USA > Indiana > Knox County > Vincennes > History of Old Vincennes and Knox County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 44
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HISTORY OF KNOX COUNTY
begun until 1851 when the road was built as far west of Cincinnati as Sey- mour ; and was not completed until 1858 .; The road was built with a six- foot guage, but in order to accommodate its rapidly-increasing traffic, and to facilitate the movement of freight by transferring cars to other roads, the company decided to change the guage; and on Sunday, July 14. 1871, the standard guage was established-the time consumed in making the change being from 6 o'clock a. m. till 7 o'clock p. m.
The Evansville & Terre Haute Railroad Company ( Frisco) which con- nects Vincennes with Chicago, Evansville and Terre Haute, was completed in 1854, although construction on same began in 1850. The Indianapolis & Vincennes Railroad (Vandalia) which is a direct route from Vincennes to the state capital, was built in 1873. The Cairo & Vincennes Railroad (New York Central) was begtin in 1872 and completed in 1874.
INCORPORATIONS OF PAST AND PRESENT.
Early in the nineteenth century old Knox boasted of an agricultural so- ciety, of which John D. Hay and Symmes Harrison were the promoters. The object of the organization, which was formed in 1809, was "to encourage domestic products." The society only held one meeting. In 1826 Henry D. Wheeler organized a similar institution, which remained intact for several years, until the legislature passed a law making provision for the commis- sioners to aid stich organizations, when a third one was established, and dur- ing the years 1836, 1837 and 1838, $80-$25 for the two first years named and $30 for the third-were appropriated. There is, however, no record of any fair having been held during the time specified. On October 11 and 12, 1855, the "fifth annual fair" was held at the courthouse. The officers of this association were : James D. Williams, president ; A. B. McKee, secretary, and Thomas Beeler, treasurer. The membership fee cost $1, and the premium awards were distributed in the departments of agriculture, manufacture and mechanics. A purse of five dollars was also given for the best essay on stock raising, and one on agriculture. The following year (October 15, 16, 1856) the sixth fair was held, a mile from town on the plank road, and proved a financial success. After paying out two hundred dollars in pre- miums, the society had more than $4,000 on hand, over which much dis- satisfaction arose as to who should be its custodian, eventually leading to the disorganization of the concern. James D. Williams who, it will be re- membered, defeated Benjamin Harrison for governor of Indiana, in 1876, was a persistent organizer of fair associations, and in 1858 formed another agricultural and mechanical society. On October 28, 29 and
t Col. C. M. Allen and C. P. McGrady were contractors for building the O. & M. road between Vincennes and Mitchell. They owned a team of large elks with which they drove back and forth on the works from Vincennes, the novel turnout always attracting no small amount of attention. Col. Allen also had the contract for con- structing the greater portion of the C. & V. road.
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30, 1858, this organization held its initial meetings as a district fair, at which the counties of Gibson, Warrick, Pike, Sullivan and Lawrence county, Ill., were represented by exhibits, while both Louisville, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., had notable displays among the 1,000 or more entries. Judge Law on the second day of the meeting delivered an interesting address on agriculture. Notwithstanding the great success that attended the district fair, it was suffered to become extinct after the following year, and no effort was made to revive it until 1871, when the present Knox County Agricul- tural and Mechanical Society, through the agency of James D. Williams, was brought to life. The organization was chartered under the laws of the state on June 29, 1871, with a capital stock of $20,000, divided into shares of ten dollars each ; and the first meeting was held on the third week in Oc- tober of that year. Mr. Williams was the first president; H. A. Foulks, treasurer, and Enoch R. Steen, secretary. The society has been in existence ever since, adding to its possessions year by year, and controls an immense tract of valuable land bordering on the northwestern limits of the city. It is judiciousły managed and ably officered by the following well known gen- tlemen : President, Ephraim C. Gilmore; secretary, James M. House ; treas- urer, B. M. Willoughby.
The first medical society ever formed in the state of Indiana was or- ganized in Knox County in 1817. There is a probability that an association of a similar character had an existence prior to this date, and that its mem- bership was composed of such eminent physicians as Dr. T. V. Tisdale, who was a resident of Vincennes as early as 1792; Dr. Samuel McKee, father of the late Archibald McKee, who was a surgeon of the United States army, and located here in 1800, and Dr. McNamara, who came here about the be- ginning of the nineteenth century. The medical society which came into existence in Knox County one year after Indiana had been admitted to state- hood, memorialized congress to enact a law providing for the formation of medical pharmacopeia. In 1830 the second medical society was formed, of which Dr. Joseph Somes was president, and Dr. H. M. Smith, secretary and treasurer. On April 24. 1875, in response to a call issued by Dr. F. W. Beard, and other members of the medical fraternity, a large number of physicians of city and county met at the city hall and organized the present Knox County Medical Society, the object of which is for the advancement of medical science and mutual improvement. The first officers were Dr. John W. Pugh, president ; F. W. Beard, secretary; Alfred Patton, treasurer. The present officers are Dr. W. H. Davenport, president, and Dr. S. C. Bryan, secretary and treasurer.
The Lancet Club, while having no direct connection therewith, does not consider an applicant eligible for membership who does not belong to the Knox County Medical Society. The Lancet is composed exclusively of phy- sicians of Vincennes, and was founded in 1906 at the instigation of Dr. S. C. Beard, son of Dr. F. W. Beard. It is a literary, scientific, social and fra- ternal organization, and is unique in many respects. It has but one perma-
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nent officer-the secretary-whose sole duty is to keep a record of the pro- ceedings. The surgeon-general is the presiding officer. This position is changed every meeting, alphabetically, so that every member serves in turn in this capacity. Each surgeon-general formulates the program for his own meeting, according to his own desire, without calling any other member into consultation.
Brilliant and eminent men have always given a high tone to the medical profession of Vincennes and of the towns and hamlets of the county. The citizens of the present generation living at the Old Post can recall among the more learned disciples of Esculapius the venerable Dr. Hubbard M. Smith, Dr. Batty, Dr. Robert B. Jessup, Sr., accomplished physician and surgeon, whose talented son, Dr. Robert B. Jessup, Jr., acquired his practical knowledge in the best clinics of Europe, as a practitioner of Bellevue Hos- pital, New York City, and as microscopic demonstrator in the Illinois Col- lege of Medicine at Chicago; Dr. F. W. Beard, another noted physician and surgeon, whose enviable reputation is sustained by his son, Dr. S. C. Beard ; Dr. J. C. Bever, Dr. John R. Mantel, Dr. Alfred Patton, Dr. W. B. Harris, Dr. W. W. Hitt, Dr. Joseph Somes, and many others, who not alone graced the profession, to which they were wedded, but were largely instrumental in advancing the scientific, educational and commercial interests of the old town.
The representatives of the medical profession in Vincennes are an intelli- gent class of people, industrious and provident, as a rule, and nearly all of them have accumulated largely of worldly goods. The following comprises a complete list of the present practitioners, physicians and surgeons : John B. Anderson, Richard Anderson, Schuyler C. Beard, Norman E. Beckes, Chas. W. Benham, Norman E. Beckes, Eugene P. Bowers, Claudius L. Boyd, Chas. S. Bryan, David M. Buley, Patrick H. Caney, Wm. H. Davenport. Louis J. Downey, Omar Fairhurst, Wm. H. Gilbert. Benjamin Griffith, Silas Hall, John S. Hamilton, Henry Held, James H. Hoag. Louis F. Hulsman, John G. Jones. Adam B. Knapp. George Knapp, Hubert D. McCormick, James N. McCoy, Mordecai McDowell, Thos. J. McGowen, Emanuel Mas- gana, Thomas H. Maxedon, Mary H. Michie, Reuben G. Moore, Harry M. Parrett, Edward F. Pielemeire, Samuel Prather. John P. Ramsey, James M. Sanders, Joseph W. Smadel, Wm. F. Smith, Jos. F. Somes, Thomas F. Spink, Clarke E. Stewart, Wilhelm T. Von Knappe, Almira C. W. B. Williamson, Colonel E. Witty.
AN ARRAY OF BRIGHT LEGAL LIGHTS.
Knox County has always been noted for the brilliancy and eminence of the men comprising her legal profession, having gained a prominence in this respect at a period even antedating the county's organization. Complete biographical sketches of all of the distinguished gentlemen identified with the bar of Knox County, as well as the medical profession, are presented in another volume of this work, and it will not be necessary to introduce them
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here. However, a brief mention of some of the more prominent men con- nected with the bench and bar, who have long since been gathered to their fathers, would seem apropos to the history of both county and city.
The first session of the circuit court was opened on May 9, 1814, but, none of the judges putting in an appearance, court was adjourned from day to day, for three successive days, by the clerk and sheriff-and a repetition of this procedure occurred at the term of the August following. March 6, 1815, however, the court was duly opened with Isaac Blackford as the presid- ing judge, and Daniel Sullivan and James B. McCall as associate judges. The first practitioners at the bar of the circuit court were Henry Hurst, General W. Johnson, John Johnson, William Prince and Benjamin Furgu- son. The names of the presiding judges from the date last named up to the present time, with the years they served, are as follows: Isaac Black- ford, March, 1815 to March, 1816; David Raymond, March, 1816 to October, 1816; William Prince, February, 1817 to April, 1818; Thos. H. Blake, May, 1818 to October, 1818; General W. Jackson, February, 1819 to October, 1819; Jonathan Doty, May, 1819 to October, 1821 ; Jacob Call, March, 1822 to March, 1824; John R. Porter, September, 1824 to August, 1829; John Law, March, 1830 to March, 1831; General W. Johnson, September, 1831 to September, 1832; Amory Kinney, March, 1832 to September, 1836; Elisha M. Huntington, March, 1837 to April, 1841 ; John Law, 1844 to 1850; Samuel B. Gookins, August 19, 1850 to August 31, 1850; Delana R. Eckles, February, 1851 to August, 1852; Alvin P. Hovey, March, 1853 to September, 1853; William E. Niblack, March, 1854 to September 1857; Ballard Smith, March, 1858 to September, 1858; Michael F. Burke, March 1859 to March, 1864; James C. Denny, August, 1864 to September, 1864; John Baker, Feb- ruary, 1865 to October, 1870; Newton F. Malott, February, 1871 to April, 1888; George W. Shaw, April, 1888 to November, 1900; Orlando H. Cobb, December, 1900, present incumbent.
The late Hon. William E. Niblack was conspicuous among the most able jurists of his day. He was born in Dubois County, May 19, 1823, but when quite a young man moved to Dover Hill, in Martin County. This was really the beginning of his public career, and from its inception he showed himself to be a man of marked ability and great force of character. For several terms he represented Martin County in the Indiana legislature, both in the house and senate. In 1854 he was appointed judge of this judicial circuit ; and in 1858, while still on the bench, was elected to congress from this district, to fill a vacancy occasioned by the death of James Lockhart. He took up his residence at Vincennes about 1859, and for seven consecutive terms occupied a seat in the legislative halls of the national congress, defeat- ing for election some of the ablest men of the district, among whom were Alvin P. Hovey and Judge Law, the latter for nomination. His congres- sional career, which ran through fourteen years, was characterized by wis- dom, honesty and integrity, and won golden opinions for him as a safe and patriotic legislator among the most stalwart of his political enemies.
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He was elected in 1876 as a member of the supreme court of Indiana, and again in 1882, and wore the judicial ermine with becoming grace and dig- nity, his decisions always being sound and logical. Soon after his election to the supreme bench, he moved to Indianapolis where he died on May 7, 1893. Surviving him are two very accomplished daughters, Misses Lida and Sada Niblack, Indianapolis, Hon. Mason J. Niblack, Vincennes, who was elected for three consecutive terms to the Indiana legislature, and each time occupied the chair of Speaker of the House of Representatives. Lieutenant Albert P. Niblack, U. S. N .. and Wm. C. Niblack, Chicago, president of the Illinois Trust Company.
Hon. James C. Denny, well remembered by many older citizens of the county, and who was elected in 1872 as attorney general, received his com- mission of circuit judge of Knox County from Governor Morton, and was appointed as such to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Judge Burke. He was a self-made man and very popular with the masses.
Judge Newton F. Malott was a native of Lawrence County, where he was born in 1831. He was a graduate of the law department of the state uni- versity, and practiced law at Bedford for many years as a partner of the late Thomas R. Cobb. The firm moved to Vincennes in 1867, and soon acquired a large practice. Mr. Malott was first elected judge in 1870, and occupied that position at the time of his death in 1888, when the Hon. Geo. W. Shaw became his successor, to fill the unexpired term, by appointment of Governor Gray. Judge Malott was a fair and impartial jurist, and always gave every question by which he was confronted while on the bench the most careful and thoughtful consideration before rendering a judicial decision. A sketch of Hon. Geo. W. Shaw, and, also, one of the Hon. O. H. Cobb, will be found in the other volume of this work.
Space forbids an extended individual mention of the many notable men in the legal profession who gave lustre, fame and dignity to the Knox County bench and bar from territorial days down to the present time. Brief notice of some of the practitioners, however, of the past and present may not be amiss.
John Rice Jones, scholar, linguist and diplomat, to whom reference has been made in preceding chapters, was one of the prominent attorneys of early days, having been in the territory long before the close of the eighteenth century. He left a distinguished son, George W. Jones, who was a mem- ber of the United States senate from Iowa for many years. Moses Tabbs. Marylander by birth, eloquent, brainy, honest, religious, who came here in 1818, was another. He was a son-in-law of Charles Carroll, last survivor among the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Charles Dewey, most eloquent of pleaders, with strong anti-slavery proclivities, quit the bar in 1836 to go on the supreme bench, and for ten years served as a jurist with marked distinction. Thomas Randolph, descendant of John Randolph of Roanoke. friend of Harrison, who labored with the latter to have the ordinance of 1787, relative to the slavery clause suspended, was among the pioneer prac-
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titioners at the Knox county bar ; as were the following named gentlemen : Alexander Buckner, who came here from Louisville, Ky., a member of the celebrated Buckner family. He removed from here to Missouri, and on the admission of that state into the union was chosen as one of its first United States senators. Geo. R. C. Sullivan, another Kentuckian, kin to the Buck- ners, and related to Elihu Stout. He married the eldest daughter of Judge Vanderburg and became the father of an interesting family. He was secre- tary of the territorial assembly at both meetings of the fifth session, filled the office of prosecuting attorney for this circuit, and was a strong advocate of whig doctrines. John Johnson, who became one of the first judges of the supreme court of the state, was a great orator. Moved to Princeton at the close of territorial government and became a member of the first state legis- lature held in Indiana. Edward A. Hannegan came to Vincennes in April, 1829; moved to Covington, Ind., and was elected to the twenty-third and twenty-fourth congress from the seventh district. While a member of the United States senate he suddenly stopped in the midst of a discussion to take cognizance of the death of Henry Clay, delivering a memorial that attracted the attention of the country at large on account of its pathos and eloquence.
As lawyer and scholar, the name of Samuel Judah will long endure. He was born in the city of New York in 1798, and came to Indiana when a very young man, locating at Merom, Sullivan County, whence he came to Vin- cennes. His fame as a lawyer was not confined to the state, and he was frequently consulted on many important cases beyond the borders of Indiana. Ile was looked upon as being the most able and learned lawyer of his day, and during the long years he devoted to the practice of his profession was busily engaged in litigations, all of which were of more or less importance. In the suits brought by the trustees to recover the township in Gibson County appropriated by the United States government for the use of the Vincennes university, he was counsel-in-chief, and instituted a number of cjectment suits against property owners who held lands purchased under an act of the Indiana legislature which authorized sales thercof for the benefit of the state university at Bloomington. In fighting for his clients, Mr. Judah waged the warfare at great personal risk, as there was much bad blood engendered in Gibson County over the controversy, and several threats were made against his life. The subsequent enactment of a law by the legislature authorizing the institution of a suit against the state in the Marion county circuit court to test the validity of title to the lands in controversy, and the state's pledge to abide the decision honorably and faithfully, were all that prevented a reign of terror, and probably saved Mr. Judah's life. Fighting heroically through the Marion circuit court, the Indiana supreme court and the supreme court of the United States, he finally established the claim of the university and recovered for the institution a judgment equal to the value of the lands sold by the state. After several years the state issued bonds to pay off the afore- said judgment ; and one-third of the bonds were retained by Mr. Judah for services rendered and expenses incurred in having the measure enacted.
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Then the trustees brought suit against Judah to recover from him on the bonds he was instrumental in having issued for them, and the result was a seige of long and mystifying litigation, during which the lawyer's integrity was never assailed. Mr. Judah took a great delight in encouraging and aid- ing young men who were inclined to be cither studious or ambitious. He was a profound Greek and Latin scholar ; and many of the students who ex- perienced difficulty in familiarizing themselves with Caesar and Homer, found these authors agreeable companions after Mr. Judah's methods of transla- tion had been imparted to them. It was always a pleasure for him to assist a diligent student in learning hard lessons. Towards the close of his life, which ended in April, 1869, he was a great sufferer from rheumatism, which rendered him at times very irritable .. Among the surviving children of his illustrious family are Mrs. Alice Clarke and Samuel B. Judah, of Vincennes ; John M. Judah, of Indianapolis, and Noble B. Judah, of Chicago.
Benjamin Thomas, a native of Philadelphia, whose death occurred at Vincennes in 1863, and William W. Carr, stepson of Judge John Moore, who died in 1847, were both men of classical education. The former in 1853 served as district attorney of Indiana, and in 1856 was a law partner of Judge Goodkins of Chicago. During the administration of President Polk, Mr. Carr held the position as secretary of the territory of Oregon.
Cyrus M. Allen was one of the leading lights in the legal profession of Vincennes during the latter half of the nineteenth century. He was a native of Clarke County, Ky., but moved from there into Indiana about 1838, locat- ing first at Paoli. Three years later he took up his residence at Petersburg, in Pike county, where he resided until 1843, when he removed to Vincennes, practicing his chosen profession and following the avocation of railroad con- tracting up to the time of his death. In 1870 he formed a partnership for the practice of law with the late Nathaniel Usher and Judge William R. Gardiner. Mr. Usher, who was a bright lawyer, brilliant wit and humorist, died in 1877. Judge Gardiner, the brightest and most eloquent practitioner of the Indiana bar, is living at his palatial home at Washington-a hand- some, courteous, chivalrous gentleman, past three score and ten. He is well and favorably remembered by the older citizens of Vincennes, and cherishes down deep in his heart the kindliest feelings for the people and the old town, to which he often refers as his home. Cyrus M. Allen was a personal friend of Abraham Lincoln, and made many eloquent speeches from the stump in behalf of the candidacy of the martyred president during the campaign of 1860. Twice he was honored with election to the Indiana general assembly, and in 1861, while serving as a representative of that body from Knox county, was chosen at the general and special sessions as speaker of the house. In 1864 he was the republican candidate for congress from this dis- trict against Judge Niblack, and was defeated by less than 1,800 votes. The canvas of the district was made jointly by these two congressional candi- dates, who were the warmest personal friends, but the most bitter political enemies. Allen attributed his defeat to the fact that a large number of the
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soldiers, who would have cast their ballots for him, were at the front fight- ing rebels when the election came off. Col. Allen, through the practice of law and contracting, amassed several fortunes, but he died in 1883 in pos- session of very little of this world's goods. The only survivors of his im- mediate family are his youngest son, Louis O. Allen, and Mrs. Lloyd Allen Johnston, daughter of his eldest son, Cy. M. Allen, deceased. Mrs. Johnston is the present owner of the Allen homestead, a stately mansion at Fourth and Main, that was built by William Bonner in 1840, and in which the Allens have sumptuously entertained the votaries of social swelldom on innumer- able occasions.
Hon. Henry S. Canthorn, born in Vincennes, February 23, 1828, was a distinguished member of the Knox County bar up to the time of his death, November 16, 1905. His father was a native of Essex county, Va., and came west in 1823, locating at Lawrenceville, Ill., where he died in 1834. His mother was a daughter of Elihu Stout, who founded the Western Sun in 1804. After the death of his father, Mr. Cauthorn, with his mother, made his home with Mr. Stout, and became an apprentice in the printing office of his grandfather, acquiring a good knowledge of the "art preservative." In 1840 he entered St. Gabriel's College as a student, pursuing his studies in that institution until 1845, when he went to Greencastle to attend Asbury University, from which institution he graduated in 1848. While a student at Asbury he gained distinction as an essayest and orator, winning prizes in competition with fellow students within his own and from other colleges. He began the study of law at Vincennes with Benj. F. Thomas, in 1851. In 1853 he was admitted to the bar, and the following year was elected to the office of district attorney for the judicial district comprising the counties of Knox, Daviess, Pike and Martin. Subsequently hie was elected clerk of the Knox circuit court, and served in that capacity for two terms, which covered the only period in which he was not engaged in the practice of law after his admission to the bar. He was an all-around lawyer, careful, accurate, pains- taking ; an eloquent pleader and forceful advocate, earnest, logical, impres- sive and serious. In 1855 he was elected city attorney, and as the head of the, legal department, a year later drew up the first ordinances to become op- erative under the city charter. After his election as county clerk in 1859 he introduced a system of filing and indexing in the office which was adopted by many counties of the state. His books and records were models of neat- ness and accuracy. In 1870 he was elected a member of the general assem- bly of Indiana, and the voters were so well pleased with his ability as a legis- lator, that they reelected him again in 1872, 1878 and 1880. During the session of 1879 he was chosen speaker of the house, a position he filled with great dignity and signal ability. Besides being a brainy lawyer, a wise legis- lator and able parliamentarian, Mr. Cauthorn was a historian of note and writer of ability, as attested by several volumes of church and colonial history, of which he is the author. He was a democrat of the Jeffersonian school, believing that the people should always rule. He was an effective political
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