# 117th New York State Legislature

The 117th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 2 to April 27, 1894, during the third year of Roswell P. Flower'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. On April 26, 1892, the Legislature re-apportioned the Senate Districts and the number of assemblymen per county. The senatorial districts were made up of entire counties, except New York County (nine districts), Kings County (five districts) and Erie County (two districts). The Assembly districts were made up of entire towns, or city wards, forming a contiguous area, all within the same county.
On January 27, 1893, the Legislature passed "An Act to amend chapter 398, of the Laws of 1892, entitled 'An Act to provide for a convention to revise and amend the Constitution'", calling a Constitutional Convention to meet in 1894.
At this time there were two major political parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. The Prohibition Party, the Socialist Labor Party and a "People's Party" also nominated tickets.

## Elections

The 1893 New York state election was held on November 7. All six statewide elective offices up for election were carried by the Republicans. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Secretary of State, was: Republican 545,000; Democratic 521,000; Prohibition 34,000; Socialist Labor 20,000; and People's Party 17,000.
Also elected were 175 delegates to the Constitutional Convention; five delegates in each senatorial district, and 15 delegates-at-large elected statewide.
This was the only election of State Senators under the apportionment of 1892.

## Sessions

The Legislature met for the regular session at the State Capitol in Albany on January 2, 1894; and adjourned on April 27.
George R. Malby (R) was elected Speaker.
Charles T. Saxton (R) was elected president pro tempore of the State Senate.
The Constitutional Convention met at the State Capitol in Albany on May 8; and adjourned on September 29. Joseph H. Choate (R) was elected president; and Thomas G. Alvord (R) First Vice President.
The new Constitution increased the number of state senators from 32 to 50, and the number of assemblymen from 128 to 150; and re-apportioned the Senate districts, and the number of assemblymen per county. Broome, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Jefferson, Monroe, Niagara, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, St. Lawrence and Suffolk counties gained one seat each; Erie County gained two; Kings County three; and New York County five. The new Constitution also shortened the governor's and lieutenant governor's term to two years; and moved the election of state officers and state senators from odd-numbered to even-numbered years.
The new Constitution was submitted to the voters at the New York state election, 1894, and was adopted.

## State Senate
### Districts

* 1st District: Queens and Suffolk counties
* 2nd District: 7th, 9th, 10th, 12th and 22nd Ward of Brooklyn
* 3rd District: 13th, 19th, 21st, 23rd and 25th Ward of Brooklyn
* 4th District: 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th and 27th Ward of Brooklyn
* 5th District: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 11th and 20th Ward of Brooklyn
* 6th District: 8th, 24th, 26th and 28th Ward of the City of Brooklyn; all towns in Kings County; and Richmond County
* 7th District: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 8th, 9th and 16th Ward of NYC
* 8th District: 4th, 6th, 7th, 11th and 13th Ward of NYC
* 9th District: 10th, 14th, 15th and 17th Ward of New York City
* 10th District: 18th, 20th and 21st Ward of NYC
* 11th District: Southern parts of the 19th and 22nd Ward of NYC
* 12th District: Middle parts of the 19th and 22nd Ward of NYC
* 13th District: Northern parts of the 19th and 22nd; and 23rd Ward of NYC
* 14th District: Northeastern part of the 19th Ward of NYC
* 15th District: 24th Ward of NYC; and Putnam and Westchester counties
* 16th District: Dutchess, Orange and Rockland counties
* 17th District: Greene, Schoharie, Sullivan and Ulster counties
* 18th District: Columbia and Rensselaer counties
* 19th District: Albany County
* 20th District: Herkimer, Montgomery, Saratoga and Schenectady counties
* 21st District: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Warren and Washington counties
* 22nd District: Jefferson, Oswego and St. Lawrence counties
* 23rd District: Lewis, Oneida County and Otsego counties
* 24th District: Madison and Onondaga counties
* 25th District: Broome, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware and Tioga counties
* 26th District: Cayuga, Ontario, Tompkins, Wayne and Yates counties
* 27th District: Chemung, Schuyler, Seneca and Steuben counties
* 28th District: Monroe County
* 29th District: Genesee, Livingston, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming counties
* 30th District: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 19th and 20th Ward of the City of Buffalo
* 31st District: 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th Ward of Buffalo; and the remaining area of Erie County
* 32nd District: Allegany, Cattaraugus and Chautauqua 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. Timothy D. Sullivan, Frank A. O'Donnel, Joseph C. Wolff, Thomas C. O'Sullivan and Jacob Rice changed from the Assembly to the Senate.
| District | Senator | Party | Notes |
| 1st | John Lewis Childs | Republican | |
| 2nd | Michael J. Coffey | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by William H. Quinn (R) |
| 3rd | William H. Reynolds | Republican | |
| 4th | George A. Owens | Republican | |
| 5th | Daniel Bradley | Ind. Dem. | |
| 6th | John McCarty* | Democrat | re-elected; contested; seat vacated |
| 6th | Henry Wolfert | Republican | seated in February |
| 7th | Martin T. McMahon* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 8th | John F. Ahearn* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 9th | Timothy D. Sullivan* | Democrat | |
| 10th | Frank A. O'Donnel* | Democrat | |
| 11th | Joseph C. Wolff* | Democrat | |
| 12th | Thomas C. O'Sullivan* | Democrat | |
| 13th | Charles L. Guy | Democrat | |
| 14th | Jacob A. Cantor* | Democrat | re-elected; Minority Leader |
| 15th | George W. Robertson | Republican | |
| 16th | Clarence Lexow | Republican | |
| 17th | Jacob Rice* | Democrat | |
| 18th | Michael F. Collins | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Sheppard Tappan (R) |
| 19th | Amasa J. Parker Jr.* | Democrat | re-elected |
| 20th | Harvey J. Donaldson* | Republican | re-elected |
| 21st | Frederick D. Kilburn | Republican | |
| 22nd | Joseph Mullin* | Republican | re-elected |
| 23rd | Henry J. Coggeshall* | Republican | re-elected |
| 24th | Charles W. Stapleton | Republican | |
| 25th | Edmund O'Connor* | Republican | re-elected |
| 26th | Charles T. Saxton* | Republican | re-elected; elected president pro tempore; on November 6, 1894, elected Lieutenant Governor of New York |
| 27th | Baxter T. Smelzer | Republican | |
| 28th | Cornelius R. Parsons* | Republican | re-elected |
| 29th | Cuthbert W. Pound | Republican | |
| 30th | Charles Lamy | Republican | |
| 31st | Henry H. Persons | Republican | |
| 32nd | Frank W. Higgins | Republican | |

### Employees

* Clerk: John S. Kenyon
* Sergeant-at-Arms: Charles V. Schram
* Doorkeeper: Edward Dowling
* Stenographer: Lucius A. Waldo

## State Assembly
### Assemblymen

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued as members of this Legislature.
Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."
| District | District | Assemblymen | Party | Notes |
| Albany | 1st | William Lasch | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Frank Bloomingdale (R) |
| Albany | 2nd | William A. Carroll | Democrat | |
| Albany | 3rd | James Brennan | Democrat | |
| Albany | 4th | Curtis N. Douglas | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Amos J. Ablett (R) |
| Allegany | Allegany | Frederick A. Robbins | Republican | |
| Broome | Broome | Joseph H. Brownell | Republican | |
| Cattaraugus | Cattaraugus | Charles W. Terry | Republican | Chairman of Indian Affairs |
| Cayuga | Cayuga | Benjamin M. Wilcox | Republican | |
| Chautauqua | Chautauqua | S. Frederick Nixon | Republican | Chairman of Public Institutions |
| Chemung | Chemung | Robert P. Bush | Democrat | |
| Chenango | Chenango | David Sherwood | Republican | |
| Clinton | Clinton | Everett C. Baker | Republican | Chairman of Prisons |
| Columbia | Columbia | Jacob H. Hoysradt | Democrat | |
| Cortland | Cortland | Benjamin F. Lee | Republican | |
| Delaware | Delaware | Wesley Gould | Republican | Chairman of Military Affairs |
| Dutchess | 1st | Edward H. Thompson* | Republican | Chairman of Banks |
| Dutchess | 2nd | Augustus B. Gray | Republican | Chairman of Federal Relations |
| Erie | 1st | Cornelius Coughlin | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Jules O'Brien (R) |
| Erie | 2nd | Simon Seibert | Republican | |
| Erie | 3rd | Charles Braun | Republican | Chairman of Printed and Engrossed Bills |
| Erie | 4th | Joseph L. Whittet | Republican | |
| Erie | 5th | Philip Gerst | Republican | Chairman of Canals |
| Erie | 6th | Charles F. Schoepflin | Republican | Chairman of Public Printing |
| Essex | Essex | George A. Stevens* | Republican | Chairman of Public Lands and Forestry |
| Franklin | Franklin | Allen S. Matthews* | Republican | Chairman of Taxation and Retrenchment |
| Fulton and Hamilton | Fulton and Hamilton | Philip Keck* | Republican | Chairman of General Laws |
| Genesee | Genesee | Thomas B. Tuttle | Republican | |
| Greene | Greene | Ira B. Kerr | Democrat | |
| Herkimer | Herkimer | William C. Prescott* | Republican | Chairman of Codes |
| Jefferson | Jefferson | Harrison Fuller* | Republican | Chairman of Trades and Manufactures |
| Kings | 1st | William J. Plant* | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by William Dwyer (R) |
| Kings | 2nd | John A. Hennessey* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 3rd | John F. Houghton | Republican | |
| Kings | 4th | Joseph J. Cahill* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 5th | John H. Burtis | Republican | Chairman of Charitable and Religious Societies |
| Kings | 6th | Michael E. Finnigan* | Democrat | |
| Kings | 7th | William Hughes | Democrat | contested; seat vacated on April 4 |
| Kings | 7th | Stillman F. Kneeland | Republican | seated on April 4 |
| Kings | 8th | John J. Cain | Democrat | |
| Kings | 9th | William E. Melody* | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by George R. Pasfield (R) |
| Kings | 10th | Frank F. Schulz | Republican | Chairman of Unfinished Business |
| Kings | 11th | Harry Schulz | Republican | |
| Kings | 12th | Joseph F. Loonan | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Thomas W. Campbell (R) |
| Kings | 13th | Francis E. Clark | Republican | |
| Kings | 14th | James Taylor | Republican | Chairman of Public Health |
| Kings | 15th | Albert A. Wray | Republican | |
| Kings | 16th | James Graham* | Democrat | contested; seat vacated on February 21 |
| Kings | 16th | William H. Friday | Republican | seated on February 21 |
| Kings | 17th | James Scanlon | Republican | |
| Kings | 18th | Julius L. Wieman | Republican | |
| Lewis | Lewis | Melville W. Van Amber | Republican | Chairman of Fisheries and Game |
| Livingston | Livingston | Otto Kelsey | Republican | |
| Madison | Madison | Lambert B. Kern | Republican | |
| Monroe | 1st | Samuel H. Stone* | Republican | Chairman of Claims |
| Monroe | 2nd | James M. E. O'Grady* | Republican | Chairman of Public Education |
| Monroe | 3rd | William H. Denniston* | Republican | Chairman of Excise |
| Montgomery | Montgomery | E. Watson Gardiner | Republican | |
| New York | 1st | John H. G. Vehslage | Democrat | |
| New York | 2nd | Michael J. Callahan | Democrat | |
| New York | 3rd | Jacob A. Mittnacht* | Democrat | |
| New York | 4th | Patrick H. Roche* | Democrat | |
| New York | 5th | Samuel J. Foley* | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Albert W. Baillie (R) |
| New York | 6th | Moses Dinkelspiel* | Democrat | |
| New York | 7th | John C. Stein | Democrat | |
| New York | 8th | Thomas J. O'Donnell | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Charles La Maida (R) |
| New York | 9th | John F. McDermott | Democrat | |
| New York | 10th | William Sulzer* | Democrat | Minority Leader; on November 6, 1894, elected to the 54th U.S. Congress |
| New York | 11th | James R. Sheffield | Republican | |
| New York | 12th | Edward B. La Fetra | Democrat | |
| New York | 13th | James H. Southworth* | Democrat | |
| New York | 14th | John P. Corrigan | Democrat | |
| New York | 15th | Adolph Schillinger | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Seth Wilks (R) |
| New York | 16th | Victor J. Dowling | Democrat | |
| New York | 17th | Patrick F. Trainor | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Robert Miller (R) |
| New York | 18th | Daniel J. Gleason | Democrat | |
| New York | 19th | Patrick J. Kerrigan | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Edward R. Duffy (R) |
| New York | 20th | William H. McKeon* | Democrat | |
| New York | 21st | Moses Herrman | Democrat | |
| New York | 22nd | Michael F. Tobin | Democrat | unsuccessfully contested by Henry B. Page (R) |
| New York | 23rd | Judson Lawson | Republican | |
| New York | 24th | Robert V. Stadtfeld | Democrat | |
| New York | 25th | John Keleher* | Democrat | |
| New York | 26th | Louis Davidson* | Democrat | |
| New York | 27th | Thomas H. Robertson | Republican | |
| New York | 28th | James F. Reilly* | Democrat | |
| New York | 29th | Arthur C. Butts* | Democrat | |
| New York | 30th | Charles C. Marrin* | Democrat | |
| Niagara | Niagara | John H. Clark | Republican | |
| Oneida | 1st | Henry P. Hoefler | Republican | |
| Oneida | 2nd | Joseph Porter | Republican | Chairman of Soldiers' Home |
| Onondaga | 1st | J. Emmett Wells | Republican | |
| Onondaga | 2nd | Jonathan Wyckoff* | Republican | Chairman of Agriculture |
| Onondaga | 3rd | William H. Hotaling* | Republican | Chairman of Labor and Industries |
| Ontario | Ontario | William L. Parkhurst* | Republican | Chairman of Railroads |
| Orange | 1st | Howard Thornton* | Republican | Chairman of Judiciary |
| Orange | 2nd | Joseph Dean | Republican | |
| Orleans | Orleans | Samuel W. Smith | Republican | |
| Oswego | Oswego | Danforth E. Ainsworth* | Republican | Majority Leader; Chairman of Ways and Means |
| Otsego | Otsego | John J. Rider | Republican | |
| Putnam | Putnam | Hamilton Fish II* | Republican | Chairman of Affairs of Cities |
| Queens | 1st | James Robinson* | Democrat | |
| Queens | 2nd | James S. Fairbrother | Republican | |
| Queens | 3rd | Eugene F. Vacheron | Republican | |
| Rensselaer | 1st | William M. Keenan* | Democrat | |
| Rensselaer | 2nd | John M. Chambers* | Republican | Chairman of Affairs of Villages |
| Rensselaer | 3rd | John J. Cassin* | Democrat | |
| Richmond | Richmond | Michael McGuire | Democrat | contested; seat vacated on April 4 |
| Richmond | Richmond | Michael Conklin | Republican | seated on April 4 |
| Rockland | Rockland | Otis H. Cutler | Republican | |
| St. Lawrence | St. Lawrence | George R. Malby* | Republican | elected Speaker; Chairman of Rules |
| Saratoga | Saratoga | James Frank Terry* | Republican | Chairman of Revision |
| Schenectady | Schenectady | John C. Myers | Democrat | |
| Schoharie | Schoharie | Charles Chapman | Democrat | |
| Schuyler | Schuyler | George A. Snyder | Republican | |
| Seneca | Seneca | Harry M. Glen | Republican | |
| Steuben | 1st | Willoughby W. Babcock | Republican | |
| Steuben | 2nd | Merritt F. Smith | Republican | |
| Suffolk | Suffolk | Richard Higbie* | Republican | Chairman of Commerce and Navigation |
| Sullivan | Sullivan | Uriah S. Messiter* | Republican | Chairman of Internal Affairs |
| Tioga | Tioga | Epenetus Howe | Republican | |
| Tompkins | Tompkins | Edwin C. Stewart | Republican | |
| Ulster | 1st | Henry McNamee | Democrat | |
| Ulster | 2nd | James Lounsbery* | Republican | Chairman of Electricity, Gas and Water Supply |
| Warren | Warren | Taylor J. Eldredge | Republican | |
| Washington | Washington | William R. Hobbie* | Republican | Chairman of Insurance |
| Wayne | Wayne | George S. Horton | Republican | Chairman of Privileges and Elections |
| Westchester | 1st | John C. Harrigan | Democrat | |
| Westchester | 2nd | John Berry | Democrat | |
| Westchester | 3rd | Edgar L. Ryder* | Democrat | |
| Wyoming | Wyoming | Reuben J. Tilton | Republican | |
| Yates | Yates | A. Flagg Robson | Republican | |

### Employees

* Clerk: George W. Dunn
* Assistant Clerk: Haines D. Cunningham
* Financial Clerk: William C. Stevens
* Sergeant-at-Arms: James H. Manville
* Doorkeeper: Joseph Bauer
* Stenographer: Henry F. Gilson