The Golden Age of the Senate began with the Senate’s rise to national prominence around 1820 and ended with the breakdown of compromise in the 1850s, leading to the Civil War. The era brought to the chamber many of the greatest orators of the day.

Visitors packed the galleries to hear eloquent oratory and impassioned debate over the nation's most pressing issues. Speeches stretched on for hours and even for days on such vital topics as westward expansion, national development, and the future of slavery. Newspapers often printed the complete texts of these speeches, bringing them national attention. Speakers of that era set a high standard against which future orations would be judged. Located on the Senate website are transcripts of some of the best known Classic Senate Speeches.

Today, the speeches given by senators on the Senate floor are recorded and printed in the Congressional Record.