USA > Ohio > Darke County > History of Darke County, Ohio, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Volume I > Part 43
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There was also Mr. Heaton of the Eaton bar, that fre- quently attended our courts. He was a tall, slender man, al- ways well dressed and was eccentric in that he always wore his hair, which was coal black and long as a woman's, plaited nicely hanging down his back over his coat.
Mr. Hawkins also had a younger brother that often at- tended our court with him; also a very respectable lawyer. Like Joseph S., he was small of stature but lacked the vim.
One of the few members of the Miami bar practising here at times was William I. Thomas, a small, quiet, pleasant man, who represented Miami county in the state senate six terms.
Jacob Burgess, a very tall, and heavy man from Troy, was also an occasional visitor at our bar, and was later elected recorder of Miami county.
From Shelby county we had only the occasional visit of Judge Metcalfe, an excellent man and a good lawyer.
Among the early lawyers coming to Darke county to reside was Hiram Bell, who had been admitted to the bar at Ham- ilton, Butler county. He was thorough and industrious and had a fair share of the business in the court. In 1836 he was elected auditor of the county and was elected to the state legislature in 1841. Later he was appointed an officer in the
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state militia and was elected to congress, serving in the thir- ty-second session. General Hiram Bell died in 1855 in his forty-eighth year.
About 1834, William Crain, a lawyer from Butler county, came here, stayed several years, but not meeting the desired success in the law, taught school a few terms and then moved away.
J. B. Underwood settled here about 1844 and was a candi- date for prosecuting attorney in 1846, but did not succeed in the election. He afterwards moved away and has been lost sight of.
David Beers read in the office of his father and was ad- mitted to the bar in 1842. He was a fair student, attaining a very good and correct knowledge of the principles of the law, had a tolerable knowledge of surveying and civil engi- neering and much of his time was occupied by that business. He practiced law until the breaking out of the rebellion, when he quit his books and volunteered in the service of the union. where he remained over four years. During his services in the army his ability as an engineer was soon discovered and he was deputed and assigned to that duty. After his return home from the war he settled on his farm a few miles north of Greenville and died in 1889 in the seventy-second year of his age.
John S. Bascom, son of Linus Bascom, read law in the office of W. M. Wilson, but upon being admitted to the bar was appointed postmaster at Greenville, which office he held for several years and died of consumption in 1843.
Hiram Bell was an eastern man; came to Darke county in 1837; represented with two others, Darke, Mercer and Miami counties in the House in 1840-1, and represented the third district in the thirty-second congress in 1853-55, and died in December, 1855. He was perhaps the ablest lawyer in his time at this place.
Onias C. Skinner read law at the office of Hiram Bell, was admitted to practice in 1841, was partner with his preceptor several years, married the daughter of Major Dorsey and moved to Illinois, where he soon became one of the judges in that state, dying while still a young man.
Charles Bell also read law at the same office at the same time. He was an eastern man and when admitted to the bar returned to Vermont, his native state.
O. A. Lyman also read law at the same office, was admitted
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to the bar in 1843, practiced with his preceptor for several years, then went to Dayton and opened an office there with John Reily Knox. Later he moved to New York City and be- gan the practice there, but soon became religious, studied theology a year, secured license to preach the gospel and re- ceived a call from a Presbyterian church in Cleveland, Ohio, which he accepted, but soon afterwards died. He was an ex- cellent young man in every particular, and was a charter member of the Greenville Masonic lodge, 1847, and worship- ful master in 1851 and later was grand lecturer of the state.
John Curtis was also admitted to the bar in 1848 and was soon after appointed postmaster, which office he held several years. Resigning, he moved west with a view of practicing law, but soon died.
In 1846 William Collins came to town, after reading law and having been admitted to the bar at Eaton. He, at that time was about forty-five years of age, had been a United Brethren preacher, and presiding elder. He was a very pleasant and at times powerful speaker and was fast gaining in practice when he died of consumption in 1855.
In 1852 Evan Baker was admitted to the bar. He was born in Virginia in 1808 and was a resident of Butler town- ship nearly all his life. He was identified with public im- provements of the county, was elected to the legislature in 1854 and was the author of the Ohio ditch laws and at the time of his death in 1863 he had a large law practice. He was president of the Richland & Covington railroad, for the location of which through Greenville he had labored long and earnestly.
John T. Lecklider, born near Gettysburg, practiced law in Greenville for a while and was also mayor of the city of Greenville, in the seventies. In 1874 he removed to Indian- apolis successfully practicing law for a period also travelling extensively abroad. Possessed of an artistic and poetic tem- perment, he published a volume of his poems in 1913.
On the 17th day of September, 1848, Mathew T. Allen first saw the light of day at his father's house in Butler township, Darke county, Ohio. "Jim," as he was familiarly called, was six feet and slender and of dark complexion. After a par- tial course at Otterbein University, Mr. Allen began the study of law in Winchester at the age of eighteen and was admitted to the bar immediately after he became of age. After serving as assistant prosecuting attorney in Indiana,
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Mr. Allen removed to Greenville in July, 1872, and continued in active practice. He was master of Greenville lodge, F. & A. M., 1880, and was one of the prominent attorneys here in his day. "Jim" was clever, sociable and mirthful. After suc- cessful practice here he removed about 1885 to Los Angeles, California, where he was a judge of the district court of ap- peals, at the time of his death in 1914.
M. C. Benham, a native Buckeye, was admitted to the bar in 1876, came to Greenville and made commercial law a specialty.
Theodore Beers was born in Darke county in 1826, com- menced the practice of law in 1852 and was well read in the law. His misfortune consisted in his inability to tell what he knew but what he did say was law, not guslı.
Louis B. Lott was born in New Jersey in 1825 and came to Darke county, in 1855, was minister of the M. E. church in New York. He was more of a politician than a lawyer, giv- ing most of his time to political affairs. He represented this county in the legislature in 1862-65 and then went into prac- tice as a partner of M. Spayd, practicing later with A. T. Bodle. During that partnership he displayed good legal abil- ity and proved to be an earnest and effective speaker. He died in March, 1889.
Although George W. Calderwood practiced law but a short time in the firm of Calderwood. Collins and Calderwood, he as the famous "Darke County Boy." deserves a whole chap- ter of this book. I can not do him justice.
Emlen W. Otwell was born in Guilford county, North Carolina. in February, 1831, and received a common school education at Otwell Seminary, near what is now Weavers' Station. His college education was obtained at Wesleyan University at Delaware. After his graduation he read law in the office of A. R. Calderwood. after which he practiced law for a number of years. Later on he gave less time to pro- fession and purchased the Greenville Journal, which he edited with ability until his death in 1902. Among his partners at various times were William Allen, J. K. Riffle. J. C. Clark, H. K. McConnell and T. C. Miller.
J. E. Breaden was born in this county in July, 1852, ob- tained a common school education and finished educational course at Chickering Institute in Cincinnati at which insti- tution he graduated in 1873. Soon after he entered the law office of Calderwood & Cole and was admitted to the bar in
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1876. Atter a partnership with Judge Clark for three years, he practiced law with his former preceptor, Judge Calder- wood until the latter's death in 1891. He continued in the active practice of his profession alone and was respectful, kind and courteous. At the time of his death he was a mem- ber of the Ohio state board of pardons, to which position he had been appointed by Governor Bushnell, who held him in high esteem.
Ira Lecklider was born in Darke county in 1855, admitted to the bar in 1878. He was dark complexioned, of slender build, and active and was a partner of I. N. Ullery.
Lee F. Limbert was born in Clay township, Montgomery county and after a term in the Commercial College at Dayton, read law and was admitted at Columbus in October. 1877. He was good natured, full of life and energy and was a partner of B. F. Ratliff. Later he spent six months in the Indian ·service in the west and was city solicitor of Greenville and in 1890 was a member of the board of managers of the Ohio reforma- tory at Mansfield. Subsequently he practiced law at Dayton as a member of the firm of Gottschall, Crawford and Limbert.
David P. Bowman was born near Palestine in 1841 and passed his boyhood on a farm and was inured to all the toil that fell to the lot of farmers' son of that day. He was four- teen years old before he could read, but with zeal took up such advantages as he could obtain and then taught school. After studying law for several years he was admitted to the bar in 1872 and began the practice of law in Greenville, com- ing into the forum "Not decorated for pomp, but armed for battle." At the time of his death, he was a law partner of General C. M. Anderson. Of German ancestry he was an accomplished German scholar and was familiar with the lit- erature of the land. He died in 1878 after a short illness.
John Devor was born in Greenville in 1831 and was a grand son of John Devor, who entered the first half section of land in Darke county and laid out the town of Greenville in 1810. At nineteen years of age the subject of this sketch began the study of law with Hiram Bell and was admitted to the bar in 1852. For thirteen years he was a law partner of Michael Spayd and subsequently for eleven years a partner of Judge William Allen. Four years he was assistant assessor of in- ternal revenue for the fourth district of Ohio, and was a mem- ber of the electoral college at the election of Benjamin Har- rison, president, in 1888.
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Swan Judy was born in December, 1850, in Clark county, Ohio; was admitted to the bar in 1875, after having gradu- ated from the law department of the University of Michigan in 1875. He immediately entered upon the practice of law in partnership with the late Michael Spayd but later opened an office of his own, forming a partnership with D. P. Irwin in 1879, which partnership continued until the fall of 1887. After serving as justice of the peace he died in 1892.
I. N. Ullery born in 1853 at Greenville, Ohio, taught school and attended the Normal School at Lebanon, later studying law in the office of Gen. C. M. Anderson, and being admitted to the bar in 1878. He practiced but a few years, his death occurring July 21, 1882.
William H. Gilbert was born in Adams township in 1864, taught school while a young man and began reading in the office of Meekers & Bowman in March, 1886. He was ap- pointed special court bailiff and law librarian and completed the study of law in the law liberty. After his admission to the bar in October, 1888, he formed a law partnership with Walter S. Meeker, but removed a number of years ago to Troy, Ohio, where he enjoys a lucrative practice.
Edward J. Tobin was born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1867, grad- nated from the common schools at Union City, Ohio, and taught school for a number of years. He began the study of law with Anderson & Bowman and entered the Cincinnati Law School in 1889. After his admission to the bar and practicing here a short time, he moved to Chicago, Ill.
David P. Irwin was born near Greenville in 1849, taught school eight years in the county and in the spring of 1876 he began reading law with Elijah Devor and A. T. Bodle. In 1879 he was admitted to the practice of law in all the courts of Ohio, was a member of the city council and was a success- ful practitioner until his death in 1912.
Millard F. Myers was born March 17, 1850, near Harrisburg, Pa., and spent a good portion of his boyhood in Darke county. He taught school several years and read law at the same time in the office of Hon. David L. Meeker. In February, 1874 he was duly admitted to the practice of law and practiced in Greenville for a number of years, was mayor one term and then moved to Fitzgerald, Ga.
Volney Miller was born on a farm near New Madison in April, 1860, attended the common schools in his neighborhood and two winters at the Greenville high school. During the
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years of 1881-4 he followed farming, improving odd hours in the study of law under Judge D. L. Meeker. In October, 1884, he went to Ann Arbor, Mich., and in June, 1886 grad- uated from the law department of the University of Michi- gan. He was a member for a while of the firm of Brandon & Miller and then removed to Union City, Indiana.
Richard Dills was born in 1847, a native Buckeye. His life previous to 1875 was given to scientific investigations and traveling. He was quite a linguist, speaking several lan- guages correctly. He commenced the practice of law in 1875 as a partner of the late D. P. Bowman.
Charles Frizell was born in Darke county and obtained his education at the naval academy at Annapolis, and later read law with Calderwood & Cole and was admitted in 1875. He was a good conversationalist and a genial good fellow and about 1890 removed to Chicago, Il1.
Richard S. Frizell was born in Greenville, in 1854 and was a son of the late General J. W. Frizell. He was a fine scholar and developed into a good lawyer. He was energetic and took considerable interest in politics serving two terms as mayor of the city. He died while comparatively young in 1904.
H. K. McConnell was born in Miami county in 1856 and. according to the county atlas in 1875, was a practicing attor- ney in this city. He had been at one time a pastor of the Christian church of Greenville, Ohio, and for a while a part- ner of E. W. Otwell.
Barnabas Collins was born in Preble county in May, 1836. His father William Collins, was a lawyer and clergyman of high standing, and has already been referred to in this chap- ter. Barnabas Collins became a practical printer when a boy and spent a short time at Delaware, being interested chiefly in literature. He read law under Calderwood & Calkins and was admitted to the bar in 1858, the same year that he mar- ried the daughter of Judge Calderwood. In the spring of 1861 he was nominated in Indiana on the Union ticket as a candidate for state senator but withdrew from the canvass and entered the Eighty-sixth Indiana Volunteer Infantry as first lieutenant. After his return from the army he settled in Greenville, where he occupied a respectable position as a member of the Darke county bar. In 1876 he represented the fourth Congressional district in the Republican National con- vention at Cincinnati that nominated Mr. Hayes for the pres-
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idency. Mr. Collins tastes gravitated to fields of literature and science and he gratified them even at the expense of his profession. As a local historian he had few equals in his county and he was also a poet of local celebrity. He moved to California, about 1880, and was a member of the legisla- ture there before his death.
Jacob Baker was born in Butler township during the "hard cider" campaign in 1840. He was admitted to the bar in 1854 and practiced continuously for many years having been en- gaged in some of the most important civil and criminal cases ever tried in the county. He was elected to the legislature in 1868 and voted for Allen G. Thurman for senator in prefer- ence to Mr. Vallandigham. Although one of the youngest members of the house, Mr. Baker was the author of several measures, which he successfully carried through. He was a deelgate from the fourth district to the St. Louis convention, which nominated Tilden for president in 1876. He was de- feated in the nomination for the judgeship several times and for nomination to Congress. He found time and means to in- dulge his inventive tastes, having invented a steam canal boat, a convenient office desk and a centrifugal force pump.
J. C. Thornton was mentioned by Judge Clark in his toast, "Reminiscences," at a bar banquet, as being inpractice in Greenville in 1875.
Thomas A. Burns was born in Champaign county in 1836 and in his boyhood struggled through circumstances that were anything but genial to his aspiring nature. He farmed and taught school until the sound of the war trumpet in 1861 when he enlisted in Company A, Sixty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. After holding various non-commissioned offices he was elected first lieutenant and in a short time he was commissioned captain of Company E, One Hundred and Ninety-four Ohio Volunteer Infantry and was mustered out with his regiment in 1865, after having served over four and one-half years. He studied law in Troy and was admitted to the bar in 1868, after which he moved to Versailles, Ohio, where he practiced law. He was state senator of this district from 1892 to 1894.
G. W. Studebaker was born in Darke county in 1840 and spent his boyhood days on a farm, the plow, spade and ax being implements to which he was no stranger. In 1865 he commenced the study of law under the instruction of A. R. Calderwood and in 1871 after an examination before the su-
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preme court was regularly admitted as an attorney and counselor-at-law and opened a law office at Versailles. In May, 1875 he assisted Geo. W. Calderwood in the establish- ment of the Greenville Sunday Courier. He was mayor of Versailles for six consecutive years, was president of the school board and in 1875 was chosen by the Republican party as a candidate for state senator.
Allen Andrews was born in 1849, worked as a farm lad, taught school and read law under Judge Allen, was admitted to the bar in 1874 and was a partner of J. K. Riffel in 1875. He subsequently moved to Butler county and is now in prac- tice at Hamilton with his son. He is an excellent orator, very prominent in Masonic circles and was most worshipful grand master of the state of Ohio for one year.
Judge Clark also mentions Messrs. Ozias and Lindamood as students of law here forty years ago.
Michael Spayd was attorney here for many years and has been mentioned as a partner of several other attorneys. I have been unable to secure much reliable information about him.
Edwin B. Putnam was the son of the pastor of the first Presbyterian church at Dayton where he was born in 1829. He served in the rebellion for ninety days as adjutant of the One Hundred and Fifty-second Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He practiced law both before and after his service in the army, and died in 1868.
David Putnam was born in 1821 on the present site of New Madison within the stockade, which formerly constituted old Fort Black. He was reared in New Madison and obtained his school privileges in a log building and at the age of four- teen went into his father's mill where he was employed for two years. In 1836 he started for Texas walking to Cincin- nati. After successful commercial transactions in the south. Mr. Putnam was in business successively at New Madison and Palestine, was a farmer, later traveling agent for the New York Mutual Insurance Company. In 1861 Mr. Putnam was commissioned second lieutenant, subsequently raised a full company and was elected captain. After organizing the Twenty-eighth regiment of the Ohio National Guard he was elected colonel and in May, 1864, this regiment was ordered out for one hundred days' service. On his return home, Col- onel Putnam began the study of law under the direction of Judge A. R. Calderwood at Greenville and was admitted to (32)
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the bar in 1866. He was a justice of the peace three years and a notary public half a century. About ninety years Col- onel Putnam resided in Darke county and deserves mention in this chapter.
John Reily Knox was born in Butler county in 1820 and was graduated with honors from Miami University in the class of 1839. While a student at Oxford he was the founder of the college fraternity, which he and his associates named Beta Theta Pi. The fraternity expanded rapidly and at pres- ent has seventy-four active chapters with a total membership of about 20,000. After leaving college Mr. Knox studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1843. At the time he had a reputation as a speaker and was in demand during the excit- ing Harrison campaign of 1840. He was elected in 1860, one of the presidential electors in Ohio, and as such cast his offi- cial ballot to make Abraham Lincoln president of the United States. He was connected with the management at Miami University as a member of the board of trustees in 1869 and for a period of twenty-nine years until his death. For a pe- riod of fifty-five years he actively followed the profession of his choice. He labored arduously in the organization of the County Bar Association, was made its first president and continued in such office to the time of his death. He as- sisted materially in organizing the Greenville law library. He was, as Judge Clark remarked at a banquet, a scholar and the most thorough and polite gentleman, by nature and culture, of any one who was ever a member of this bar. He dis- liked the scramble for office and was but once a candidate before his party for nomination. Although not appreciated by all, he was by nature most kind and courteous, unostenta- tious and unpretentious. He had a tall, erect and well pro- portioned body and the carriage of a trained gentleman, al- ways neat and tidy. He had a high respect for the dignity o' courts and the profession. He never resorted under any circumstances to the practices of the petifogger. In a rough and tumble fight before a jury he refused to engage in im- proper practices, always maintaining the dignity of a gen- tleman and relying upon the law and the merits of his case. He died in 1898 and his death came as a great blow to the thousands of members of his college fraternity all over the United States. He seemed to have never grown old in re- spect to fraternity matters. but was a frequent attendant at the banquets and conventions. "Pater Knox" will be long
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revered by the members of the fraternity whose principles he helped to establish. He was a vestryman of the Episcopal church and died after the sun of life was well set in the west, but like the great law giver of old "his eye was not dim nor his natural force abated."
Jacob T. Martz, lawyer and educator, was born in Darke county in September, 1833. He attended the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, at which institution he graduated in 1856. During the nine succeeding years he engaged in teach- ing and also read law under Judge D. L. Meeker and was ad- mitted to the bar in June, 1860.
In the spring of 1862 he was elected superintendent of the public schools and resigned in 1865 to form a law partner- ship with J. R. Knox. In August of that year he was ap- pointed receiver of the Cincinnati & Mackinaw Railroad, which work occupied his time for nearly five years. In 1871 the superintendency of the Greenville schools was tendered to him without his solicitation, and the board prevailed upon him to continue his good work which he did for seventeen consecutive years until June, 1888. Under his supervision he saw the school grow from four to twenty-two teachers. He assisted in organization of the Darke County Teachers' As- sociation of which he was president. He was also a member of the board of county school examiners for about twenty-two years and assisted greatly in advancing the qualifications of the teachers in the county. He was for six years secretary of the Darke County Agricultural Society. For many years he was secretary of a building company. He was superinten- dent of the Sabbath school of the Methodist Episcopal church and for more than eight years was recording steward of its official board. He was very much interested in the history of Darke county and contributed an article of about twenty-four pages to the county history published in 1900, entitled His- torical Sketches of Deceased Citizens of Darke County. He had also contributed a carefully prepared article on Educa- tional History to the Darke county history compiled by W. H. McIntosh, in 1880. After resigning as superintendent of the city schools, he resumed the practice of law in the firm of Knox, Martz & Rupe, whom he outlived and then practiced alone until his death in 1911.
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