Montgomery | John Roof | | |
| Montgomery | Alexander Sheldon* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Montgomery | Daniel Walker | | |
| Montgomery | Charles Ward* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| New York | John Brower | | |
| New York | John Burger | | |
| New York | William Few* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| New York | William W. Gilbert | Dem.-Rep. | |
| New York | Peter Irving | | |
| New York | Cornelius C. Roosevelt | | |
| New York | Ezekiel Robins* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| New York | Thomas Storm* | Dem.-Rep. | re-elected Speaker |
| New York | Daniel D. Tompkins | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Oneida | James Dean Sr. | | |
| Oneida | Abel French* | Federalist | |
| Oneida | John Lay | | |
| Oneida | Aaron Morse | | |
| Onondaga | John Lamb | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Onondaga | John McWhorter | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Orange | James Burt* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Orange | William A. Clark | | |
| Orange | James Finch Jr. | | |
| Orange | Reuben Neely | | |
| Otsego | Daniel Hawks | | |
| Otsego | James Moore | | |
| Otsego | Jedediah Peck* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Otsego | Luther Rich | | |
| Queens | Stephen Carman | Federalist | |
| Queens | Abraham Monfoort* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Queens | Henry O. Seaman | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Rensselaer | John Green* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Rensselaer | Jonathan Rouse | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Rensselaer | John Ryan | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Rensselaer | John Woodworth | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Rensselaer | vacant | | Nicholas Staats (Dem.-Rep.) and Arent Van Dyck (Fed.) were tied in fifth place with 1,271 votes each, so there was "no choice". |
| Richmond | Paul I. Micheau* | Federalist | |
| Rockland | Peter Denoyelles* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Saratoga | Samuel Clark* | | |
| Saratoga | Adam Comstock* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Saratoga | Gideon Goodrich | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Saratoga | Othniel Looker | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Schoharie | Henry Becker | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Schoharie | Lawrence Lawyer Jr.* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Steuben | James Faulkner | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Suffolk | Israel Carll* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Suffolk | Jonathan Dayton | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Suffolk | Josiah Reeve | | |
| Tioga | Caleb Hyde* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Ulster | Moses Cantine Jr. | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Ulster | James Kain | | |
| Ulster | Cornelius Low | Federalist | |
| Ulster | Elnathan Sears* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Washington | David Austin | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Washington | Kitchel Bishop* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Washington | Alexander Cowan* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Washington | Jason Kellogg* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Washington | John McLean* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Washington | Isaac Sargent* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Westchester | Abijah Gilbert* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Westchester | Abraham Odell* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Westchester | Thomas Thomas* | Dem.-Rep. | |
| Westchester | Joseph Travis* | Dem.-Rep. | |

### Employees

* Clerk: Solomon Southwick
* Sergeant-at-Arms: Ephraim Hunt
* Doorkeeper: Benjamin Whipple