September 7, 1850

On this date, the bill admitting California as a free state into the Union passed the House by a vote of 150 to 56. Every northerner who voted supported the measure and a significant number of southerners—27 Members—also approved of the bill. The measure was part of the Compromise of 1850, engineered by Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky who had also played an instrumental role as Speaker of the House 30 years earlier in winning passage of the Missouri Compromise. Clay’s compromise helped resolve the thorny issue of how to incorporate new territories ceded by Mexico in 1848 in the aftermath of the U.S.’s victory in the war with Mexico—including present day California, New Mexico, and Utah. The compromise also set the western boundary of Texas, provided for the enactment of a rigorous fugitive slave law, and banned the slave trade (though not slavery) in Washington, D.C. Two days after the California vote, on September 9, President Millard Fillmore, signed the measure into law, making California the 31st state. On September 11, the state’s two new Representatives, Edward Gilbert and George W. Wright, were sworn in as Members.

September 11, 1990

On this date, President George H. W. Bush addressed a Joint Session of Congress to explain the U.S. response to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait six weeks earlier. With a large U.S. military buildup already under way in the region, the President outlined a series of goals: the unconditional withdrawal of Iraqi forces, the restoration of the Kuwaiti government, the promotion of regional security and stability, and the safety of U.S. citizens in Kuwait and Iraq. “Iraq will not be permitted to annex Kuwait,” Bush said. “And that’s not a threat, not a boast. It’s just the way it’s going to be.” Bush also told the audience that included Representatives, Senators, and diplomats, including the Iraqi ambassador: “Out of these troubled times…a new world order can emerge: a new era, freer from the threat of terror, stronger in the pursuit of justice, and more secure in the quest for peace.” He used the looming crisis to urge Congress to approve a stalled budget agreement and to support a program for domestic oil exploration and production. The address, especially those portions pertaining to Iraq, was largely well received by House Members. Majority Leader Richard Gephardt of Missouri, reflecting broad public support for the President’s position, said: “Here at home, the sense of unity and the absence of widespread opposition to this action in the Persian Gulf testify to our powerful, instinctive feeling that this is a cause worth standing and fighting for.” In early 1991, by a vote of 250 to 183, the House passed the Persian Gulf Resolution authorizing President Bush to use force against the Iraqi military.

September 13, 1918

On this date, the White House presented the House of Representatives with a letter from Jules Jusserand, the French Ambassador, offering a gift of two Sèvres vases. The vases were offered to express France’s “sisterly gratitude for America’s timely help” in World War I and, more specifically, the U.S. Congress’s reception of the Viviani-Joffre mission and their official request for assistance. The House accepted the gift but, unlike the Senate, was unable to schedule an official acceptance ceremony. The vases are excellent examples of the luxurious, high quality ceramics produced in France in the Art Nouveau style between the 1880s and 1910s. Standing nearly six feet tall, the coordinating pair was made at the Sèvres manufactory, a state-run facility in operation since 1740. In addition to their exceptional size, the vases also have a distinctive crystalline glaze, a difficult technique developed in France in the 19th century. The unpredictable nature of the glazing method makes each piece unique. The multicolored, iridescent, frost-like patterns that cascade down the surfaces of the vases were created by mixing zinc oxide and quartz crystals into the glaze, and then firing the stoneware pieces at extremely high heat. The resulting random patterns successfully reflect the nature-inspired forms and organic aesthetic of the Art Nouveau style.