Putnam County, Ohio - Chapter 13: Courts and Lawyers, 1915

Chapter 13: Courts and Lawyers

The first term of court ever held in Putnam county convened on the 5th day of May, 1834, at the house of Abraham Sarber, in the town of KaHda, and the record says :

"Present - Wilham Cochran, Henry Morris and Silas McClish, associate judges, who produced their commissions from his Excellency Robert Lucas, the governor of the state, endorsed by B. Hinkson, secretary of the state. The associate judges were sworn in taking the oath to support the Constitution of the United States and State, 'and to do equal justice to the poor and the rich, and to faithfully and impartially discharge their duties.' "

The court then appointed Daniel W. Gray as clerk pro tem., who gave a bond of ten thousand dollars for the faithful discharge of his duties, with Abraham Sarber, Samuel V. Ramsey and Thomas Gray as bondsmen. Amos Evans, Esq., was appointed prosecuting attorney. Abraham Sarber was appointed director for the town of Kalida. Thomas Gray, William Priddy and Samuel Myers were appointed county commissioners. Ferdinand C. Fitch was appointed county surveyor, to fill a vacancy. Samuel Myers, John M. Cochran, Isaac Owens, Arthur E. Martin, James Nicholas and Daniel Gray were appointed as examiners of common schools.

It was ordered by the court that two justices of the peace be allowed Blanchard and Sugar Creek townships and that the first Saturday in June,. 1834, be appointed as the day for the election of said officers in said townships.

At a special session of the court, held August 18, 1834, convened for thepurpose of appointing a sheriff and coroner to fill the vacancies now existing in those offices by reason of the omission to hold the election heretoforeordered by said court, it was ordered that William Cochran, Jr., be appointed sheriff and that William Turner be appointed as coroner.

Tavern Licenses

It was ordered that Arthur E. Martin be granted a license to keep a. tavern at his residence on Front street in the town of Kalida until the next term of the court, and at which time Martin was ordered to produce the treasurer's receipt for five dollars, which was the amount to be paid per annum for keeping a tavern.

It was ordered that William Cochran be granted a license to keep a tavern at his residence in Jennings township when he produced the treasurer's receipt for the payment of five dollars for the ensuing year.

A special session of the court was held at the house of Sheldon Guthrie in the town of Kalida, March 20, 1835. The bond of William Turner, as coroner, was approved, the bondsmen being Adam Turner and McDaniel Osborn.

A regular session of the court was held at the court house in Kalida, in April, 1835. Present, George B. Holt, president, and William Cochran, Silas McClish and Henry Morris, associate judges.

First Grand Jury

The following persons were called as grand jurors and entered upon the discharge of their duties: Joseph Teegarden, John Guffy, James Turner, Peter Buzzard, Henry Davis, James D. Wamsley, William Ramsey, Moses Sutton, Caleb Gaskill, Alexander Cochran, Obed Martin, John Hand, James Nicholas, Jr., McDaniel Osborne and Benjamin Clevenger. All answered to their names, except Joseph Teegarden, Henry Davis, Alex Cochran and James Nicholas, Jr., in whose places the sheriff returned from the bystanders the following: Isaac McCracken, Robert McCracken, John Lisk, and John Ridenour. Benjamin Clevenger was appointed foreman. Court adjoirrned until the next morning.

Mr. Phillips was granted a license to keep a tavern at his residence in Kalida, on producing satisfactory evidence to the court that lawful notice of his intention had been given, and that he sustains a good moral character, that he is a suitable man, and is provided with suitable accommodations.

The first case which came up before the- court was that of Joshua Waggonseller vs. Jacob Dewees, in chancery. It was ordered that a notice in this case be published for four weeks in the Saturday Evening Post, a newspaper published in Philadelphia, and that a copy of this notice be posted on the door of the court house for four months previous to the next term of court.

organized townships, malting the number as follows: Monroe, one; Riley, two; Ottawa, two, and Greensburg, one, and that there be allowed one for Union township. It was further ordered that elections be held on the i6th day of May, for these justices of the peace.

Court again convened in April, 1835. Isaac McHeny, aged seventy-two years, a resident of this county, came into court and made a declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress passed June 11, 1832, granting pensions to soldiers of the Revolutionary War, and his declaration was certified to the war department.

There is no official record of the many attorneys who have practiced in Putnam county and it has been difficult to compile a list of the lawyers who have practiced at various times in the county. In the following compilation, they are listed by towns, and an effort has been made to give them in the order in which they settled in the town. Many of them, of course, began practicing in one town and later moved to another town, and especially is this true of the early lawyers of Kalida. Practically all of the attorneys of Kalida moved to Ottawa when the county seat was moved to the latter place in the latter part of the sixties.

Palmer, Benjamin Metcalf, James McKenzie, J. J. Ackerman, W. H. Ball, A. Monroe and Charles Veach. Veach is the only attorney now practicing in

Associate Judges

Previous to 1834, or until the county was organized, this county had no distinctive judges, as the territory was attached to Williams county for judicial purposes.

In 1834 the first associate judges were elected and the bench consisted of the following persons: William Cochran, Henry Morris and Silas Mc- Clish. These judges served until the year 1845. Silas McClish was elected as presiding judge in 1842.

In 1845, George Skinner and Jonathan Sackett were elected as associate judges and served until 1853, when a new state constitution went into effect.

Common Pleas Judges

The court of common pleas was created in 1853 by the enactment of the new constitution. The following have served the county in that capacity : 1853-57, John M. Palmer; 1857-58, M. C. Whiteley; 1858-65, Benjamin F. Metcalf (died in office); 1865, O. W. Rose (served eight months; died in office); 1865-1878, James McKenzie; 1878-79, Charles Hughes (district changed in this year) ; 1879-1885, John J. Moore; 1885-94, W. H. Handy; 1894-99, John M. Sheets; 1898-06, Michael Donnelly (resigned to become member of circuit court of the district) ; 1906, J. S. Ogin (served eight months to fill vacancy) ; 1906-20, John P. Bailey.

Circuit Court Judges

The circuit courts were created in 1884 and Putnam county was placed in the third judicial district, comprising sixteen counties. In 1884, the following judges were elected : Thomas Bier, of Crawford county, for term of two years; John J. Moore, of Putnam, for term of four years; Henry W. Seney, of Hardin county, for term of six years; 1892, James H. Day of Mercer county, elected for six years; 1894, James L. Price, of Allen county elected for six years; 1896, Caleb B. Morris, of Marion county, elected for SIX years; 1896, John C. Royer, of Fulton county, apointed to fill vacancy of Seney; 1904, Silas E. Hurin, of Hancock county, elected for six years; 1906- 15, Michael Donnelly, of Henry county; 1908-20, Walter H. Kinder of Hancock county; 1910-16, Phil M. Crow, of Hardin county; 1915 T T Ansberry, appointed to succeed Donnelly. In 1913 the circuit' court became the appellate court.