The Montana State Legislature is made up of two chambers, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Constitution of Montana limits the size of the Senate to no fewer than 40 and no more than 50 members and the size of the House of Representatives to no fewer than 80 and no more than 100 members. Each house is responsible for choosing its officers, creating committees and establishing its own rules. The Montana Legislature meets for 90 days every odd numbered year, beginning the first Monday in January, or the following Wednesday if the first Monday is New Years Day. The first State Legislature convened on November 23, 1889, fifteen days after Montana became a state. Each following Legislature has been numbered sequentially.
The 8th Montana Legislature met from January 5th to March 5th, 1903, and an Extraordinary Session held on March 16th, 1903. The leaders of the Senate were Frank Higgins (D-President), and Wesley Biggs (D-President Pro Tempore). The leaders of the House were Benjamin White (R-Speaker), and Aaron Conner (R-Speaker Pro Tempore).
Sources:
Records (1903) of the Montana 8th Legislative Assembly consist of scattered House bills from the Regular Session, court papers concerning the impeachement of Edward W. Harney, reports of Senate Finance and Claims Committee (re investigation of State Treasurer A.H. Barrett) from the Extraordinary Session, and miscellaneous materials, which includes a testimony from Edward W. Harney concerning the disbarment of Arthur J. Shores.
The collection is organized into three series, Regular Session, Extraoridnary Session, and Miscellaneous. The series Regular Session is organized into two subseries, House of Representatives Bills (organized numerically) and Court Papers. The series Extraordinary Session is organized into one subseries, Senate Standing Committee Reports (arranged alphabetically).
Collection is open for research.
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[item description and date].Montana Legislative Assembly (8th: 1903) records, 1903. Legislative Records 8. [box and folder numbers]. Montana Historical Society Research Center. Archives. Helena, Montana.
Acquisition information available upon request.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the Montana Historical Society Archives catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search under these terms.