Fast Facts
The House has elected or appointed employees to carry out a wide variety of tasks throughout its history. The officers’ duties are prescribed both by law and Rule II of the Rules of the House of Representatives.
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Parliamentarians of the House
Clarence Andrew Cannon, Collection of the U.S. House of RepresentativesAbout this object
The parliamentary law of the House of Representatives derives from the Constitution and rules adopted pursuant to Article I, section five of the Constitution. These rules include not only the standing rules adopted from Congress to Congress but also Jefferson's Manual, as customarily incorporated by reference in the standing rules. They also include rules enacted as law and special rules adopted as necessary. On this foundation rests a body of precedent established by decisions of presiding officers on actual parliamentary questions or by long custom and tradition.
In resolving questions of order, the Speaker and other presiding officers of the House adhere to the jurisprudential principle of stare decisis, a commitment to stand by earlier decisions. The overarching role of the Office of the Parliamentarian is to strive for consistency in parliamentary analysis by attempting to apply pertinent precedent to each procedural question.
Persons who performed various aspects of the Parliamentarian's duties held a series of titles throughout congressional history, including “Messenger to the Speaker,” “Clerk to the Speaker,” and “Clerk at the Speaker's Table.” Beginning in the 70th Congress (1927–1929) the title became “Parliamentarian.” Since 1857, 20 individuals have served in that role. Four also served as Members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Former Parliamentarians Asher Hinds, Clarence Cannon, and Lewis Deschler each compiled parliamentary precedents of the House that remain invaluable records of its proceedings. The Office of the Parliamentarian biennially publishes a House Rules and Manual. For the longer term, the Parliamentarian and its subsidiary Office of Compilation of Precedents continue the perennial compilation of parliamentary precedents for formal publication. The precedents presently fill 28 volumes comprising thousands of decisions over the 224 years of parliamentary practice in the House. They are published as Hinds’ Precedents (1907); Cannon’s Precedents (1936); and Deschler’s, Deschler-Brown, and Deschler-Brown-Johnson Precedents (ongoing). To bridge the span between a digest of decisions and formally published precedents, the Parliamentarian also publishes a condensed compilation of procedures of current application as House Practice.
A complete appointment for each officer date is provided when known.
| Congress and Years | Name | Title | Date Appointed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 34th (1855–1857) | MORRICE, Thaddeus | Messenger to the Speaker | 1857 |
| 35th (1857–1859) | MORRICE, Thaddeus | Messenger to the Speaker | |
| 36th (1859–1861) | MORRICE, Thaddeus | Messenger to the Speaker | |
| 37th (1861–1863) | MORRICE, Thaddeus | Messenger to the Speaker | |
| 38th (1863–1865) | MORRICE, Thaddeus | Messenger to the Speaker | |
| 38th (1863–1865) | TODD, William D. | Messenger to the Speaker | 1865 |
| 39th (1865–1867) | TODD, William D. | Messenger to the Speaker | |
| 40th (1867–1869) | TODD, William D. | Messenger to the Speaker | |
| 41st (1869–1871) | BARCLAY, John M. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1869 |
| 42nd (1871–1873) | BARCLAY, John M. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 43rd (1873–1875) | BARCLAY, John M. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 44th (1875–1877) | SCUDDER, William H. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1875 |
| 45th (1877–1879) | SCUDDER, William H. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 45th (1877–1879) | TUCKER, J. Randolph, Jr. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1877 |
| 46th (1879–1881) | MILLER, George P. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1879 |
| 46th (1879–1881) | SULLIVAN, Michael | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1880 |
| 46th (1879–1881) | TUCKER, J. Randolph, Jr. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 47th (1881–1883) | SULLIVAN, Michael | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1882 |
| 47th (1881–1883) | WHITE, J. Guilford | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1881 |
| 48th (1883–1885) | CRUTCHFIELD, Nathaniel T. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1883 |
| 49th (1885–1887) | CRUTCHFIELD, Nathaniel T. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 50th (1887–1889) | CRUTCHFIELD, Nathaniel T. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 51st (1889–1891) | CRUTCHFIELD, Nathaniel T. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 51st (1889–1891) | GOODWIN, Forrest | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1890 |
| 52nd (1891–1893) | CRISP, Charles Robert | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1891 |
| 53rd (1893–1895) | CRISP, Charles Robert | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 54th (1895–1897) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1895 |
| 55th (1897–1899) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 56th (1899–1901) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 57th (1901–1903) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 58th (1903–1905) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 59th (1905–1907) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 60th (1907–1909) | HINDS, Asher Crosby | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 61st (1909–1911) | HINDS, Asher Crosby 1 | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 62nd (1911–1913) | CRISP, Charles Robert | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1911 |
| 63rd (1913–1915) | CLARK, Bennett C. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1913 |
| 64th (1915–1917) | CLARK, Bennett C. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 65th (1917–1919) | CANNON, Clarence Andrew 2 | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1917 |
| 65th (1917–1919) | CLARK, Bennett C. | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 66th (1919–1921) | FESS, Lehr | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | 1919 |
| 67th (1921–1923) | FESS, Lehr | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 68th (1923–1925) | FESS, Lehr | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 69th (1925–1927) | FESS, Lehr | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 70th (1927–1929) | FESS, Lehr 3 | Clerk at the Speaker's Table | |
| 71st (1929–1931) | DESCHLER, Lewis 4 | Parliamentarian | 1927 |
| 72nd (1931–1933) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 73rd (1933–1935) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 74th (1935–1937) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 75th (1937–1939) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 76th (1939–1941) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 77th (1941–1943) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 78th (1943–1945) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 79th (1945–1947) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 80th (1947–1949) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 81st (1949–1951) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 82nd (1951–1953) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 83rd (1953–1955) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 84th (1955–1957) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 85th (1957–1959) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 86th (1959–1961) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 87th (1961–1963) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 88th (1963–1965) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 89th (1965–1967) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 90th (1967–1969) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 91st (1969–1971) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 92nd (1971–1973) | DESCHLER, Lewis | Parliamentarian | |
| 93rd (1973–1975) | DESCHLER, Lewis 5 | Parliamentarian | |
| 93rd (1973–1975) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | Jun 24, 1974 6 |
| 94th (1975–1977) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 95th (1977–1979) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 96th (1979–1981) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 97th (1981–1983) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 98th (1983–1985) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 99th (1985–1987) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 100th (1987–1989) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 101st (1989–1991) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 102nd (1991–1993) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 103rd (1993–1995) | BROWN, William Holmes | Parliamentarian | |
| 103rd (1993–1995) | JOHNSON, Charles W. | Parliamentarian | Sept. 20, 1994 7 |
| 104th (1995–1997) | JOHNSON, Charles W. | Parliamentarian | |
| 105th (1997–1999) | JOHNSON, Charles W. | Parliamentarian | |
| 106th (1999–2001) | JOHNSON, Charles W. | Parliamentarian | |
| 107th (2001–2003) | JOHNSON, Charles W. | Parliamentarian | |
| 108th (2003–2005) | JOHNSON, Charles W. | Parliamentarian | |
| 108th (2003–2005) | SULLIVAN, John V. | Parliamentarian | May 31, 2004 8 |
| 109th (2005–2007) | SULLIVAN, John V. | Parliamentarian | |
| 110th (2007–2009) | SULLIVAN, John V. | Parliamentarian | |
| 111th (2009–2011) | SULLIVAN, John V. | Parliamentarian | |
| 112th (2011–2013) | SULLIVAN, John V. | Parliamentarian | |
| 112th (2011–2013) | WICKHAM, Thomas J., Jr. | Parliamentarian | Apr 01, 2012 9 |
Footnotes
1Resigned March 3, 1911, to become Member of the 62nd Congress. See, Washington Post, March 3, 1911: 4.
2Appointed due to Clark's resignation to join the military.
3Resigned February 1, 1927. See, Washington Post, February 1, 1927: 4.
4Appointed due to Fess' retirement. See, Washington Post, February 1, 1927: 4.
5Retired on June 27, 1974.
6Appointed due to Deschler's retirement. See, Los Angeles Times, June 27, 1974: 2.
7Appointed due to Brown's retirement. See, Congressional Record, 103rd Cong., 2nd sess., (September 20, 1994): 9227.
8Appointed due to Johnson's retirement. See, Congressional Record, 108th Cong., 2nd sess., (May 20, 2004): 3394.
9Appointed due to Sullivan’s retirement. See, Congressional Record, 112th Cong., 2nd sess., (February 28, 2012): H974.