Representative Charles Horace Holmes

Charles Horace Holmes (October 24, 1827 – October 2, 1874) was a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York. A Republican, he served one term in Congress during a significant period in American history, participating in the legislative process and representing the interests of his constituents in western New York.

Holmes was born in Albion, Orleans County, New York, on October 24, 1827. He was raised in the community in which he would later build his professional and political life. He attended the local public schools and continued his studies at Albion Academy, an institution that provided advanced instruction for young men and women in the region. His early education in Albion laid the foundation for his subsequent legal training and public service.

Pursuing a career in law, Holmes enrolled at Albany Law School, one of the earliest formal law schools in the United States, and graduated in 1854. The following year, in 1855, he was admitted to the bar. He then returned to his hometown of Albion, where he commenced the practice of law. In Albion he established himself as an attorney, building a legal practice that connected him closely with the civic and commercial life of Orleans County and helped to launch his involvement in public affairs.

Holmes’s legal career and Republican affiliation led to his election to the United States House of Representatives. He was elected as a Republican to the Forty-first Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Representative Noah Davis. Holmes took his seat on December 6, 1870, and served until March 3, 1871. His single term in Congress placed him in the national legislature during the Reconstruction era, a time of intense debate over the reintegration of the Southern states, civil rights, and the direction of post–Civil War national policy. Although his tenure was brief, he contributed to the legislative process as part of the Republican majority and participated in the democratic governance of the country. He was not a candidate for renomination at the conclusion of this partial term.

After leaving Congress, Holmes returned to Albion and resumed the practice of law. He continued to live and work in the community where he had been born, educated, and first established his professional reputation. Remaining active in his legal practice, he maintained his role as a local attorney and community figure during the final years of his life.

Charles Horace Holmes died on October 2, 1874. He was interred in Mount Albion Cemetery in Albion, Orleans County, New York. His career reflected the trajectory of a nineteenth-century small-town lawyer who rose to national office for a brief but notable period, representing New York in the House of Representatives as a member of the Republican Party and then returning to his legal work in the community that had shaped his life.