Born in
Washington County, Pennsylvania, Van Vorhes moved to
Athens County, Ohio, in 1832 and engaged in agricultural pursuits. Apprenticed to a printer for six years. He was editor and proprietor of
The Athens Messenger 1844-1861. He served as member of the State House of Representatives 1850-1872 and served four years as speaker. Van Vorhes lost the
election for
Ohio Secretary of State as a
Whig in 1853. Van Vorhes was elected probate judge in 1854, but resigned. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1858 to the
Thirty-sixth Congress. He served as delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1860. He entered the
Union Army as a
private in 1861 and was mustered out as
colonel of the
92nd Ohio Infantry in the Summer of 1863, when his health failed. His father was:
Abraham Van Vorhes who also served in the
Ohio General Assembly and Minnesota Territorial Legislature and his brother was:
Andrew J. Van Vorhes who served in the
Minnesota House of Representatives. Van Vorhes was elected as a
Republican to the
Forty-fourth and
Forty-fifth Congresses (March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1879). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1878 to the
Forty-sixth Congress. He died in
Athens, Ohio, December 4, 1882, and was interred in West Union Street Cemetery. ==References==