The 102nd New York State Legislature, consisting of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

and the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

, met from January 7 to May 22, 1879, during the third year of Lucius Robinson's governorship, 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 constituti ...

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, 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 The Prohibition Party (PRO) is a Political parties in the United States, political party in the United States known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages and as an integral part of the temperance movemen ...

and the

Greenback Party The Greenback Party (known successively as the Independent Party, the National Independent Party and the Greenback Labor Party) was an Political parties in the United States, American political party with an Competition law, anti-monopoly ideolog ...

also nominated tickets.

Elections

The 1878 New York state election was held on November 5. The only statewide elective office up for election was carried by a Republican. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Judge of the Court of Appeals, was: Republican 391,000; Democratic 356,000; Greenback 75,000; and Prohibition 4,000.

Sessions

The Legislature met for the regular session at the State Capitol in Albany on January 7, 1879; and adjourned on May 22. On January 7, senators and assemblymen met at the Old Capitol and then marched together to the New Capitol, taking officially possession of the new accommodations. The New Capitol was then still under construction, being finished only in 1899; and the Senate met for the time being in the Court of Appeals chamber. Due to heavy snowfall, many members had not arrived yet from the Western parts of the State, and the Legislature adjourned. On January 9, Thomas G. Alvord (R) was again elected Speaker, with 94 votes against 24 for

Erastus Brooks Erastus Brooks (January 31, 1815 – November 25, 1886) was an American newspaper editor and politician from New York. Life He was born on January 31, 1815, in Portland, then in the District of Maine, Massachusetts, the son of Capt. James Brooks ...

(D). On January 21, the Legislature re-elected U.S. Senator

Roscoe Conkling Roscoe Conkling (October 30, 1829April 18, 1888) was an American lawyer and Republican Party (United States), Republican politician who represented New York (state), New York in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Se ...

(R) to a third six-year term, beginning on March 4, 1879. On April 23, the Legislature re-apportioned the Senate districts; and the Assembly seats per county. Columbia, Delaware, Madison, Oneida, Ontario and Oswego counties lost one seat each; Kings and New York counties gained three seats each.''THE APPORTIONMENT BILL''
in NYT on April 21, 1879

State Senate

Districts

* 1st District:

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

and

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

counties * 2nd District: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 11th, 13th, 15th, 19th and 20th wards of the City of

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

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

and Sullivan counties * 11th District: Columbia and Dutchess counties * 12th District: Rensselaer and

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

counties * 13th District: Albany County * 14th District: Greene and

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

counties * 15th District: Fulton,

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

, Montgomery, Saratoga and

Schenectady Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

counties * 16th District: Clinton,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

and Warren counties * 17th District: Franklin and St. Lawrence counties * 18th District: Jefferson and

Lewis Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * " Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohe ...

counties * 19th District: Oneida County * 20th District:

Herkimer Herkimer may refer to: People: * Johan Jost Herkimer (1732–1795), United Empire Loyalist, brother of Nicholas Herkimer * John Herkimer (1773–1848), American lawyer and politician from New York * Lawrence Herkimer (1925–2015), American innov ...

and Otsego counties * 21st District: Madison and Oswego counties * 22nd District: Onondaga and Cortland counties * 23rd District: Chenango,

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

and Schoharie counties * 24th District: Broome, Tompkins and Tioga counties * 25th District: Cayuga and Wayne counties * 26th District:

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Seneca and Yates counties * 27th District: Chemung, Schuyler and

Steuben Steuben or Von Steuben most commonly refers to Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben (1730–1794), Prussian-American military officer, or to a number of things named for him in the United States. It may also refer to: Places *Steuben Township, Marshall C ...

counties * 28th District: Monroe County * 29th District: Genesee, Niagara and Orleans counties * 30th District: Allegany, Livingston and

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

counties * 31st District: Erie County * 32nd District: Cattaraugus and

Chautauqua Chautauqua ( ) is an adult education and social movement in the United States that peaked in popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Cha ...

counties Note: There are now 62 counties in the State of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. 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.

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.

Employees

* Clerk: Edward M. Johnson * Sergeant-at-Arms: Charles A. Orr * Doorkeeper: Henry Wheeler * First Assistant Doorkeeper: Harrison Clark * Second Assistant Doorkeeper: Michael Maher *Assistant Doorkeeper: John Christie * Stenographer: Worden E. Payne

Notes

Sources

''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. 378 for assemblymen)
''The State Government for 1879''
by Charles G. Shanks (Weed, Parsons & Co, Albany, 1879)
''THE CANVASS FOR SPEAKER''
in NYT on January 6, 1879
''THE STRUGGLE AT ALBANY''
in NYT on January 7, 1879
''THE CONTEST FOR SPEAKER''
in NYT on January 8, 1879
''ALVORD CHOSEN SPEAKER''
in NYT on January 9, 1879
''WORK BEGUN AT ALBANY''
in NYT on January 10, 1879 {{NYLegislatures

102 102 may refer to: *102 (number), the number * AD 102, a year in the 2nd century AD * 102 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 102 (ambulance service), an emergency medical transport service in Uttar Pradesh, India * 102 (Clyde) Field Squadron, Royal E ...

1879 in New York (state) 1879 U.S. legislative sessions