Joseph Vance (March 21, 1786 – August 24, 1852) was a Whig politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. He was the 13th

governor of Ohio A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

and the first Whig to hold the position.

Biography

Vance was born in Catfish (now Washington), Pennsylvania. He moved with his father, Joseph C. Vance, a Revolutionary War veteran, to

Vanceburg, Kentucky Vanceburg is a home rule-class city in Lewis County, Kentucky, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,518 at the 2010 census and estimated in 2018 to be 1,395. It is the county seat of Lewis County. Vanceburg is part of the ...

, in 1788, and then to

Urbana, Ohio Urbana is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Ohio, United States, west of Columbus. Urbana was laid out in 1805, and for a time in 1812 was the headquarters of the Northwestern army during the War of 1812. It is the burial place ...

, in 1805. Vance married Mary Lemon in 1807.

Career

A salt farmer, Vance gained a commission during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It be ...

and rose quickly from

Major Major ( commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicato ...

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

. He served in the

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in Ch ...

in 1812–1813, 1815–1816 and 1818–1819. Elected to the

United States House of Representatives 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 ...

in 1820, Vance served seven terms before losing a bid for an eighth term in 1834. Vance ran for governor in 1836 and served a single two-year term, losing a bid for re-election in 1838. He intended to retire but was elected to the

Ohio State Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of the s ...

, and served in the Senate from 1840 to 1841. Vance ran again for the House of Representatives in 1842 and served two more terms in the House. He did not run for re-election in 1846. Vance was a delegate to the

1848 Whig National Convention The 1848 Whig National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held from June 7 to 9 in Philadelphia. It nominated the Whig Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1848 election. The convention selected General Za ...

and was a member of the Ohio State Constitutional Convention in 1851.

Death

Vance died on August 24, 1852, and was buried at Oak Dale Cemetery.

Legacy

Vance was instrumental in laying out the town of

Findlay, Ohio Findlay ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Ohio, United States. The second-largest city in Northwest Ohio, Findlay lies about 40 miles (64 km) south of Toledo. The population was 40,313 at the 2020 census. It is home ...

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vance, Joseph 1786 births 1852 deaths Governors of Ohio Members of the Ohio House of Representatives Ohio state senators People from Washington County, Pennsylvania People from Urbana, Ohio American militiamen in the War of 1812 Ohio Constitutional Convention (1850) Ohio Democratic-Republicans Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives Ohio National Republicans National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Whig Party state governors of the United States 19th-century American politicians Burials in Ohio American militia generals Military personnel from Pennsylvania