410 April / May 2007

Cornelius Voorhies, Sr.

Cornelius Voorhies, Jr.

By Lawrence E. Marino

In a nation of immigrants such as the

United States, where sons and

daughters often move about the

country and undertake careers far

different from those of their par-

ents, it is uncommon for even three gen-

erations to pursue the same trade or pro-

fession. Perhaps the legal profession re-

mains more persistently in the family

blood. Even if so, when Matthew

Voorhies Spizale graduates from law

school and is admitted to the Louisiana

Bar, he will join one of the oldest legal

family traditions in Louisiana, and most

likely one of the oldest in the nation. He

will become the seventh generation of

the Voorhies family to practice law in

Louisiana.

The Voorhies family (originally

spelled “van Voorhees”) moved from the

Netherlands to the New World in the

1660s. Settling first in New Amsterdam,

now known as New York City, members

of the Voorhies family fought for inde-

Soon-to-be Seven Generations

The Voorhies Family Traditionpendence in the Revolutionary War.

Born the year before the Declaration

of Independence was signed, Cornelius

Voorhies, Sr. moved from New Jersey,

where his branch of the Voorhies family

had settled, to Lexington, Ky. He mar-

ried Aimee Gradenigo, the daughter of a

Venetian nobleman. Around the year

1800, Cornelius moved again, this time

to Avoyelles Parish in the Louisiana Ter-

ritory. After settling there, he served in

the War of 1812 in DeClouet’s Regiment

of the Louisiana Militia.

Cornelius was not only the patriarch

of the Voorhies family in Louisiana, but

also the family’s first Louisiana attorney.

In fact, he became the first judge of

Avoyelles Parish when the state of Loui-

siana was admitted to the Union in 1812.

Afterward, he also served as sheriff of

Avoyelles Parish.

Cornelius’s son, Cornelius Voorhies,

Jr., reached even greater heights in the

legal profession. Also an attorney,

Cornelius, Jr. served on the Louisiana

Supreme Court from 1854 until his death

in 1859. Before that, he had been a Loui-

siana state representative, district attor-

ney, member of the State Constitutional

Convention and district judge. He was

popular and never lost an election.

Before becoming a Supreme Court

justice, Cornelius, Jr. enjoyed a highly

successful private practice. He was re-

nowned for his extensive grasp of the

civil law, as well as for his eloquence in

argument and the elegance and simplic-

ity of his writing. He argued before the

Supreme Court of which he later became

a member. Once he even obtained a rul-

ing in his favor after a justice announced

at the outset of oral argument to his

opponent, Louisiana Attorney General

Isaac Morse, that the court intended to

rule in the attorney general’s favor.

Cornelius, Jr. had little formal educa-

tion, studying law on his own. In addition

to his legal accomplishments, he mas-

tered the French language as well as

English and was reputed to have spoken

French elegantly and with a pure accent.

When he died, his son, Albert Voorhies,

6Generations. . .Nearly 7

Louisiana Bar Journal Vol. 54, No. 6 411

Judge Felix Voorhies

In 1976, Bennett J. Voorhies, Jr., standing, Paul Voorhies of

New Iberia, age 99, and Jean Sosthen Voorhies of Breaux

Bridge, age 95, gathered for the establishment of the Felix

Voorhies Creative Writing Award at the University of South-

western Louisiana and for the donation to USL of the copy-

right for “Acadian Reminiscences,” written by Judge Felix

Voorhies.

Edward Voorhies

took his place on the Louisiana Supreme

Court, becoming its youngest justice at

the tender age of 30 years.

Another of Cornelius, Jr.’s sons, Felix

Voorhies, also became an attorney. Un-

like his father, Felix received a formal

education at St. Charles College in Grand

Coteau, Springhill College in Mobile,

Ala., and the College of the Immaculate

Conception in New Orleans (known as

the Jesuits’ College). He studied law in

the New Orleans office of his brother,

Albert, and was admitted to practice after

passing an examination before the Loui-

siana Supreme Court.

Felix practiced law in St. Martinville

until the Civil War began, enlisting in the

8th Louisiana Infantry Regiment of the

Confederate Army. He served until the

close of hostilities. After the war, Felix

returned to his practice in St. Martinville,

attaining prominence there. In 1892, he

was elected district judge. He was re-

elected in 1896, but declined another

term in 1900 and returned to private

practice until he retired in 1912.

Felix Voorhies is remembered today

for writing Acadian Reminiscences, one

of the primary accounts of the story of

Evangeline, more than for his legal ca-

reer. He also loved the performing arts,

and he composed music and wrote and

directed plays in both French and En-

glish. At the time, women did not act in

plays so Felix used his sons to perform

the female roles.

One of Felix’s sons, Edward Voorhies,

was born in New Iberia but later moved

to Lafayette. He was not only an attorney

but also clerk of court for Lafayette Par-

ish. He was instrumental in bringing the

University of Louisiana at Lafayette, first

named the Southwestern Louisiana In-

dustrial Institute, to Lafayette in 1900.

Among the 18 members of the first gradu-

ating class in 1903 were two of his sons.

One of Edward’s 10 children, Bennett

J. Voorhies, Sr., became particularly

prominent in the Lafayette legal commu-

nity. After receiving his legal education

at Georgetown University Law School,

he co-founded the Lafayette and Monroe

law firm of Voorhies & Labbé in 1924.

He was a political opponent of Huey

Long, campaigning twice

against Long’s allies for

United States Congress and

district judge. Although un-

successful in both elections,

he became president of the

Lafayette Bar Association

and board chair of the

Lafayette Chamber of Com-

merce. He was a social man

and was well-respected and

well-liked in the Lafayette

community.

Bennett’s brother, Rous-

seau Voorhies, was also li-

censed as an attorney but

never practiced. Rousseau led

a colorful life, spending time

in Paris, where he befriended

Gertrude Stein and other ex-

patriates. He also conducted

the last interview of Leon

Trotsky.

Bennett’s son, Bennett J.

Voorhies, Jr., also became

an attorney in Lafayette. Af-

ter serving in both the Air

Force and the Navy during

World War II, Bennett, Jr.

graduated from Tulane Law

School in 1950. Beginning

his practice at his father’s

All photos provided by the Voorhies family.

412 April / May 2007

Bennett J. Voorhies, Jr. Matthew Voorhies Spizale

Bennett J. Voorhies, Sr.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lawrence E. Marino is an at-

torney in the Lafayette, New

Orleans and Baton Rouge law

firm of Oats & Hudson. He

practices environmental, ex-

propriation and governmental

law. He serves on the Louisi-

ana Bar Journal’s Editorial

Board. He received his JD degree in 1994

from Tulane Law School, earning a Certifi-

cate of Specialization in Environmental Law.

(Ste. 400, 100 E. Vermilion St., Lafayette, LA

70501)

firm, Voorhies & Labbé, he soon struck

out on his own. Now in his 80s, he contin-

ues to practice law in Lafayette, focusing

on successions law.

None of Bennett, Jr.’s children en-

tered the practice of law. Both sons be-

came Catholic priests, while one daugh-

ter became a social worker and the other,

Jan Voorhies Spizale, became a teacher

in Lafayette.

Perhaps foreshadowing his eventual

choice of career, Bennett, Jr.’s grandson,

Matthew Spizale, was christened with

the Voorhies name. Matthew wanted to

be a lawyer as a child, and admired his

grandfather, but a high school career

project nearly derailed his ambition to

become a lawyer. Upon interviewing

Bennett, Jr. for the project and learning

of the extensive reading and writing in-

volved in the practice of law, Matthew at

first decided that practicing law was not

for him.

Matthew did not stray too far from his

scholarly roots, becoming an English

major at the University of Louisiana at

Lafayette. But it took Shakespeare, au-

thor of the infamous line, “The first thing

we do, let’s kill all the lawyers,” to bring

him back to the law. In his senior year, he

took a class in Shakespeare from Burton

Raffel, who was not only an English

professor but a lawyer as well. Raffel

applied legal analysis to the study of

Shakespeare, and the discipline and per-

ceptiveness of his thought impressed

Matthew. He wanted to be able to think

like that. When discussing the class with

his mother, Jan, she remarked that the

experience sounded a lot like law school.

This rekindled Matthew’s desire to be a

lawyer. Soon afterward, he was admitted

to Loyola University Law School.

After he graduates later this year, Mat-

thew hopes to practice international law,

or maybe criminal law. But regardless of

the area of law in which he settles, Mat-

thew intends to continue the Voorhies

family legal tradition. Proud of his

family’s place in Louisiana legal (and

literary) history, he plans to become the

seventh generation of the Voorhies fam-

ily to practice law. Even with limitless

choices of career and residence for him

to choose, Matthew will guarantee that

there will still be a Voorhies practicing

law in Louisiana, as there has been since

Louisiana first became a state.

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