Michigan's 1st congressional district

Michigan's 1st congressional district is a United States Congressional district containing the entire Upper Peninsula of Michigan and 16 of 21 counties of Northern Michigan in the Lower Peninsula. The district is represented by Republican Dan Benishek.

Geography

The district is the second-largest congressional district east of the Mississippi River by land area. Its boundaries contain much of the northeastern part of the Lower Peninsula in addition to the entire Upper Peninsula. Altogether, the district makes up about 44% of the land area of the state of Michigan. It contains the second-longest shoreline of any district in the United States, behind Alaska's At-large congressional district.

Of the 83 counties in Michigan, 30 lie fully within the district, and it contains a portion of another.

History

Prior to 1992 the 1st Congressional District was a Detroit-based congressional district. (For most of the time prior to 1992, the territory now in the 1st District was in the 11th district.) From the election of Republican John B. Sosnowski in 1925 until 1964 the former 1st district was represented by only one non-Polish-American politician, Robert H. Clancy. Along with Sosnowski, 6 Polish-Americans served as the 1st district's representatives elected 7 times, since 1925. The other strong Polish Michigan congressional districts were the 15th district (where half of the elected were Polish-American) and the dissolved 16th district (where all three elected representatives were of Polish descent). In 1964 the 1st Congressional district was drawn as a new, African-American majority district reflecting the changing demographics of Detroit, while enough of the old 1st district was moved to the 14th district that that district retained the 1st's old congressman. John Conyers was elected to congress from the 1st district, a position he would hold until the 1st was removed from Detroit.

After 1992, the 1st district cover land in the UP and Northern Michigan. The 1st from 1992–2002 was similar to the present district, except that it did not extend nearly as far south along Lake Michigan, while it took in Traverse City and some surrounding areas on the west side of the state.

Voting

Major cities in the district

• Alpena
• Calumet
• Cheboygan
• Escanaba
• Iron Mountain
• Ironwood
• Ishpeming
• Hancock
• Houghton
• Kingsford
• Manistee
• Marquette
• Menominee
• Petoskey
• Sault Ste. Marie
• Traverse City

List of representatives

Representative	Party	Years	Congress	Electoral history
District created		March 4, 1843
Robert McClelland	Democratic	March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1849	28 29 30	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Alexander W. Buel	Democratic	March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1851	31	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Ebenezer J. Penniman	Whig	March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853	32	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
David Stuart	Democratic	March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855	33	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
William A. Howard	Republican	March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1859	34 35	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
George B. Cooper	Democratic	March 4, 1859 – May 15, 1860	36	Election challenged
William A. Howard	Republican	May 15, 1860 – March 3, 1861	36	Successfully challenged predecessor's election
Bradley F. Granger	Republican	March 4, 1861 – March 3, 1863	37	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Fernando C. Beaman	Republican	March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1871	38 39 40 41	Redistricted from the 2nd district
Henry Waldron	Republican	March 4, 1871 – March 3, 1873	42	Redistricted to the 2nd district
Moses W. Field	Republican	March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875	43	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Alpheus S. Williams	Democratic	March 4, 1875 – December 21, 1878	44 45	Died
Vacant		December 21, 1878 – March 4, 1879	45	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
John S. Newberry	Republican	March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1881	46	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Henry W. Lord	Republican	March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1883	47	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
William C. Maybury	Democratic[2]	March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887	48 49	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
John L. Chipman	Democratic	March 4, 1887 – August 17, 1893	50 51 52 53	Died
Vacant		August 17, 1893 – November 7, 1893	53	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Levi T. Griffin	Democratic	December 4, 1893 – March 3, 1895	53	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
John B. Corliss	Republican	March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1903	54 55 56 57	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Alfred Lucking	Democratic	March 4, 1903 – March 3, 1905	58	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Edwin C. Denby	Republican	March 4, 1905 – March 3, 1911	59 60 61	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Frank E. Doremus	Democratic	March 4, 1911 – March 3, 1921	62 63 64 65 66	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
George P. Codd	Republican	March 4, 1921 – March 3, 1923	67	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Robert H. Clancy	Democratic	March 4, 1923 – March 3, 1925	68	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
John B. Sosnowski	Republican	March 4, 1925 – March 3, 1927	69	Lost renomination
Robert H. Clancy	Republican	March 4, 1927 – March 3, 1933	70 71 72	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
George G. Sadowski	Democratic	March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1939	73 74 75	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Rudolph G. Tenerowicz	Democratic[3]	January 3, 1939 – January 3, 1943	76 77	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
George G. Sadowski	Democratic	January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1951	78 79 80 81	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Thaddeus M. Machrowicz	Democratic	January 3, 1951 – September 18, 1961	82 83 84 85 86 87	Resigned to become U.S. District Judge
Vacant		September 18, 1961 – November 7, 1961	87	[Data unknown/missing. You can help!]
Lucien N. Nedzi	Democratic	November 7, 1961 – January 3, 1965	87 88	Redistricted to the 14th district
John Conyers	Democratic	January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1993	89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102	Redistricted to the 14th district
Bart Stupak	Democratic	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2011	103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111	Retired
Dan Benishek	Republican	January 3, 2011 – Janury 3, 2017	112 113 114	Incumbent
Jack Bergman	Republican	January 3, 2017 –	115

Elections

• In the 1932 primary election for the Democratic Party, George G. Sadowski won, defeating a field of nine other candidates including Alfred Niezychowski.

Historical district boundaries

1993 - 2003

2003 - 2013

See also

• Michigan's congressional districts
• List of United States congressional districts
• Superior (proposed state)

Notes

1. ↑ "Congressional Districts by Urban/Rural Population & Land Area (109th Congress)" (PDF). 2000 United States Census. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 11 January 2007. 
2. ↑ William C. Maybury was elected as a fusion candidate, but was seated in Congress with the Democratic Party.
3. ↑ Rudolph G. Tenerowicz campaigned as a Republican in 1946, 1948, 1950, 1952, and 1954.

References

• Govtrack.us for the 1st District - Lists current Senators and representative, and map showing district outline
• The Political graveyard: U.S. Representatives from Michigan, 1807–2003
• U.S. Representatives 1837–2003, Michigan Manual 2003–2004
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

Coordinates: 46°09′26″N 86°26′13″W / 46.15722°N 86.43694°W / 46.15722; -86.43694