Voss moved to
Chicago, Illinois in 1848 to take a position as the editor of the
Illinois Staats-Zeitung, a German-language newspaper. The next year, Hermann Kriege assumed the editorship and Voss opened a law practice. He became involved with the Chicago German Off Battalion, a citizen soldier group that was attached to the 60th Regiment, Illinois State Militia. Voss was elected Chicago City Attorney in 1852 and was re-elected the next year. In 1854, Voss was named an
adjutant of the newly formed Washington Independent Regiment. Voss was still serving in this role upon the outbreak of the
Civil War. On September 4, 1861, Voss was named major of the
6th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Cavalry. On February 1, 1862, he assisted in the creation of the
12th Illinois Cavalry, closing his law firm so that he could focus on the regiment. It was then deployed to
Virginia as part of the
Peninsula Campaign. The regiment was attached to
VIII Corps and was present for the disastrous
Battle of Harpers Ferry. Voss took two thousand cavalry to the enemy lines, creating an opening to let the regiment retreat. They regrouped in
Greencastle, Pennsylvania and were attached to
Army of the Potomac in time for the
Battle of Antietam. The regiment also witnessed the
Battle of Gettysburg and
Stoneman's 1863 Raid. In early 1864, Colonel Voss was forced to resign due to poor health. ==Later life and death==