John Van Voorhis (October 22, 1826October 20, 1905) was an American lawyer and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Early life

Van Voorhis was born in 1826 in

Decatur, New York The Town of Decatur is located on the eastern border of Otsego County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 U.S. census, it had a population of 353. It is named after the popular early-American naval hero Stephen Decatur. History Early set ...

. His family moved several times before settling in the town of Mendon. He studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in December 1851, and commenced practice in

Elmira, New York Elmira () is a city and the county seat of Chemung County, New York, United States. It is the principal city of the Elmira, New York, metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses Chemung County. The population was 26,523 at the 2020 cens ...

in the spring of 1853. He soon chose to relocate to

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...

and opened his own practice on July 4, 1854, where he was eventually joined by his brother Quincy and sons Eugene and Charles.

Career

Van Voorhis was a member of the Board of Education in 1857 and was

City Attorney A city attorney is a position in city and municipal government in the United States. The city attorney is the attorney representing the municipality. Unlike a district attorney or public defender, who usually handles criminal cases, a city at ...

of Rochester in 1859. He was appointed Collector of Internal Revenue for the 28th District of New York and held that office from September 1, 1862, to March 31, 1863. He was a delegate to the

1864 Republican National Convention The 1864 National Union National Convention was the United States presidential nominating convention of the National Union Party, which was a name adopted by the main faction of the Republican Party in a coalition with many, if not most, War Dem ...

. In 1873, Van Voorhis joined the legal defense of

Susan B. Anthony Susan B. Anthony (born Susan Anthony; February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to s ...

during her trial for voting in the 1872 elections, working alongside Henry Selden. Other notable clients of his included

Martha Matilda Harper Martha Matilda Harper (September 10, 1857 – August 3, 1950) was an American businesswoman, Entrepreneurship, entrepreneur, and Invention, inventor who launched modern retail franchising and then built an international network of 500 franchising, ...

, who opened her first salon with his help in 1888, and

Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 1817 or 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became ...

. Van Voorhis was an honorary pall-bearer at Douglass' funeral in 1895 and contributed to a monument erected in his honor in 1899. Van Voorhis was elected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to the 46th and

47th United States Congress The 47th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1881, ...

es, holding office from March 4, 1879, to March 3, 1883. He was Chairman of the Committee on Mines and Mining (47th Congress). During his time in Congress, he urged the construction of a federal building in Rochester. His efforts were successful and the Rochester federal building (today the

city hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

) was built. In between terms he resumed the practice of law in Rochester. He was again elected to the

53rd United States Congress The 53rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1893 ...

, holding office from March 4, 1893, to March 3, 1895. In 1895, Van Voorhis made a strong defense of the

Seneca Nation The Seneca Nation of Indians is a federally recognized Seneca tribe based in western New York. They are one of three federally recognized Seneca entities in the United States, the others being the Tonawanda Band of Seneca (also in western New Y ...

against a claim that the defunct

Ogden Land Company The Holland Land Company was an unincorporated syndicate of thirteen Dutch investors from Amsterdam who in 1792 and 1793 purchased the western two-thirds of the Phelps and Gorham Purchase, an area that afterward was known as the Holland Purchase ...

held title over the Allegany and Cattaraugus Reservations, and opposed a provision for Congress to pay the company's shareholders $300,000 for the land. The version of the bill containing the provision was defeated in the House, and the Senecas prevailed in retaining their land."Indian Appropriation Bill (H.R. 8479)" ''Congressional Record'' 27 (1895) pp. 3186-3190. (Text from: ''Congressional Record Permanent Digital Collection''); Accessed: December 17, 2022. After leaving Congress, he again resumed the practice of law.

Personal life

Through his son Eugene, a lawyer in Rochester, NY, his grandson was Judge

John Van Voorhis John Van Voorhis (October 22, 1826October 20, 1905) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. Early life Van Voorhis was born in 1826 in Decatur, New York. His family moved several times before settling in the town of Mendon. He ...

, of the

New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by t ...

. The Judge's son was also named Eugene, (Hotchkiss 1951, Yale '55, Yale Law ‘58). He was buried at the

Mount Hope Cemetery, Rochester Mount Hope Cemetery in Rochester, Monroe County, New York, founded in 1838, is the first municipal cemetery in the United States. It is the burial site of Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass. Situated on of land adjacent to the University of ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Voorhis, John 1826 births 1905 deaths American people of Dutch descent People from Otsego County, New York Politicians from Rochester, New York Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians Lawyers from Rochester, New York