Toensing lists his last name as Gorham. The Minnesota Legislative Manual, 1879 lists both Gorham and Gorman.
He came to Minnesota in May, 1855.
In his native State he followed farming and teaching school. Since settling in Minnesota he has devoted himself exclusively to agricultural pursuits. He owns a half-section of land and has 250 acres of it under cultivation. Senator Gorham is of Scotch origin, but he is so thoroughly Americanized that all traces of his nationality appear to be lost in or swallowed up by this tenacious, aggressive, all-absorbing Yankee element. Politically, he belongs to* the Republican party." (Daily Globe (St. Paul), February 7, 1879)