title: 4th Minnesota Legislature
text: # 4th Minnesota Legislature
  
  The fourth Minnesota Legislature first convened on January 7, 1862. The half of the 21 members of the Minnesota Senate who represented even-numbered districts were elected during the General Election of November 6, 1860, while the 42 members of the Minnesota House of Representatives and the other half of the members of the Minnesota Senate were elected during the General Election of October 8, 1861.
  
  ## Sessions
  
  The legislature met in a regular session from January 7, 1862 to March 7, 1862. A special session of the legislature was convened from September 9, 1862 to September 29, 1862 in response to the Dakota War of 1862, to consider such matters as suffrage for military personnel, the organization and equipment of the militia, and regulations concerning the sale of alcoholic beverages to Native Americans.
  
  ## Party summary
  
      Resignations and new members are discussed in the "Membership changes" section, below.
  
  ### Senate
  
  | | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | Vacant |
  | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Democratic | Republican | Total | Vacant |
  | End of previous Legislature | 2 | 14 | 16 | 5 |
  | Begin | 5 | 16 | 21 | 0 |
  | February 22, 1862 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 1 |
  | September 10, 1862 | 5 | 16 | 21 | 0 |
  | Latest voting share | 24% | 76% | | |
  | Beginning of the next Legislature | 5 | 16 | 21 | 0 |
  
  ### House of Representatives
  
  | | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | Vacant |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Democratic | Republican | Union Dem. | Total | Vacant |
  | End of previous Legislature | 2 | 38 | 0 | 40 | 2 |
  | Begin | 10 | 30 | 2 | 42 | 0 |
  | Latest voting share | 24% | 71% | 5% | | |
  | Beginning of the next Legislature | 12 | 29 | 1 | 42 | 0 |
  
  ## Leadership
  
  ### Senate
  
  **Lieutenant Governor**
  
  
      Ignatius L. Donnelly (R-Nininger)
  
  ### House of Representatives
  
  **Speaker of the House**
  
  
      Jared Benson (R-Anoka)
  
  ## Members
  
  ### Senate
  
  | Name | District | City | Party |
  | - | - | - | - |
  | Baldwin, Rufus J. | 05 | Minneapolis | Republican |
  | Bennett, Samuel | 06 | Monticello | Republican |
  | Clark, Joseph H. | 15 | Claremont | Republican |
  | Cleveland, Guy K. | 20 | Winnebago City | Republican |
  | Cook, Michael | 08 | Faribault | Republican |
  | Dane, Nathan | 17 | Ottawa | Democratic |
  | Daniels, John V. | 12 | Rochester | Republican |
  | Duffy, Thomas J. | 18 | Shakopee | Democratic |
  | Heaton, David | 04 | Saint Anthony | Republican |
  | Irvine, John R. | 21 | Saint Paul | Democratic |
  | Lowry, Sylvanus B. | 03 | Saint Cloud | Democratic |
  | McClure, Charles | 09 | Red Wing | Republican |
  | Miller, Luke | 14 | Chatfield | Republican |
  | Moore, William S. | 03 | Saint Cloud | Democratic |
  | Nash, Charles W. | 07 | Hastings | Democratic |
  | Reiner, Joel K. | 02 | Marine | Republican |
  | Richards, Linus | 10 | Reads Landing | Republican |
  | Sargeant, M. Wheeler | 11 | Winona | Republican |
  | See, Charles H. | 13 | Brownsville | Republican |
  | Smith, James K. | 01 | Saint Paul | Republican |
  | Swift, Henry Adoniram | 19 | Saint Peter | Republican |
  | Webber, Alfred B. | 16 | Albert Lea | Republican |
  
  ### House of Representatives
  
  | Name | District | City | Party |
  | - | - | - | - |
  | Aaker, Lars K. | 09 | Alexandria | Republican |
  | Aiken, Samuel | 13 | Spring Grove | Republican |
  | Allen, John H. | 04 | Princeton | Republican |
  | Bailey, Philo C. | 13 | Waseca | Republican |
  | Benson, Jared | 04 | Anoka | Republican |
  | Bostwick, S. W. | 15 | Frankford | Republican |
  | Buck, Adam | 19 | Henderson | Republican |
  | Burt, William H. | 02 | Stillwater | Republican |
  | Butler, A. H. | 14 | Newburg | Republican |
  | Carver, Henry L. | 01 | Saint Paul | Union Dem. |
  | Chamberlain, George C. | 07 | Lewiston | Democratic |
  | Clossen, Caleb | 08 | Cannon City | Republican |
  | Cornell, Francis R.E. | 05 | Minneapolis | Republican |
  | Couper, John C. | 07 | Lewiston | Republican |
  | Ford, Orville D. | 10 | Mazeppa | Republican |
  | Gross, Nicholas | 21 | Saint Paul | Union Dem. |
  | Harris, Thomas | 12 | Chatfield | Republican |
  | Johnson, F. | 12 | Quincy | Republican |
  | Kempfer, Bernard O. | 20 | Madelia | Republican |
  | Kennedy, R. M. | 06 | Young America | Republican |
  | Kennedy, Vincent P. | 06 | Greenleaf | Republican |
  | Magoon, Henry C. | 16 | Owatonna | Republican |
  | McGrew, John | 14 | Chatfield | Republican |
  | McMullen, Nathan M.D. | 18 | Shakopee | Democratic |
  | Past, John Comly | 05 | Industriana | Republican |
  | Perry, T. M. | 17 | Cleveland | Democratic |
  | Peterson, Peter | 14 | Rushford | Republican |
  | Porter, John J. | 17 | Mankato | Democratic |
  | Richardson, Reuben M. | 03 | Torah | Democratic |
  | Rogers, Henry C. | 15 | Mower City | Republican |
  | Rohr, Philip | 01 | Saint Paul | Democratic |
  | Roy, Peter | 03 | Little Falls | Democratic |
  | Severance, Martin J. | 19 | Henderson | Republican |
  | Sheardown, Samuel B. | 11 | Stockton | Republican |
  | Stevens, John Harrington | 06 | Glencoe | Democratic |
  | Thacher, Joseph A. | 09 | Zumbrota | Republican |
  | Thomas, H. L. | 02 | Afton | Republican |
  | Weld, E. B. | 11 | Worth | Republican |
  | Whipple, John | 03 | Duluth | Democratic |
  | Whiting, Erastus D. | 02 | Taylors Falls | Republican |
  | Wiswell, James A. | 17 | Garden City | Democratic |
  | Woodruff, George S. | 08 | Faribault | Republican |
  
  ## Membership changes
  
  ### Senate
  
  | District | Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date successor seated |
  | - | - | - | - | - |
  | 03 | Sylvanus Lowry (D) | Left office under unknown circumstances on date uncertain. | William S. Moore (D) | September 10, 1862 |
  