USA > Indiana > Vanderburgh County > History of Vanderburgh County, Indiana, from the earliest times to the present, with biographical sketches, reminiscences, etc. > Part 44
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88
3.42
BENCH AND BAR.
Socially he enjoyed a very high standing, being refined and cultivated and having a most excellent wife, daughter of David Negley, of Centre township. The fact is worthy of mention that the only dinner ever given to the Evansville bar was at the hos- pitable home of Judge Lockhart, shortly before his election to congress. There were then about sixteen lawyers in the city, and all were present on the occasion. It need hardly be said that a most delightful after- noon was enjoyed. His attainments and character gave Judge Lockhart a lasting hold upon the esteem of his contemporaries in social and professional circles.
The next to preside in the circuit court of Vanderburgh county, was Alvin P. Hovey, who was commissioned in Septem- ber, 1851, by Gov. Joseph A. Wright. The career of Gen. Hovey is a part of the state and national history, now fresh in the minds of the people because of his recent elevation from the halls of congress to the highest executive office in the state of Indiana. He is not the creature of advantageous circum- stances, but struggling against adversity from his youth, by dint of persevering indus- try he has achieved a most honorable career. His home was at Mt. Vernon, in Posey county, and there he pursued the study of law in the office of that eminent lawyer, Judge John Pitcher. He was a consumer of the "midnight oil," study- ing under great disadvantages, but yielding to no form of adversity. In the old court house, in one of the small chambers on the upper floor he had his bed and his books. The light from his window was a sort of beacon, late at night, visible even beyond the limits of the town. He was a well-read lawyer, and as a practitioner was very pop- ular among the members of the bar. When he went on the bench he was a young man, but his abilities were such that he easily un-
derstood the intricacies of the law and was able to solve disputed questions in harmony with justice and right. Dignity on the bench he always maintained with the utmost rigor. He was very considerate of all attor- neys, especially of young men, always giv- ing them a fair opportunity, it mattering not against whom they were pitted.
In his early career he affiliated with the whigs, but in 1848 joined the democracy and was soon thereafter elected to the judge- ship by that party. Later he became a republican, and for many years has been a party leader in the state. He has always been a decided partisan, without, however, obtruding his political opinions on others in an offensive way. He has been so tolerant and considerate that many, differing from him politically, have for him the warm- est feelings of friendship. For more than thirty-five years General Hovey has been one of the most prominent men in the state. During the civil war few excelled him in patriotic devotion to the Union; few achieved a brighter record for gallantry, heroism, and generalship. He has ably represented the nation in foreign courts; he has sat with honor and dignity upon the supreme bench of the state; with unusual ability he has served his district in the national congress, and has become the governor of his state.
The March term, 1852, was the first held after 1819 without associate judges. In 1842 John W. Lilliston had been succeeded by Conrad Staser, an upright and honorable man, who resided in Scott township. He was a farmer by occupation, and, like his predecessors, knew very little of the law. He was the son of the German pioneer Frederick Staser, who was one of the earliest settlers in the county. His life was uneventful, his elevation to the bench prob- ably being the greatest recognition given to
William J Pavost
CHANGES IN 1852.
3.43
his abilities by his fellow citizens. Ilis career as a citizen was honorable through- out. His death occurred while on his way to California about 1850. In 1844 Silas Stephens succeeded Judge Olmstead. Judge Stephens was a man of sterling worth, pos- sessing the attributes of genuine manhood, and in his career reflecting honor upon him- . self and the community of which he was a part. He was a native of Kentucky, born in ISOI, and in his youth learned the trade of a saddler. He came to Vanderburgh county in IS22, with no worldly possessions but the clothes of a pioneer hunter and a rifle. By steadfast industry, strict economy, and an unswerving adherence to honorable methods, he accumulated a valuable estate. His early manhood was devoted to a business career, he being principally engaged with work at his trade and in mercantile pursuits. After leaving the bench he resided near the city, occupied with the management of his large private interests. When elected judge he had no legal education, but his strong mind, large store of good common sense, his up- rightness and strict sense of honor, fitted him admirably for the position. He did not allow himself to remain uninformed in the law, but by patient study became familiar with the duties of his office, and proved him- self an able and successful official. Judge Stephens married Miss Julienne Evans, daughter of Gen. Robert M. Evans. Their descendants occupy an honorable place in this community to this day.
He was once a justice of the peace, but at- tained no other distinction.
Before the adoption of the code of 1852 the common law practice provided for actions at law and suits in chancery; actions at law being subdivided and classified as- sumpsit, debt, trespass, case, trover, eject- ment, etc. By the code the distinction be- tween actions at law and suits in equity was abolished, and one form for all actions pro- vided, a complaint stating the facts consti- tuting the cause of action. This radical change notwithstanding its tendency to ob- scure the salutary principles that obtained in chancery courts, and to encourage loose pleading, has, on the whole, worked well, under the new order of things; while before, chancery cases were tried by the court, afterward all cases at the election of either party were tried by a jury, and in cases that would have been chancery causes, suits for the settlement of long and intricate partner- ships, etc., there was frequently a mis- carriage of justice, for jurors were not allowed even to take notes of the evidence. This condition of affairs was remedied by the code of ISSI, which provides that all cases which before the code of 1852, were of exclusive chancery jurisdiction, shall be tried by the court.
The last of the associate judges was William Shook, who succeeded Judge Staser in 1849. He was a farmer residing in Union township, very illiterate, possessing no knowledge of law, but having good judg- ment and a fair amount of common sense. He was kind-hearted and rather an enter- prising citizen. His habits of life were not insist that the man in possession was the good, and his moral perceptions were obtuse.
The adoption of the code of 1852 ended forever the careers of the mythical John Doe and Richard Roe, who had for years been familiar to every lawyer as the chief figures in a legal fiction used in actions for the recovery of real estate. The new code pro- vided that every cause should be prosecuted by the real party in interest and against the real party complained of. The alacrity with which Doe always stepped in to vindi- cate the alleged right of the man out of pos- session, and the equal promptness of Roe to lawful owner and entitled to retain his pos-
20
3.44
BENCH AND BAR.
session, were such that old practitioners could not take a final leave of these knights- errant of the common law without feelings of intense regret. With the abolition of fictions, and a modification and simplification of many forms of proceedure, much of the intricate learning of the old common law fell its trial, and perhaps as interesting a case as any ever heard by the court was that enti- tled Longworth vs. Bell and Kiger. The trial was conducted by Conrad Baker, Thomas E. Garvin and Alvin P. Hovey, for the plaintiff; by James Lockhart, J. J. Chandler, James G. Jones and James E. into disuse and became mere matters of his-[ Blythe, for the defendants; and was heard tory. Those who had studied the common law and by long years of practice, had be- come thoroughly imbued with its principles, admired it for its grandeur, wisdom and em- bodiment of the right principles of justice and equity. It had been founded on the wisdom and experience of ages, and its ad- mirers stood in awe of any attempt to prune it, even of its smallest branches. Many of the old practitioners regarded the innova- tion as sacrilege, few became reconciled to the change, and some went so far as to abandon the practice forever.
The character of the court's business, though transacted in a different way, has been much the same since 1852, as it was before that date. Extensive and important litigation has frequently engaged its attention. Crimes and misdemeanors have been committed frequently, and even a brief account of the many important crim- inal trials of recent years can not be under- taken. The penitentiary has received a large quota of its inmates from Vander- burgh county. Wrong-doing has never been allowed to go unpunished through a lack of judicial integrity or a failure on the part of any officer of the court in the per- formance of duty.
The civil cases, because of the advance- ment of the locality in wealth, and the in- crease in the fortunes of individuals and corporations, have been of much greater importance, if measured by the amounts in- volved, in late years than formerly. The most important of these, up to the time of
by Judge William E. Niblack. It involved the title to 160 acres of land, then near the boundary of the city, and now within its limits. There was rather a striking similar- ity between the case and that in which John J. Audubon was defendant, in earlier years. The land in dispute had been entered about 1820, by Messrs. Pear- son and Paxton, general merchants then in business at Cincinnati, Ohio. The credit system was then in vogue on land entries, and full payment was not at first made. It appeared that afterward Mr. Longworth paid the purchase money. The firm of Pearson & Paxton failed. The cer- tificate of purchase for the land was taken by Nicholas Longworth, of Cincinnati, in payment of its debts with an irregular or in- formal assignment on the back of, or attached to, the certificate. Mr. Longworth left the certificate in the hands of Vachel Worthing- ton, a Cincinnati lawyer, who deposited it in his safe. He then took possession of the land, and through his agents had put a part of it in cultivation, had cleared it of its tim- ber, and made use of it as if his title had been perfect. After the lapse of years, Mr. Longworth forgot how his title was obtained and only knew in general that he had long been in possession and that his ownership was based upon a title properly acquired, as he thought, in the first instance. The records of the land office and of this county showed nothing beyond the entry of the land by Pearson & Paxton. The claim of Bell & | Kiger was based upon deeds from the heirs
3.45
LATER JUDGES.
of these merchants. When the suit was sioned by Gov. Joseph A. Wright in April, 1854, and succeeded Judge Hovey. Judge Niblack never resided in this county. He was a native of Dubois county, and resided at Dover Hill, Martin county, when he went upon the bench. At that time he was with- commenced Mr. Longworth was unable to show title of any sort. During the progress of the trial, the lawyer Worthington, when about to abandon the practice, was examin- ing the accumulated mass of old papers in his safe and office and discovered | out experience in law, except such as he the certificate with its informal assign- ment to Longworth. The paper was placed in the hands of Mr. Longworth's attorneys, its receipt causing considerable rejoicing. The case was decided in favor of Long- worth, and was then carried to the supreme court where the judgment of the lower court was affirmed. Another important case, attracting general interest, was that of Mrs. Saleta Evans vs. Mary Stephens et al. It involved the title to the Evans block, and brought into question the will of Gen. Robert M. Evans. The case was tried be- fore Judge John Baker of the third judicial circuit, was sharply contested, and finally decided in favor of the plaintiff.
The cases in which banks, railroads and other corporations, the city as a corporate body, and the county have been parties have been of such magnitude and import- ance as to demand the highest legal attain- ments for their proper settlement. In the conduct of weighty litigation, some of which has been carried to the supreme court of the state and to the highest judicial tribunes of the nation, the members of the Evansville bar have displayed great ability and learning; and in the final determination of those cases taken on appeal to higher courts, the judgments of Vanderburgh county courts have been generally sus- tained, thus showing the high character and legal understanding of those whom the pub- lic has intrusted with the discharge of the great responsibilities and duties attaching to the bench.
Judge William E. Niblack was commis-
had obtained by a few years' practice in his own county. Notwithstanding this he suc- ceeded in becoming an able judge. What he lacked in legal learning he made up in good judgment and what is called " hard common sense." To be a good judge it is not always necessary to be an excellent law- yer. With a sharp attorney on either side of a case calling attention to every phase of the law involved and citing authorities, it becomes an easy matter for a " level-headed" man to solve disputes in accordance with the right. Judge Niblack was kind, affable, honest and upright, and had many friends. His pleasant and genial manners made him an agreeable companion, but he was not a refined or polished gentleman and exhibited neither a fondness for literary work nor a particular acquaintance with general litera- ture. His manners were so conciliatory that it is said few were offended by his de- cisions. Even when deciding adversely, he did it in such a way as to relieve the decis- ion of all asperity. He was thoroughly just, and on the whole an excellent judge. He left the bench with the respect of the bar and the confidence of the people. Afterward he went to congress, being elected with very little opposition to fill the term to which Judge Lockhart had been previously elected, and later for many years sat upon the supreme bench of the state.
When Judge Niblack resigned in Octo- ber, 1857, to go to congress, the vacancy was filled by the appointment of Ballard Smith. He was commissioned October 24, 1857, by Gov. A. P. Willard. At the time
L
3.46
BENCH AND BAR.
of his appointment he was a resident of Cannelton, in Perry county, and after leav- ing the bench removed to Terre Haute, where he became one of the foremost mem- bers of the Vigo county bar. He was perhaps the most polished judge ever on the bench in this circuit. He was refined, | In this connection the action of the court scholarly, and possessed in a marked degree all the characteristics of a genuine gentle- man. Socially he maintained a high stand- ing and his company was sought by the best people. He held only a few terms of court here, but everybody liked him and regretted his departure. On the bench, in the trial of causes, he gave great satisfaction. and bar upon the occasion of his retirement from the bench may be appropriately in- serted. A committee, consisting of Gen. J. M. Shackleford, D. B. Kumler, James T. Walker, R. C. Wilkinson, Cicero Buchanan and J. G. Winfrey, was appointed to draft a suitable expression of the respectful feelings entertained for the retiring judge. In the afternoon of January 5, ISS9, Gen. James M. Shackleford arose in the circuit court, and after making a few remarks offered the following resolution :
The universal regret at the departure of Judge Smith, subjected his successor, Judge M. F. Burke, to a critical reception. He was a resident of Washington, Daviess county, and was commissioned by Gov. Willard, in November, 1858. That he gave eminent satisfaction under the circumstances, was proof of his manly qualities. He soon ingratiated himself into the good graces of the bar and became popular. He was an Irishman by birth and possessed the ready wit peculiar to that race. He was a hard student, a thorough lawyer, and an honest and upright judge. While here, he was a man of very correct habits, and his life on the bench was above reproach. In politics he was an acknowledged leader of the democracy in his district.
Judge William F. Parrett was commis- sioned by Gov. A. P. Willard in August, 1859, and for ten years presided in the courts of this circuit. He resigned in 1869 to engage in the practice of law, but on March 7th, 1873, was again called to the bench by an appointment from Gov. Thomas A. Hendricks, and for nearly sixteen years held aloft the scales of justice in this circuit, resigning December 31, 1888, because of his election as a representative in congress.
None have filled the position with more be- coming dignity nor discharged its delicate duties with less partiality than Judge Par- rett. The extended notice of his life de- manded by his exalted career as a citizen and jurist appears elsewhere in this volume.
" Our distinguished fellow-citizen and brother, Hon. William F. Parrett, having resigned the judgeship, which office he has held and adorned for more than a quarter of a century, we, the members of the Evans- ville bar, cordially unite in giving this ex- pression of our high regard for him, both as a man and a jurist. As a man, he is open, genial and unassuming. In private and so- cial intercourse, he is amiable, attractive and the soul of generosity; and above all this, he is possessed of a temper instinct with honesty. Blessed of heaven with a clear, broad, comprehensive and well-balanced mind, which he has richly stored with legal learning, rooted and grounded in the princi- ples of the law, he, during all the years he was on the bench, dispensed justice, “ sea- soned with mercy," with such ability and conspicuous impartiality as won the esteem and challenged the admiration of all con- cerned. It is a source of pleasure and pride to the members of this bar to recount these things; therefore,
" Resolved, That as a jurist, Judge Par-
347
JUDGE PARRETT RETIRES.
rett's fame will adorn the brightest page in the history of the state.
" Resolved, That in the retirement of Judge Parrett, the bench has lost one of its ablest judges and brightest ornaments."
The court ordered the resolutions to be spread upon the minutes, and remarks eulo- gistic of Judge Parrett were made by Col. J. S. Buchanan, Col. C. H. Butterfield and Mr. D. B. Kumler.
During the period from 1869 to 1873, while Judge Parrett was in the active prac- tice of law, the bench was occupied by Judge James G. Jones and Judge David T. Laird. Judge Jones was appointed by Gov. Conrad Baker in April, IS69. For many years he had been one of the most brilliant members of the bar. His methods of rea- soning were those of a logician, and he pos- sessed the graces of a natural orator. Stand- ing at the head of the profession he became familiar with every branch of the practice. His early mental training was obtained in the public schools. He was without a clas- sical education, but through his studious habits and his tastes for mental work he became familiar with current polite litera- ture. During the civil war he rendered effective and devoted service to the Union cause. Army life, however, impaired his mental vigor, and while in the service he contracted habits of life which greatly inter- fered with the clearness of his intellect. He was on the bench but a short time, and while there, through sickness and other causes, was unable to add lustre to the bril- liant record which he had already achieved as a member of the bar. His health failed rapidly and special judges tried many of the important cases coming before the court during his term of office. He is best remembered by the older members of the bar for the brilliancy and grandeur of his early career. Judge David T. Laird was
commissioned in October, 1870. He was a resident of Rockport, Spencer county, where he still remains a venerable member of the bar. He was a rough and vigorous character, with little legal or literary learning. Though without polish, he did not lack good sense and sound judgment. His conceptions were clear, and he went to the core of a case, regardless of technicalities, concerning himself only as to what was right and just. He was never influenced by the wishes of the parties to an action, but endeavored always to dispense justice strictly, without bias or partiality. He was not popular with the bar at this place because it was not believed that his professional attain- ments justified his elevation to the bench. But his probity and uprightness were uni- versally acknowledged and in many re- spects he was an excellent court officer.
Judge R. D. Richardson was appointed in January, IS89, by Gov. Gray to fill the unexpired term of Judge Parrett. Judge Richardson for many years has been a con- spicuous member of the bar at this place, and because of his eminence as a lawyer and his gentlemanly traits, has won the respect of the entire bar. When he took his place upon the bench, before the trans- action of any business, Mr. D. B. Kumler arose and said :
" May it please your honor, I desire to say a word which is of interest to us all, though it is a little out of the routine of court affairs. On behalf of this bar I desire to in- form your honor that we have every confi- dence in your ability, honor and integrity, and are certain that you will make a worthy successor to the illustrious and learned gen- theman who has for so many years filled the seat of power and dignity which you now occupy. This bar will have great pleasure in practicing under your honor, and pledges itself in that behalf."
848
BENCH AND BAR.
The bench of Vanderburgh county has been blessed with a line of distinguished men, able, pure, and against whose judicial integrity there has been no taint whatever. This can be said rarely of a line of judges extending through nearly three-quarters of a century. There was never a sustained charge, and indeed never a suspicion of cor- ruption against any one of the fifteen judges who have presided in the circuit court of this county. All have been thoroughly trained in the profession, and their methods have been in strict accordance with profes- sional ethics.
The Circuit Court Scal. - At the second term of the Vanderburgh county circuit court, held May 25, ISIS, a scroll, called in the records " a common scrawl," surround- ing the words, "Seal, C. C., Vanderburgh County," was adopted as the seal of the court until a more suitable one could be pro- vided. This was continued in use until the June term, 1822, when the court adopted a seal engraved with the device of the bal- ances on its face, and the words " Seal of the Vanderburgh Circuit Court " surrounding its center, being almost a fac simile of the seal now in use. At the October term, I853, a seal was adopted which, on the rec- ords, is described as follows: Around the circumference of said seal there is a circle, and within this circle there is a smaller circle, and between the two circles are the words, "Seal of Vanderburgh Circuit Court," and in the center there is the fol- lowing device, viz., a pair of scales, and be- low the scales there is the word " Indiana."
Circuit Relations .- From 1818 to 1852 Vanderburgh county formed a part of the fourth judicial circuit of Indiana. In April, 1852, it was made a part of the third judicial circuit, and later became a part of the fif- teenth judicial circuit. In 1873, when the state was re-districted, it was joined with
Posey county to form the first judicial cir- cuit, in which relation it remains.
Probate Court .- The judiciary system of Indiana territory comprised a common pleas court, which was abolished in 1816. To perform a part of its duties, by the early laws of the state a probate court was established, with jurisdiction over all mat- ters pertaining to the settlement of estates. The first probate court in Vanderburgh county was held in the county clerk's office in February, 1821, with associate judges John McCrary and William Wagnon presid - ing. The associate judges of the circuit court were ex-officio judges of this court until 1829. In that year George W. Lind- say became probate judge and served in that capacity, until August, 1835. His suc- cessors were: Nathan Rowley, August, 1835, to August, 1836; John B. Stinson, August, 1836, to August, 1841; Edward Hopkins, pro tem., for August term, I841; Thomas Hornbrook, November, 1841, to February, 1846; John B. Stinson, pro tem., for August, 1846; Edward Hopkins, No- vember, 1846, to August, 1850; Cadwalla- der M. Griffith, August, 1850, to August, I851; Ira P. Granger, August, 1851, to August, 1852. The old probate system prevailed until the adoption of the constitu- tion of 1852, when the common pleas court, again revived, absorbed its business. The judges in this court were all very prominent men in early times and closely identified with the best interests of the city and county. They were not lawyers but men of sound judgment and of unquestioned in- tegrity. The records show that a very large amount of important business was transacted by each of them.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.