59th Congress (1905 - 1907)

House of Representatives

House Majority: Republican

House Majority Seats: 251 out of 386

House Speaker: Rep. Joseph Gurney Cannon (R-IL)

Senate

Senate Majority: Republican

Senate Majority Seats: 58 out of 90

Senate Majority Leader: (None)

Executive

President: Theodore Roosevelt (R-NY)

Vice President: Charles W. Fairbanks (R-IN)

portrait

Member Spotlight

Featured: House Speaker Joe Cannon (R-IL) was one of the most powerful and influential figures in early twentieth-century American politics. Born in 1836, he served in the House of Representatives for nearly five decades, earning a reputation for his strict control over legislation and his unwavering conservatism. As Speaker from 1903 to 1911, Cannon wielded near-total authority over the House agenda, committee appointments, and the flow of bills, making him both respected and feared by his colleagues. His autocratic leadership eventually provoked a bipartisan revolt in 1910, which curtailed his power but cemented his place as a symbol of congressional dominance in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.

Enactments