USA > New York > Washington County > Washington county, New York; its history to the close of the nineteenth century > Part 54
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Through the strength of the editorials of the Sentinel, many of which were reproduced verbatim in nearly every Republican news- paper in the state, it was made possible for Addison B. Colvin to become State Treasurer. The Sentinel was the first to urge his can- didacy, and the ready pen and untiring political work of its editor did not cease labor until Mr. Colvin was elected. In recognition of his services Mr. Colvin appointed him to the position of Corporation Clerk in the Treasurer's office, a position which he still holds, now serving his seventh year in Albany, which duties, together with the
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work of editing and managing the Sentinel, make him one of the hardest workers in the county.
James L. McArthur is, above all, original in thought, word and act. His paper, which has a large circulation, in Vermont as well as New York, is eagerly sought, both by those who want the news. and by men who have an eye to politics, "to see what Mac has got to say " editorially. Rich in originality, choice in expression, endless in vocabulary, a master at driving the nail where it belongs, and a past master at argument, sarcasm, wit, humor or pathos, Mr. McArthur is recognized as one of the ablest editorial writers in the state.
On the 15th day of January, 1878, Mr. McArthur was united in marriage to Miss Anna W. Lewis, daughter of Nathan Lewis and Isabella (Peters) Lewis, of Granville. They have one daughter, Belle L.
Mr. McArthur is a Mason, member of Washington Commandery, of Saratoga, Whitehall Council, Oriental Shrine, of Troy, Royal Arca- num, Red Men and the Odd Fellows.
THE PEOPLE'S JOURNAL.
This paper, which is the only one in Greenwich today, was founded in 1842 by John W. Curtis, who was its editor until 1868, when he sold out to H. C. Page. On June 1, 1869, Mr. Page disposed of the paper to C. L. Allen, Jr., of Salem, who had personal charge of it until February 1. 1870, when he installed John King as editor. After some changes Mr. Allen again assumed charge of the paper and Shell Corliss assisted him in its publication.
About the year 1873-4 Meeker & Mandell purchased the paper, then Mr. Mandell assumed control and published it until August 3, 1876, when it passed into the hands of H. C. Morhous by purchase.
For a quarter of a century Mr. Morhous has published the People's Journal and placed it upon a par with the best county newspapers ; through its columns worthily representing the thriving village of Greenwich to the outside world, as well as ably advocating sound Republican principles. He has twice enlarged the paper, first to an eight-column sheet and subsequently to its present quarto size.
H. C. Morhous was born in Keeseville, Essex County, N. Y., December 20, 1842, the year in which John W. Curtis founded the People's Journal, of which Mr. Morhous was destined to become the
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editor and proprietor. He was educated in the district schools and learned the printing business in the office of the Northern Standard at Keeseville. On August 28, 1862 Mr. Morhous enlisted in Company C, 123d New York Regiment, and served until the close of the war in 1865. On January 28, 1872, he married Lillie L., daughter of John W. and Eliza (Bull) Stickles and they have two children, H. C. Jr., and William Morhous.
In politics Mr. Morhous is a Republican and is a member of the Greenwich Board of Trustees. He also served as clerk of the village for several years. He was the organizer of Post Cook, No. 326, G. A. R., at Greenwich, and is a member of Ashler Lodge, No. 584. F. & A. M.
Greenwich was, for a time, a hot bed of ephemeral newspapers, the People's Journal holding the field today no doubt upon the principle of the survival of the fittest. Prior to 1850 The Banner, The Union Village Courant, The Union Village Democrat, The Democratic Champion, The Washington County Sentinel, The Union Village Journal, The Champion, The Eagle, The Union Village Eagle and the Union Village Democratic Standard, all came and went.
THE FORT ANN REPUBLIC.
Alvaro Goodenough Van Schaick, was born on the Erie canal boat " Powhattan," July 26, 1849, of Yankee-Dutch ancestors, who came to Massachusetts and Albany in 1661. An orphan at four, by the death of his father, he commenced work away from home when but eleven years old, attending school winters, and attaining the printer's art by the time he came of age, when he was married to Miss Delilah Perry Wood, to whom were born one son, Veve, and a daughter, Julia, all of whom are living, at this writing.
In 1870 the subject of this sketch began his journalistic career at Rome, N. Y., continuing that occupation on several newspapers in the state; thence, for a number of years, in Michigan, Iowa, New Jer- sey and Virginia. Returning to New York in 1880 he engaged in manufacturing machinery for ten years, in which occupation he became skilled in mechanics. Returning to newspaper work he estab- lished the Schaghticoke Press in 1892, which was moved to Troy in 1894, and merged into "The Republic "-the official organ of the
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secret political order known as the American Protective Association. The order attained a large membership, and a voting strength many times in excess of its enrolled members. It took a leading part in the state campaign of 1894, wielding a commanding influence-aided largely by the excitement due to the political murder of Robert Ross in Troy-and it was potential in hurling the Democratic party from power and electing Levi P. Morton governor. Indeed, the order made such a powerful impression on state and national politics that its influence will be felt for a generation. Besides being editor of the official paper, Mr. Van Schaick was chairman of the A. P. A. State Committee, and concededly directed its political movements, with credit and skill.
On October 6, 1896, Mr. Van Schaick moved to Washington County and established The Fort Ann Republic, a Republican weekly news- paper, which at once took rank with the leading political papers of the county.
During intervening years of newspaper work Mr. Van Schaick traveled extensively in all the states east of the Rocky Mountains, including the south, which is a prolific source of interest, because of its historical association's of early settlement, the Revolution and the Civil War. As a pastime he has engaged much in boating, being an enthusiastic yachtsman-taking special pride in the fact that he built with his own hands a commodious yacht, and the twenty-six horse- power compound steam engine which propels it; and for more than twenty-five years he has been a licensed United States marine. engineer.
In politics Mr. Van Schaick has always been a Republican-except that he voted for the electors of President Cleveland-in later years tending to a belief in modern Socialism.
As a writer he cultivates the analytical, logical, forcible and abrupt as best suited to politics, and wields, as said of him by his confreres, " a pen of triple bladed sarcasm." A close student of American history, of public men and public affairs, he is intensely American and holds. fast to the principles of the founders of the Republic, and bitterly opposes alleged "civil service reform " and that aggregation of wealth and power into the hands of the few which inevitably leads to pluto- cracy and the downfall of American liberty. In religion a Deist, free from superstition, and a firm faith that the Power which created him will care for his everlasting future.
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CHAPTER XXVII.
THE BENCH AND BAR.
THIE EARLY COURTS-CONTESTS OVER THE COUNTY SEAT AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF TWO COUNTY SEATS-LOCATION OF COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE-ERECTION OF COUNTY BUILDINGS-CHANGES IN LAWS, COURTS AND ELECTIONS-EMINENT MEN AND LEADING LAWYERS OF THE PROFESSION.
By an act of the Legislature, passed April 2, 1784, the name of Charlotte County was changed to Washington County. But previous to this, in 1779, an act was passed directing the holding of courts in Charlotte County. Six terms of such courts were held, but the first court in Washington County, of which there is any authentic record, was held in 1786. At that court the first judge was Alexander Webster, of Hebron; the associates were Ebenezer Russell, of Salem, and David Hopkins, of Hebron. The justices "of the quorum," as they were called, were Moses Martin, John McAllister, Albert Baker, John Brown and Aaron Fuller. The clerk was Colonel John McRea.
On February 5, 1787, an act was passed reaffirming the previous act relating to Washington County. and ordering that the courts be held at Salem. This law provided for a Court of Common Pleas and General Sessions of the Peace, to be held at that village three times each year. The western part of the county, however, developed so strong an influence that on April 21, 1787, the law was changed so that one of the three terms should be held at the house of Adiel Sher- wood, in the village of Fort Edward.
The name of Salem being used in these laws made that the perma- nent name of the village, superseding the names of "White Creek " and "New Perth," which had long been a source of dispute and contention.
In 1791 a petition was circulated asking the legislature to fix the county seat permanently at Salem, and to authorize the building of a courthouse and jail at that place, there having been no county build- ings previous to that time. Fort Edward and the surrounding towns resisted this movement, and while the contest was in progress some of the river people sought to have the county seat located at Fort Miller. The Legislature referred the matter to the board of Super-
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visors and that body decided upon Salem. The next year Fort Edward made an effort to have the vote reconsidered, but in vain. Then the people of that part of the county sought to have two county seats established, and succeeded so far as to obtain the passage of a law directing that the courts be held as before, a part of the time at Fort Edward. No courthouse was ever built there, however, while, in 1792, an act was passed directing the county to raise money to build a courthouse and jail at Salem. These structures were com- pleted in 1796.
In 1797 the western county seat was changed from Fort Edward to Sandy Hill, where it has remained ever since. The cause of this change is attributed to an act of contempt of court committed by Col- onel Adiel Sherwood. The court was held in the dining room of his. tavern at Fort Edward. At the sitting there, in 1796, something put the Colonel out of temper, and he invaded the courtroom and ordered the judges out, telling them he needed the room for dinner. The judges retired, but at the afternoon session sentenced him to jail for fifteen days, for contempt of court. At the next session of the Legis- lature the western county seat was transferred to Sandy Hill.
As a rule the sentences of the early courts were very severe; the pillory, the whipping post, and even the branding iron being considered proper and necessary instruments in the administration of justice.
In 1806 the county clerk's office was fixed at Argyle, so as to have it located at an intermediate point between Sandy Hill and Salem.
Prior to 1821 justices were appointed by the Governor and Sen- ate. In that year a new constitution was adopted, and they were appointed by the Board of Supervisors and the Court of Common Pleas combined. This rule obtained until 1827, when the law was again changed, and they have since been elected by the people.
The new constitution of 1846 abrogated the Court af Common Pleas and substituted County Courts, the County Judge to be elected by the people. Martin Lee, of Granville, was the first County Judge under this provision.
Washington County has had two Chief Justices of the Supreme Court : Samuel Nelson, appointed August 31. 1821, and John Savage, of Salem, appointed January 29, 1823.
Justices of the Supreme Court from Washington County were: Cornelius L. Allen, from 1851 to 1859, and Joseph Potter, from 1872 to 1890.
The other court officials are given in the county list, see page 376.
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WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
The first courthouse at Sandy Hill was built in 1806, and was replaced by the present fine structure in 1873. The present court house at Salem was completed in 1871.
Washington County has been the birthplace or adopted home of some of the most distinguished lawyers and judges of the State. In the following pages a very complete list of the lawyers of the county, past and present, will be found, with a sketch of each.
BERNARD BLAIR was born in Williamstown, Mass., in 1801, and came to Salem in 1825, where he entered the office of Russell & Allen. In 1828 he entered into partnership with Judge Allen and remained with him a year. In 1833 he married Charlotte, daughter of Abraham C. Lansing, of Lansingburgh. He was a trustee of Washington Academy for many years, and also of the Presbyterian Church. In 1839 he was elected to Congress. He was a scholar, as well as a noted lawyer, and held the degree of M. A. from both Middlebury and Williams college. He died in 1880.
HON. ANTHONY I. BLANCHARD was born August 21, 1768, and studied law with Cornelius I. Bogart, in New York, from 1784 to 1787. He was admitted to the bar in 1789, and settled in Salem immediately after. In 1796 he was appointed Assistant Attorney- General for the district of Washington and Clinton counties. In 1810 he was appointed first Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He was also connected with the military service, in which he attained to the rank of Major in 1793. He married Maria. daughter of John Williams. He died in 1853.
HON. JOHN SAVAGE was one of the notable jurists whose history carries us back to the early days of Washington County, and who became not only a state, but a national figure. He was born at Salen, N. Y., in 1779; graduated from Union College in 1799; took up the study of law and soon became a leader of the county bar. In 1814 he was in the state legislature and was a representative in Congress from
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December 4, 1815, to March 3, 1819. He next held the office of United States District Attorney and was State Comptroller from February 12, 1821, to February 13, 1823, when he became Chief Jus- tice of the Supreme Court. This high office he graced for four years, or until 1827. He also served for some time as United States Assis- tant Treasurer in New York. In 1829 Union College conferred upon him the degree of L. L. D. He died at Utica, N. Y., October 19, 1863.
HON. CHARLES CRARY, son of Leonard P. Crary, was born at Wil- liamsville, Erie County, N. Y., May 2, 1823, and began his career as a clerk in a store in Buffalo, N. Y. He was seriously injured by an accident July 4, 1837, and after recovering entered the printing office of Abraham Dinsmore, learning the trade, and remaining in this office until 1842, when he went to Milwaukee and entered the office of his brother, Leonard P. Crary. In February, 1844, he began teach- ing and attending the Academy at Aurora, N. Y In 1845 he began the study of law in the office of Hon. John Crary, at Salem, N. Y., and was admitted to the bar in 1847. On December 6, 1849, he began the practice of his profession at Salem and in 1859 removed to New York city. He was Justice of the Peace for four years at Salem, and was also Postmaster under President Pierce. In New York he was elected to the Assembly from the twenty-first district. He was a member of the Board of Education in New York and revised the table of teachers' salaries, his table being yet in use. He was also Presi- dent of the East Side Association for the promotion of municipal reform. In 1858 he published " Laws and Practice in Special Pro- ceedings," commonly known as "Crary's Practice," and he also issued a work on Limited Partnerships. Both of these works are standards. Charles Crary married Mary E., only child of Henry Matthews, of Salem. He died November 30, 1889.
DAVID A. BOIES was born in Greenwich April 28, 1819. He grad- uated from Union College in 1839, and then entered his father's law office. He was admitted to the bar in 1842, and in 1852 succeeded his father as Surrogate. In 1858 he married Margaret Gifford, daugh- ter of Elihu Gifford, of Easton.
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JOSEPH BOIES was born at Blandford, Mass., October 2, 1783, and graduated from Williams College in 1808. He studied law with Savage & Crary, at Salem, N. Y., and with Charles Ingalls, at Green- wich. He was admitted to the bar in ISII. He began the practice of law in Cambridge, but returned to Greenwich in 1812, where he remained until his death in 1866. He was Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for several years, and in 1847 was elected to the office of Surrogate.
HON. U. G. PARIS .- The bench and bar of Washington County contained no more notable man of his day than Hon. U. G. Paris, and yet it was not only as a jurist that he left his impress upon the history of Washington County, for he was a strong factor in its public affairs, and even its finances and commercial prosperity were enhanced through the operations of his splendid mind.
He was born at Fairfield, Herkimer County, N. Y., August 14, 1819, but his parents removed to Harrisburgh, in Lewis County, while he was still quite young. There he was reared upon a farm, which he assisted in clearing and reclaiming from the wilderness. Thus his opportunities for acquiring an education were necessarily limited, and at the age of twenty-one he went to Watertown, Jefferson County, where he learned the trade of carpenter; yet as if aware of his own capabilities, and as if catching a glimpse in the distance of the bright career which was his destiny, he devoted his leisure hours and evenings to reading and study, while he was working at his trade. He made rapid progress in his studies and his tastes leading him toward professional life, he abandoned his trade and entered the office of Judges Rosecrans and Ferris, with whom he studied law, and at the end of the prescribed course was regularly admitted to the bar. Shortly after his admission to the bar he removed to Sandy Hill, which he made his permanent residence, and which was destined to become the theatre of his successful life. He was cotemporary with many brilliant legal minds in northern New York and with those he came in contact from the very outset of his career, yet he always proved himself the peer of the ablest among them, and soon was regarded as one of the safest counsellors and strongest advocates of the bar in the state.
He always made an exhaustive preparation of his cases to which he was able to direct the energies of a splendid mind and always fought
HON. U. G. PARIS.
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them to completion. As a consequence he attracted a large and remu- nerative practice, and his fame and fortune increased simultaneously.
If among his many admirable traits one could be selected as the most pronounced, it was his sterling honesty, so that while his prac- tice grew and his wealth increased, he continued to rise higher and higher in the esteem and confidence of his fellow men.
In politics Mr. Paris was at first a Whig, and afterwards allied him- self with its successor, the Republican party. In 1859 he was nomi- nated and elected Surrogate of Washington County for a term of four years, and was re-elected in 1863 for a second term. In this office he was highly popular, because his profound knowledge of the law was ever tinctured with the finest sense of justice.
He did much to foster business enterprises in Sandy Hill and was one of the founders of the Peoples National Bank, of which his son, Hon. Charles R. Paris, is now president.
Although he did a great deal for his community and generation- and indeed for the present generation, for the results of his work sur- vive-his life was mainly devoted to his profession. He was a man of clear perceptions and strong convictions, who planted himself squarely on the right, and was absolutely fearless in defense of his position.
In 1850 Mr. Paris married Cordelia Rogers, daughter of Hon. Charles Rogers, of Sandy Hill, who was also a prominent citizen of the county, and served both in the State Legislature and as a member of the XXVIIIth Congress. Their children living are Hon. Charles R. Paris, County Judge of Washington County; Dr. Russell C. Paris, a noted physician of Albany; Preston Paris, Treasurer of the Stand- ard Wall Paper Company at Sandy Hill, and two daughters, Mrs. Katharine P. Walters, of New York City, and Mrs. Susan A. Robert- son. One son, Lincoln Paris, was a well known banker, and was Cashier of the National Bank of Sandy Hill at the time of his death, which occurred suddenly. in July, 1898. He had previously been cashier of a bank in Cawker City, Kansas, and returned east in 1896.
During the latter part of the summer of 1891 the health of Hon. U. G. Paris began to fail, and he took a trip to the southern states and the West Indies, but without any beneficial result. He died September 15, 1892, and was buried in Union Cemetery, between Sandy Hill and Fort Edward.
The life of Mr. Paris is a notable proof of Disraeli's statement, that " if a man be true to himself he can always realize his ambitions," for
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he raised himself from a farmer's son to a position of both fame and fortune, entirely through his own efforts.
LEONARD GIBBS was born at Cambridge, Washington County, N. Y., April 21, 1800, and was educated for a lawyer and practiced his profession in his native town for some years. He was District Attor- ney of the county for a number of years and was once elected to the Legislature. He removed to New York in 1839.
HENRY GIBSON, son of James B. Gibson, was born at Salem, June 29, 1818, and studied law with his brother, the late Judge James Gib- son. In 1845 he went to Whitehall and formed a partnership with E. E. Davis which continued until 1852. He then practiced alone until 1857 when he and O. F. Davis entered into partnership, which was dissolved in 1866. From that time he was again alone. He was Associate County Judge from 1859 to 1863, and was a member of the Whitehall Board of Education for many years. He died in 1878.
HON. CORNELIUS LANSING ALLEN who served from 1851 to 1859 as a Justice of the Supreme Court of New York, from the Fourth Judicial District, was a son of Hon. David and Elizabeth (Lansing) Allen, and was born at Lansingburgh, N. Y., July 17, 1800. Judge Allen was graduated from Princeton College in 1818, read law with Hon. David Russell, of Salem, and was admitted to the bar in 1821. He was suc- cessively in partnership with Mr. Russell and Hon. B. Blair, and then was by himself until he retired from the active practice of his profes- sion. Judge Allen was elected to the Supreme Court in November. 1851, and served for eight years. His career as a lawyer and a judge was marked by zeal and quickness to grasp the salient points of a law case. He held many offices of trust and responsibility in his village, being President of the Washington Academy and the National Bank of Salem.
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JOHN WILLARD .- Among the distinguished jurists who have been residents of Washington County during the past century, Hon. John Willard deserves a prominent place.
As a lawyer it was said of him by Chancellor Walworth: "It might truly be said of him, semper paratus, semper fidelis. As a judge no judicial officer ever discharged his official duties more uprightly or more faithfully."
He was born in Guilford, Conn., on the 20th of May, 1792, and was descended from two Puritan families, who founded Guilford in 1639.
He was graduated from Middlebury College in August, 1813, and while at college was associated with the late Silas Wright and Hon. Samuel Nelson. He was admitted as an attorney of the Supreme Court in 1817. and entered upon the practice of law in Salem, and soon attained, by his talents and industry, an enviable eminence in his profession.
He was appointed a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Febru- ary, 1833, and was Surrogate until, in 1836, on the elevation of Esek Cowen to the Supreme Court, he was appointed Circuit Judge and Vice Chancellor of the Fourth Judicial District, which position he occupied until the organization of the judiciary under the constitution of 1846, when he was elected one of the Justices of the Supreme Court, which latter office he held until' 1854, and during the last year of his term of service was a member of the Court of Appeals.
In 1837 he removed to Saratoga Springs, which was his residence during the remainder of his life. He was the author of several legal treatises, which are valuable contributions to our jurisprudence.
As a politician he was attached to the Democratic party and decided in his political opinion, but on the breaking out of the rebellion he took strong grounds in favor of a united support to the government in its struggle.
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