David B. Henderson - Speaker of The House

Speaker of The House

Henderson was elected to succeed Reed as Speaker following Reed's resignation from the post in 1899. Republicans were in control in the House, a majority of members of the House Republican Caucus were from what was then considered "the West," and Henderson was the only serious candidate for Speaker among western members. When serving as Speaker in the Fifty-sixth and Fifty-seventh Congresses, by longstanding tradition Henderson also held the role as chairman of the Committee on Rules.

During his four-year tenure as Speaker of the House, many of his peers lobbied him to run for the presidency even though the United States Constitution forbade it because he was foreign born.

On September 16, 1902 - with the next Congressional election less than two months away - Henderson surprised nearly everyone by announcing that he was withdrawing from the race for re-election (and thus from Congress). Various explanations for his abrupt withdrawal have been offered. Henderson's letter announcing his decision referred to "a growing sentiment, among Republicans, that I do not truly represent their views on the tariff question." Some attributed his decision to the lingering effects of his war injuries. In a letter to Henderson’s successor Joe Cannon dated three days after Henderson's announcement, former House Clerk Henry H. Smith stated that "there can be but one explanation of the reason for his action . . . they relate not alone to poker playing, but to his alleged intimacy with a certain `lobbyess' who is reported to have some written evidence that would greatly embarrass the Speaker. . . . He seemed to have lost all control of himself and become reckless. . . . This is not mere guesswork at all but private and reliable information which I am sure you will recognize when I tell you the name." - Whatever the cause, Henderson's resignation ushered in the beginning of Cannon's famous tenure as Speaker.