Joseph Vance

Joseph Vance (March 21, 1786 – August 24, 1852) was a Whig politician from the U.S. state of Ohio. He served as the 13th governor of Ohio and was the first Whig to hold this position.

Biography Vance was born in Catfish (now Washington), Pennsylvania. He moved to Vanceburg, Kentucky, with his father Joseph C. Vance, a Revolutionary War veteran, in 1788, and later moved to Urbana, Ohio, in 1805. Vance married Mary Lemon in 1807.

Career A salt farmer, Vance gained a commission during the War of 1812 and rose quickly from Major to Major General. He served in the Ohio House of Representatives in 1812–1813, 1815–1816 and 1818–1819. Elected to the United States House of Representatives 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.

Legacy Vance was instrumental in laying out the town of Findlay, Ohio.