Home County: Buchanan
Term of Service on the Supreme Court of Missouri: November 1872 – October 1876
Judge Henry M. Vories was born May 25, 1810, in Henry County, Kentucky.[i] He was educated in Kentucky[ii] and stayed with his family until the age of 17, when he left for Danville, Indiana.[iii] In Indiana, he worked as a farm hand until the start of the start of the Black Hawk War in summer of 1832.[iv] After his military service, he returned to Danville and opened a mercantile business, but quickly decided he wanted to pursue the study of law.[v]
Vories began to study law in the office of Oliver H. Smith, who was a United States senator.[vi] After passing the bar, he moved to Missouri, first in Clinton County, and then in Buchanan County in 1843.[vii]
Shortly after arriving in Buchanan County, Vories set up a law practice with William B. Almond.[viii] While in Buchanan County, he lived in Sparta, which at the time was the county seat, until the county seat was relocated to St. Joseph.[ix] Vories lived in St. Joseph until 1855, when he moved to San Jose, California, where he practiced law for two years.[x] He then returned to St. Joseph and continued to practice law.[xi] In 1862, Vories became the chair of the St. Joseph bar.[xii]
Vories was elected November 5, 1872, to the Supreme Court of Missouri[xiii] for a six-year term.[xiv] He was determined to stay on the Court, but deteriorating health plagued most of his years on the bench.[xv] On October 2, 1876,[xvi] he stepped down from the Court due to his health.[xvii]
Judge Henry M. Vories died October 29, 1876, at his home in St. Joseph.[xviii]
[i] Henry L. Conard, ed. “Vories, Henry M.,” Encyclopedia of the History of Missouri, A Compendium of History and Biography for Ready Reference, Vol. VI (St. Louis, MO: The Southern History Company, 1901), 305.
[ii] Henry L. Conard, ed. “Vories, Henry M.,” Encyclopedia of the History of Missouri, A Compendium of History and Biography for Ready Reference, 305.
[iii] William Van Ness Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri (St. Louis, MO: F. H Thomas and Company., 1878), 494.
[iv] Van Ness Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 494-495. See also: Patrick J. Jung, The Black Hawk War of 1832, (Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2007), 3, accessed on July 23, 2018. Information courtesy of Google Books, available from; https://books.google.com
[v] Van Ness Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 495.
[vi] Henry L. Conard, ed., “Vories, Henry M.” Encyclopedia of the History of Missouri, A Compendium of History and Biography for Ready Reference, 305. See also: “Henry M. Vories,” The History of Buchanan County, Missouri, Containing A History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., (St. Joseph, MO: Union Historical Company, 1881), 232.
[vii] Van Ness Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 495-496. See also: Christian Ludwig Rutt, Compiler, “Henry M. Vories,” The Daily News’ History of Buchanan County and St. Joseph, MO. From the Time of the Platte Purchase to the End of the Year 1898, Preceded by a Short History of Missouri, Supplemented by Biographical Sketches of Noted Citizens, Living and Dead, (St. Joseph, MO: The St. Joseph Publishing Company, 1900), 535, accessed on July 17, 2018. Information courtesy of Archive.org Website, available from https://archive.org
[viii] “Henry M. Vories,” The History of Buchanan County, Missouri, Containing A History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., 233. See also: Van Ness Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 496.
[ix] Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 496. See also: St. Joseph Weekly Herald, “Able Lawyers. Great Men Who Have Practiced at the Buchanan Bar,” St. Joseph Weekly Herald (St. Joseph, MO), May 23, 1889, page 2, column 1, accessed on July 17, 2018. Information courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri Newspaper Database, available from; http://shsmo.org
[x] “Henry M. Vories,” The History of Buchanan County, Missouri, Containing A History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., 233. See also: Van Ness Bay, Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar in Missouri, 496. See also: Christian Ludwig Rutt, Compiler, “Henry M. Vories,” The Daily News’ History of Buchanan County and St. Joseph, MO. From the Time of the Platte Purchase to the End of the Year 1898, Preceded by a Short History of Missouri, Supplemented by Biographical Sketches of Noted Citizens, Living and Dead, 535.
[xi] Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 496. See also: “Judge Henry M. Vories,” The History of Buchanan County, Missouri, Containing A History of the County, Its Cities, Town, Etc., 233. See also: The Morning Herald Staff, “Two Splendid Residences For Sale,” The Morning Herald (St. Joseph, MO), May 18, 1864, page 3, column 2, accessed on July 17, 2018. Information courtesy of The State Historical Society Newspaper Database, available from; http://shsmo.org
[xii] Fuller, ed. The Green Bag, 184-185. See also: Bay, “Henry M. Vories,” Reminiscences of the Bench and Bar of Missouri, 495.See also: John Livingston, “Vories, Henry M.” Livingston’s Law Register, For 1852; Containing the Post-Office Address of Every Lawyer in the United States, (New York: The U.S. Law Magazine, 1852), 127, accessed on July 18, 2018. Information courtesy of Google Books, available from https://books.google.com See also: The Morning Herald Staff, “Tribute of Respect,” The Morning Herald (St. Joseph, MO), December 24, 1862, page 3, column 2, accessed on July 18, 2018. Information courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri Newspaper Database, available from; http://shsmo.org
[xiii] Michael K. McGrath, Secretary of State, ed., Official Directory of Missouri For 1885 (St. Louis, MO: John J. Daly Stationary & Printing Company, 1885), 134. See also: The Lincoln County Herald Staff, “The Democratic State Convention,” The Lincoln County Herald (Lincoln, MO), August 28, 1872, page 2, column 1, accessed on July 18, 2018. Information courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri and Chronicling America Website, available from; https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov
[xiv] Lexington Weekly Intelligencer Staff, “Worthy of Attention,” Lexington Weekly Intelligencer (Lexington, MO), October 16, 1872, page 2, column 6, accessed on July 23, 2018. Information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri and Chronicling America Website, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov
[xv] The State Journal Staff, “Supreme Court Matters,” The State Journal (Jefferson City, MO), January 24, 1873, page 3, column 6, accessed on July 17, 2018. Information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri and Chronicling America, available from; https://chroniclingameirca.loc.gov
[xvi]Dr. J. Maleiu [Judge Vories’ physician], St. Joseph, Buchanan County, to Gov. Charles Henry Hardin, letter, page 1, dated October 3, 1876, accessed on July 18, 2018. Information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage Webpage, Missouri State Archives, available from; https://www.sos.mo.gov [Letter included notation that “Yesterday-October 2, 1876, Supreme Judge H.M. Vories sent in his resignation as Supreme Judge.]
[xvii] The Holt County Sentinel Staff, The Holt County Sentinel (Oregon, MO), July 2, 1875, page 3, column 4, accessed on July 17, 2018. Information courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri and Chronicling American Website, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov
[xviii] Liberty Tribune Staff, “Judge Vories Dead,” Liberty Tribune (Liberty, MO), November 3, 1876, page 2, column 1, accessed on July 18, 2018. Information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage Website, Missouri State Archives, available from; https://www.sos.mo.gov See also: Lexington Weekly Intelligencer Staff, “Judge Vories Dead,” Lexington Weekly Intelligencer (Lexington, MO), November 4, 1876, page 2, column 4, accessed on July 17, 2018. Information courtesy of State Historical Society of Missouri and Chronicling America Website, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov
Biographical information authored by Ms. Megan Vancil, 2018, University of Missouri-Columbia.