This gallery pass, signed by Arkansas Congressman John Little, gave the bearer a chance to see a Saturday session of the House. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the House convened legislative days on weekends far more often than the modern House. Traveling great distances by primitive modes of transportation, early Members of Congress compressed their brief legislative sessions in the nation’s capital.
History, Art & Archives, U.S. House of Representatives, “Gallery Pass,” http://history.house.gov/Collection/Detail (February 18, 2013)
Office of the Historian
Office of Art and Archives
B-53 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
(202) 226-1300