History of Hall County, Nebraska, Part 61

Author: Buechler, A. F. (August F.), 1869- editor
Publication date: 1920
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western Pub. and Engraving Co.
Number of Pages: 1011

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IN THE FOURTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT

In 1876 a new system came into operation

in Nebraska, and the judges of the supreme court no longer were compelled to travel over the state and try the cases in district court. Judge Geo. W. Post of York, on January 12, 1876, fixed the time of holding regular terms of court in the counties then forming the fourth judicial district-Hall, Merrick, Platte, Colfax, Dodge, Saunders, Howard, Seward, York, Butler, Polk and Hamilton. The fourth Tuesday in February and the first Tuesday in September were fixed for Hall County.

Court was opened on February 23rd, with the same court officers as were present the year preceeding. Martin Ott, Hans Rief, Frederick Schleichardt, John Mahony, Thomas Mahony, Hans Wiese, Henry Weise, C. Clau- sen, Kasper Hein, Johann Hinrich Rief, Werner Foellmer, Fritz Tomsen, Claus Grotzke, Carl F. Petersen, Peter Laubach, Ludwig Schultz, and Fritz Wiese were ad- mitted to citizenship, The grand jury re- turned a bill of indictment against Leander Wolfe and Paul Heitz for grand larceny, and upon trial the jury found them guilty and they were sentenced to one year in the penitentiary. Christopher T. Hall was admitted to practice upon presentation of proper certificate from the territory of Wyoming. The fall term be- gan on September 5th. Henry Streeve, Nich- olas Mildenstein, Peter D. Thomsen, Peter Schumann, J. E. Meth, F. A. Schieck and Othman A. Abbott were admitted to citizen- ship. Arthur E. Pinkney, Loring Gaffey and and a large number of civil cases were dis- posed of.

COURT IN 1877

In February, 1877, Judge Post of Colum- bus presided, but brought a new district attorney with him, Hon. M. B. Reese of Saunders County. Judge Reese in after years served twice on the supreme bench and was twice chief justice of that court. Clerk Wal- lichs and Sheriff Deuel were still on the job. New citizens admitted to .that privilege were Martin Brett, Gustav Schaurup, Hans A. Klingenberg, John C. Stark, M. Hokinson, H. Buensen, Bryan Harcy, W. Guenther, Pat- rick Higgins, John Lammert, Heinrich Graack, Christian T. Lykke, C. Schaurup, Nicholas

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HISTORY OF HALL COUNTY NEBRASKA

Rauert, Claus Klindt, Christian Nieberber, Hugo Oelrich, Hans J. Moehler, A. Blunk and Arnold Oelrich. Howard T. Marshall was tried for forgery and found guilty by the jury. At the adjourned April term, Erns Marquardt, Carl Daberkow, Peter Thomsen, .Michael Kroger, Joachim F. Dibbern, Bertha Wiese, A. M. Stevenson were admitted to practice Charles Stolle, Peter Mohr, Juergen Giese, John Lemberg and Carsten Lemberg were ad- mitted to citizenship; in the September term the same service was rendered to John Allen, in years afterwards clerk of the district court, Michael Kroger, August Dobberstein, John L. Johnson, John Anderson, Detrick M. Sweeden, Caroline Petterson, Pereke E. Pet- terson, Jocob Geise, Christian Ipsen and Henry Reese. George H. Caldwell, a West Virginia lawyer, was admitted at this time.

COURT AFTER 1877

In 1877 when the February term convened, a new. sheriff appeared upon the scene, Joseph Killian. Alex. Campbell was admitted to the bar. George Thompson was indicted of burg- lary and found guilty by .the jury, and sen- tenced to one year in the penitentiary. At the September term, 1878, Edward Wilson pleaded guilty to the indictment for burglary and was sentenced to two years in the*peni- tentiary.

At the term in February, 1879, upon motion of T. O. C. Harrison the court admitted to the bar, from Iowa, John R. Thompson, who was afterwards judge of the Hall County dis- trict court for twelve years. George H. Thummel and Dr. M. J. Gahan were appointed commissioners of insanity. Charles Davis was sentenced to one year in the penitentiary for burglary. Richard Goehring was admitted to citizenship on May 16. It would take more space than this chapter can be allowed in this work to continue a full list of the admission of applicants to citizenship that were passed upon favorably by each term of the court in the thirty years that have elapsed since this point in our narrative of the history of the bench and bar of Hall County. As all of the matters heretofore recorded in this chapter

transpired during the time that Volume 1 of the Court Journal was being made up, it will be seen that it is furthermore impossible to carry with such detail an account of proceedings had in the twenty volumes of the Court . Journal that have been formulated since 1879.

When court met on March 2, 1880, Judge 1

Post had a new set of court officers in part. District Attorney Reese and Sheriff Killian were still on deck, but Hall County's second clerk of the district court was on duty, Charles Rief, and B. C. Wakeley was shown to be present as court reporter. Mr. Wakeley was later succeeded by E. M. Battis. M. B. Hoxie, P. S. Battie and M. B. Reese, a committee serving to examine candidates for admission to the bar, reported favorably on the peti- tions of George B. Darr, D. H. Burroughs and George W. Trefren. The trial of Frank Larence occupied much of the attention of this term. Messrs. Reese, Thummel and Platt represented the State and Messrs. Abbott, Caldwell and W. H. Bell the defendant. The jury, of which James Ewing was foreman, brought in a verdict of "not guilty." In October 1880, Austin H. Moulton was ad- mitted, and in September, 1881, Herschel A. Edwards was admitted to the bar. Mr. Edwards is still actively practicing in Hall County.

The trial of George Hart, a policeman, for murder of Michael Kress commenced in September, 1881, but was continued to the next term. March 1, 1882, a jury, of whom N. Child was foreman, found the prisoner guilty, and Judge Post sentenced him to be hanged June 15, 1882. Messrs. M. B. Reese, Thummel and Platt represented the state, and Messrs. Abbott, Michael and Caldwell the de- fendant. This case was carried to the supreme court, but without success, when executive clemency was asked. But before the scaffold which had been erected at the rear of the court house could claim its victim, the death sentence was commuted and a penalty of im- prisonment for life was imposed.

In February, 1882, Henry C. Denman as sheriff and Frank Sears as clerk succeeded Messrs. Killian and Rief. Henry E. Clifford. Digitized by

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now city clerk of Grand Island, was admitted to practice on February 9, 1883. The April term of that year opened up on April 10, 1883, with a new judge, T. L. Norval of Seward, who also afterwards served a long time upon the supreme bench of this state. Thomas Darnall was present as district at- torney, and E. M. Battis as court reporter. The new district attorney presented several "whiskey indictments" to the grand jury and that body found the parties defendant had sold and delivered "a certain spirituous liquor, com- monly called whiskey." At the September term in 1883 Thomas Darnall, district at- torney, brought a charge of second degree murder against Stephen Binfield, Henry Bon- sen and Nicholas Bonsen and J. F. Whittier for the shooting of one Tillman. Thummel & Platt and T. O. C. Harrison appeared as attorneys for these defendants, and Thompson Bros. assisted Darnall in the prosecution. The jury, with Wm. Stolley as foreman, returned a verdict on September 8th, finding the three defendants, "not guilty," except Binfield who was found guilty of manslaughter, whereupon he was sentenced by the court to ten years in the penitentiary.

In 1884 the terms of court for the sixth judicial district fixed the terms for Hall County upon February 12 and September 23. Judge Norval and District Attorney Darnall remained on their respective duties, but John Allan was clerk, H. M. Waring, reporter, and James Cannon, sheriff. Winfield S. Hayman was admitted as a member of the bar.

On October 2, 1884, the court overruled plaintiff's motion to dismiss in the case of Sir Isaac Newton vs. Peter Birkenbeuel.

At the September term of 1885 the officers remained the same as in 1884 except Frank Tipton was court reporter. Ralph R. Horth presented his application for admission to the practice and the same was acted upon fav- orably. Wm. H. Thompson appeared in cases with his brother John R. Thompson, under the firm name of Thompson Brothers. A jury awarded William and John Stoeger damages of $70 against James Fowler. In 1886 E. A. Wedgewood was sheriff. George A. Ruther-

ford was admitted to practice on September 14, 1886, upon motion of O. A. Abbott.

The term of March, 1887, found no district attorney present, the prosecutions being con- ducted then and ever since by the county's own county attorney or prosecuting attorney. W. H. Thompson presented many charges to the court at this term in his capacity as prose- cuting attorney. On April 2, 1887, the vale- dictory proceedings were held. Judge Norval called upon the sheriff to adjourn court, but before that officer could comply with the order, Geo. H. Thummel arose and in the presence of the bar, officers of the court, and spectators presented Judge Norval with a handsome gold-headed cane and silver ink- stand from the members of the Hall County bar and court officers. Soon thereafter Judge T. O. C. Harrison, the first Hall County lawyer to assume the bench in this judicial district, took charge of the Hall County docket. The other judge in the new ninth district, which from that time, with its successor, the eleventh, until the present has had two judges, was Hon. F. B. Tiffany of Albion, Boone County.

At the October term of 1887 Judge Tiffany presided, with E. B. Henderson reporter, the other officers remaining the same. An inter- esting case was tried wherein Charles W. Stidger was prosecuted for an alleged libellous publication which the Daily Times had made against Fred Hedde, editor of the Independent. Upon October 12th, the jury, with Geo. Loan as foreman, found Chas. Stidger not guilty, and the trial of John S. Stidger upon the same charge was continued over the term. Judge Harrison held the term in November, 1887, with Charles W. Pearsall, as reporter. County Attorney W. H. Thompson filed an information at this term charging David Moffit with stealing from the Union Pacific Railway Co. certain articles of merchandise, among which were listed two cheese of the value of $7.95, two pails of candy at the value of $2.40 each, two boxes of cigars at the value of $2.00, and six pairs of felt boots of the value of $6.00. Mr. Thompson was not setting 1919 prices on the goods then. On December 13, this information was quashed,

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but a new information was later filed. In 1888 Chas. G. Ryan filed credentials sufficient to warrant his admission to practice. The Daily Independent of January 8, 1888, con- tained the following item: "A new firm of Horth & Ryan have commenced business this week in their office over the Grand Island Banking Co. Mr. Horth is well-known to our citizens as our efficient city attorney and from having been associated with O. A. Abbott for the last three years. Mr. C. G. Ryan is from Verdin, Illinois, and from a short acquaintance with him we consider him an intelligent and straightforward young man. The new firm will be one of our rising young law firms and has the strength of honesty and ability."

On May 12, 1888, David Moffitt pleaded guilty to the charge of larceny and was sent- enced to one year in the penitentiary. In 1889 Judges Harrison and Tiffany held court with the same court officers, except that W. R. Bacon had assumed the office of county at- torney. In May, 1889, William Rutherford was convicted and sentenced to penitentiary for twelve years for arson. An important civil case tried by Judges. Harrison and Tiffany jointly was that of Gustave Koehler vs. Free- man C. Dodge and Edmund B. Abbott, part- ners, involving a judgment of $10,502. In 1890 Judge Harrison received a plea of guilty by John Tulles for highway robbery and gave him a three year sentence to the penitentiary. and A. T. Gaffney took the same course and received a one year sentence. In 1890 the same court officials appeared except that the sheriff then serving was J. A. Costello, and the same court officers served through that year. In January, 1891, court was presided over by Judge Harrison, with Reporter Pear- sall, Sheriff Costello and Clerk Allan, and Chas. G. Ryan as county attorney. At the first sitting of court in his term the new county attorney filed an incest charge against one H. Bedford. Orders were made in the probate matter of the estate of Zenas H. Den- man, deceased. On May 19, 1891, a motion to dismiss was sustained in the case of Trixie Adams vs. McGinty Troubles Co., which had been tried before Justice of the Peace Wel- come Smith.

On May 27, 1891, a jury, of which Geo. A. Burger was foreman found George Bedford guilty of corrupting a witness, and the de- fendant was fined $50 and sentenced to seven days in the county jail, but defendant served notice he intended to appeal to the supreme court.

On the 16th of November, the day appointed by Judges Harrison and E. M. Coffin of Ord, Nebraska, then; a judge of the nineteenth judicial district, the fall term convened. Sev- eral informations for grand larceny were brought forth.

On March 15, 1892, the trial of Cuyler Shults for murder began before Judge Har- rison. County Attorney Ryan was assisted by W. H. Platt and W. H. Thompson and W. A. Prince appeared for the defendant. The jurors finally accepted were Joseph J. Klinge, John O'Connor, Fred Soll, G. M. Graham, George Pearson, W. H. Sylvester, B. S. Wise, H. P. F. Duehrsen, T. C. Rondrez, Sylvester Pollock, John Wilson and T. A. Taylor. On March 19th the jury returned a verdict finding de- fendant guilty.

In 1893 Judge John R. Thompson became the associate of Judge Harrison, and Hender- son was serving as his court reporter. In 1894, Geo. P. Dean became sheriff of Hall County. That same year Hon. A. A. Kendall of St. Paul succeeded Judge Harrison as one of the judges of the eleventh judicial district. In 1895 Willard A. Prince succeeded County Attorney Ryan. The court officers remained the same until January, 1897, when Fred W. Ashton began his services as county attorney, and in March of that year Terkild Hermansen is shown as court reporter for Judge Kendall.

The year 1898 brought some changes in Hall County district court officials. S. N. Taylor succeeded Sheriff Dean. John W. Brewster reported for Judge Thompson, vice Mr. Henderson. John Allan still remained as clerk of the court. Mr. Brewster is at the present time a general reporter, residing at Lincoln, Nebraska. When the August, 1898, term opened up, Bayard H. Paine appeared as Judge Thompson's court reporter and served in that capacity for six years. Twelve years after his term of service as reporter ended,

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Mr. Paine was elected district judge of the The Old Court House was fully up to the standard in those days. But two other brick Court Houses were then in existence in the State, at Omaha and Nebraska City, and we submit, the County is now, as it was then, well up to the front in the character of its Court House. eleventh judicial district and now presides as judge in the same court where he was reporter a few years ago. In 1899 W. S. Pearne be- came county attorney. In 1900 Judge Ken- dall was succeeded on the district bench by Hon. Charles A. Munn of Ord, who died after The second volume of the Nebraska reports had not then been issued, the sixty third volume is now on our shelves; the Union Pacific Railroad had been completed across the State, the B. & M. in Nebraska from Plattsmouth to Lincoln and the Midland Pa- cific from Nebraska City to Lincoln constituted the railway development of the State. Look- ing backwards to those times one is not sur- prised to know that the men who predicted that a million of people would someday find serving a short time. That same year the district clerk, John Allan, after sixteen years of service in that capacity was succeeded by his brother, Henry Allan. At the December. 1900, term Judge Harrison appeared as acting county attorney, and a month later Ralph R. Horth became county attorney. In 1902, Judge Munn's successor upon the bench took office. Judge Jas. N. Paul, a member of the . home with the State; was looked upon as Howard County bar opened his first court in visionaries. Hall County, the February term of 1902, and served as judge of the eleventh district until 1917, when he was succeeded by Judge Bayard H. Paine.

On January 4, 1904, district court convened with both Judges John R. Thompson and James N. Paul present, with Ralph R. Horth county attorney, Bayard H. Paine and E. H. Kendall court reporters, S. N. Taylor sheriff and Henry Allan clerk. A committee of the bar consisting of O. A. Abbott, T. O. C. Har- rison and Chas. G. Ryan made a report to the court, which read in part as follows :

In the matter of the change from the old Court House to the New.

Your committee finds that the Old Court House was first occupied as a Court House at the June term of 1873,: the Honorable Samuel Maxwell, Judge, since deceased, pre- siding, Honorable John Wallichs, Clerk.

Prior to this time Lorenzo Crounse was Judge of the District and Court had been held in private rooms rented for the purpose. His successors were George W. Post, T. L. Norval, F. B. Tiffany, T. O. C. Harrison, E. M. Coffin, John R. Thompson, A. A. Kendall, Charles A. Munn and James N. Paul, there having been two Judges in this district as now constituted since 1887.

Hall County was then a part of the Third Judicial District, there being but three Districts in the state, those three Judges sitting together as Judges of the Supreme Court at the State Capital, and the Supreme Court as then con- stiuted consisting of Lake, Gantt and Maxwell.

The Old Court House has lived to see a branch line from the Union Pacific built across the County's Northern boundary to Ord, the B. & M. extended from Lincoln across the County to a connection with the Northern Pacific and the Coast and the St. Joseph and Grand Island from St. Joseph to this city; in fact has witnessed the growth of this State from a sparsely settled frontier State to an enviable station among her sister States and the home of about one and a half millions of people; has seen the City grow from an un- organized hamlet on the plains to the Third city in the State with nearly 10,000 people; has seen the City exchange its old frame school buildings for four substantial brick structures ; has seen its wooden shops and stores ex- changed for substantial stone and brick build- ings ; has seen the City exchange its old lights for the new, the kerosene lights and candles for gas and electric light; has seen political and economic changes pass over the land and while we accept the change with pleasure, abandon the old way for the new, the old lights for the new and recognize that old precedents have been laid aside, we deem it eminently fit and proper that on this day we *pause for the moment to take note of the pass- ing time and to place on perpetual record the fact that we have done so.

We trust that when in the influx of time, our successors shall exchange this building for a newer and better one, they, like us, may recall the past with pleasure and look forward, as we do, to the future with renewed hope and confidence.

This report was accepted by Judges Thomp- son and Paul and ordered spread upon the records.

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At the same time Attorneys Fred W. part of Nebraska in the recent Great War. Ashton, M. T. Garlow and W. A. Prince presented a resolution upon the matter of the retirement of Judge John R. Thompson, one of the district judges of the eleventh judicial district, in which it was resolved :

Be it resolved, That upon the retirement of Judge Thompson from the bench the bar loses a fearless, upright and conscientious judge.

Be it further resolved, That the members of this bar hereby express their best wishes to the judge upon his retirement from the bench and extend to him a welcome hand as he again enters the profession.

Resolutions were also adopted at the same time respecting the honest, efficient and faith- ful performance of their contract in the erec- tion and completion of the Hall county court house by Messrs. Falldorf and Kirschke; and upon the death of George J. Spencer, a mem- ber of the Hall County Bar.

At the September term, 1904, Judge James R. Hanna, of Greeley, who succeeded Judge Thompson, opened court at Grand Island. After fifteen years of continuous service in this district, Judge Hanna is still serving as one of the judges presiding over the courts ,of Hall and ten other counties. When Judge Hanna came upon the bench he appointed as court reporter Othman A. Abbott, Jr., who is still serving in that capacity. In 1907 Judge Paul appointed as his court reporter, H. J. Paul, who remained as court reporter until his father's retirement from the bench in 1917, and who has served with Judge Bayard H. Paine in 1917 until he was elevated to the position of colonel of the Fifth Nebraska N. G. Regiment and went to Camp Deming, New Mexico, upon his country's call in the Great War. While Colonel Paul was still abroad in France with his regiment and before he could be discharged from the army, he was tendered and accepted from Governor S. R. McKelvie, in 1919, the position of adjutant general of Nebraska, and upon his return from foreign service upon his shoulders will fall the task of rebuilding in Nebraska the Na- tional Guard, or state constabulary, or what- ever form of home defense legislative bodies shall determine upon, and of recording the

Following Col. Paul's departure, Judge Paine had two reporters of terms of short service, Miss Jeanette M. Ragan of Grand Island, who resigned to enter the State University, and F. D. Williams of Lincoln, who resigned as secretary to Supreme Judge W. B. Rose to come to Grand Island, and later returned to Lincoln for an attractive opening in the prac- tice, and in December, 1917, he was suc- ceeded by Dale P. Stough, then secretary to Chief Justice Andrew M. Morrissey of the supreme court, who is still the reporter at this time.

District Clerk Henry Allan serving in 1904 was succeeded in 1908 by Fred C. Langman, who served for nine years, and in 1917 was succeeded by his deputy clerk, Walter H. Rauert. Clerk Rauert during his first years of service appointed as his deputy Herman Buckow, who resigned late in 1918. and for his second term, commencing in 1919, ap- pointed Miss Bessie Barbee, who had been serving in the office of Sheriff Sievers for four years. In 1900 a salutary change was made in the preparation of court journal and other records in the office of the clerk of the district court. The old permanently fastened books in which the records were written with pen and ink were replaced by loose leaf sheets and binders upon which the records could be typewritten.

County Attorney Horth was succeeded in 1905 by Arthur C. Mayer, who served for two terms. In 1909 John L. Cleary took the office and held it for your years, and was followed by Benjamin J. Cunningham in 1913. In 1917 William Suhr became county attorney.

The office of sheriff, held in 1904 by S. N. Taylor, was taken over later in the term by J. W. Eby. In 1906 J. M. Dunkel entered office as sheriff and served most efficiently in that capacity until his death.

On January 11, 1912, with Judge James 'N. Paul presiding, O. A. Abbott, Jr., acting as court reporter, J. L. Cleary, county attorney. Thomas O'Gorman, coroner, and Fred C. Langman, clerk, the following proceedings were spread upon the records :

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It having come to the knowledge of the Court that James M. Dunkel, sheriff of Hall County, Nebraska, and one of the officers of this Court, lost his life by being hit by a rail- road train near Chapman, Nebraska, on the evening of the 10th inst. it is therefore ordered that this Court adjourn, out of memory of said James M. Dunkel, to Thursday, January 18, 1912, at 10 o'clock A. M.

It is further considered that the following Committee on Resolutions be, and are hereby appointed to-wit :

O. A. Abbott Sr., W. M. Thompson, T. O. C. Harrison, Chas. G. Ryan, John L. Cleary, Ralph R. Horth, Fred W. Ashton, Ernest G. Kroeger, James H. Wooley, Bayard H. Paine, Arthur L. Joseph, Arthur C. Mayer, Benj. J. Cunningham, John R. Thompson and Arthur G. Abbott.

During the following week, Gustav Seivers was appointed sheriff, and later was twice elected to that office. In January, 1919, the present sheriff, John E. McCutchan, took over the office.

THE LAWYERS OF HALL COUNTY

No county in the state of Nebraska could have had a higher class bar in ability and general personality than Hall County has main- tained in the fifty-one years since the first term of district court was held here in 1868.

The bar as a branch of the American system of jurisprudence was given standing by the first general assembly of the territory of Ne- braska in an act approved March 9, 1855, entitled "An act regulating the admission of attorneys." It is brief enough to include here : The first section provides that "any person twenty-one years of age who can produce satisfactory evidence of a good moral char- acter and pass an examination before either the judges of the district court or before the justices of the supreme court of this territory, shall be licensed to practice as an attorney at law and solicitor in chancery in all the courts in this territory." And, as a sort of afterthought, the second section of the act provides that "every citizen of this territory may attend to his own cases in all said courts."

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History of Hall County, Nebraska, Part 61

Author: Buechler, A. F. (August F.), 1869- editor Publication date: 1920 Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western Pub. and Engraving Co. Number of Pages: 1011

Author: Buechler, A. F. (August F.), 1869- editor
Publication date: 1920
Publisher: Lincoln, Neb., Western Pub. and Engraving Co.
Number of Pages: 1011