Valentine Baxter Horton (January 29, 1802 – January 14, 1888) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

during the first two years of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

Biography

Born in

Windsor, Vermont Windsor is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. As the "Birthplace of Vermont", the town is where the Constitution of Vermont was adopted in 1777, thus marking the founding of the Vermont Republic, a sovereign state until 1791, when ...

, Horton attended the Partridge Military School and afterward became one of its tutors. He studied law in

Middletown, Connecticut Middletown is a city located in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States, Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, it is south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. In 1650, it was incorporated by English settler ...

, and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1830. He moved to

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, where he practiced. He moved to

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

, in 1833, and on to

Pomeroy, Ohio Pomeroy ( ) is a village in and the county seat of Meigs County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River 21 miles south of Athens. The population was 1,852 at the 2010 census. History Pomeroy was founded in 1804 and named for landowner Samuel ...

, in 1835. He engaged in the sale and transportation of coal and the development of the salt industry. He served as member of the State constitutional convention in 1850. Horton was elected as an

Opposition Party Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''th ...

candidate to the Thirty-fourth Congress and was reelected 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 Thirty-fifth Congress (March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1859). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1858. He served as member of the

Peace Conference of 1861 The Peace Conference of 1861 was a meeting of 131 leading American politicians in February 1861, at the Willard's Hotel in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the American Civil War. The purpose of the conference was to avoid, if possible, the secess ...

held in Washington, D.C., in an effort to devise means to prevent the impending war. He engaged in coal mining. Horton was elected as a

to the Thirty-seventh Congress (March 4, 1861–March 3, 1863). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1862 and returned to his home. He died in Pomeroy, Ohio, January 14, 1888, and was interred in Beech Grove Cemetery.

References

Retrieved on 2009-04-29 {{DEFAULTSORT:Horton, Valentine Baxter 1802 births 1888 deaths People from Windsor, Vermont Opposition Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Ohio Constitutional Convention (1850) Politicians from Cincinnati People of Ohio in the American Civil War Ohio lawyers Ohio University trustees People from Pomeroy, Ohio 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio