USA > Ohio > Delaware County > History of Delaware County and Ohio : containing a brief history of the state of Ohio biographical sketches etc. V. 1 > Part 36
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The next move, after the formation of the county, was the location of the seat of justice. This was done by Commissioners appointed for the purpose by the General Assembly. They met in March, only a few weeks after the passage of the act or- ganizing the county, and, upon considering the respective merits of contesting points, made their decision in favor of Delaware. A short time pre- vious to the location of the county seat. the town of Delaware had been laid out by Hon. Henry Baldwin and Col. Moses Byxbe, and the plat re- corded in Franklin County. Baldwin lived in Pittsburgh, but, together with Byxbe, owned a large tract of military land in this section. The location of the county seat at Delaware was a great disappointment to the people of Berkshire, who had aspired to the dignity of having their own town become the seat of justice. The rivalry for that honor was kept up for a number of years. before the Berkshireites gave up the contest. Pre- vious to the building of the first court house. the little court business necessary to be transacted was done in taverns and private houses. People were better then than they are now, perhaps, and did not require so much " lawing " to keep them straight.
Delaware County, at the time of its organization. comprised a population of only a few hundreds. and hence did not need many divisions of its terri- tory. The same act that formed the county authorized the Associate Justices, viz. Moses Bysbe, Thomas Brown and Josiah Mckinney, to divide it into townships. Accordingly they met, in obedience to this act, and divided the county into three townships, as follows : " All east of the
211
center of eighteenth range was made the township of Berkshire ; all west and north of the north line of the fourth tier of townships, and a continued line west, was made the township of Radnor ; all south of Radnor, and west of Berkshire, was made the township of Liberty." Among the first business, however, transacted by the Commission- ers' Court, was the creation of additional town- ships.
Marlborough was the first, and its formation bears date June 15, 1808. It comprised the area within the following boundary : Beginning at southeast corner of the sixth township, in the eight- eenth range of the United States Military Survey ; thence north on the east line of the eighteenth range to the Indian boundary line to the west line of the nineteenth range; thence south with said west line of the nineteenth range to the south line of the sixth township ; thence east with the south line of the sixth township, until it inter- sects the east line of the eighteenth range, at the place of beginning. June 16, Delaware Township was created, as the records have it, by a " concur- rent resolution of the Board of Commissioners." Its original area was as follows : Beginning at the northwest corner of Township 5, Range 19 of the United States Military Survey ; thence south with the range line to the center of Township 4; thence east on center line of said township to the center of Township 4, in Range 18, to the north line of Township 5 in the same range; thence west on said line to the place of beginning. The formation of Sunbury bears the same date, and is bounded as follows : Beginning at the northeast corner of Section 2
of Township 5 and Range 17 of United States Military Survey ; thence south with said line of the county; thence east with said county line to the east line of said county ; thence north with said county line to the Indian boundary line: thence westerly with said boundary line to the east boundary of Marlboro Township ; thence south with said boundary to the southeast corner of said township; thence east to the place of beginning.
Many of the townships, at the time of their or- ganization, were much larger than they are at present ; their boundaries have been materially changed in some cases-changes resulting in the total annihilation of one (Sunbury) at least. As a sample of the changes that have taken place in the area of certain of the townships, Delaware, at the time of its formation, included, in addition to its present extent, Sections 1 and 2 of Troy, 2 and 3 of Brown, and 2 of Berlin. As the population increased, new townships were created, until we find the number increased to twenty-four, viz., Berkshire, Berlin, Bennington, Brown. Concord, Delaware, Genoa. Harlem. Har- mony, Kingston, Liberty, Lincoln. Marlborough, Orange, Oxford, Peru, Porter. Radnor. Scioto, Sunbury, Thompson. Trenton, Troy and Westfield. In the formation of new counties, portions of sev- eral of these townships have been taken. while Bennington, Harmony, Lincoln. Peru and West- field have been transferred bodily. - In 1840, Mr. Howe gives twenty-one townships, with an aggre. gate population of 22.060. The County Atlas. published in 1866, gives the following tabulated statement of the townships and their populations for six decades:
TOWNSHIPS.
1810.
1820.
1830.
1840.
1850.
1860.
Berkshire.
1.057
1,407
1,557
1,302
Berlin
646
827
1,151
1,303
Bennington*
490
1,051
Brown
313
908
1,176
1.181
Concord.
458
1,185
1,369
1,186
Delaware City.
532
898
2,074
3.889
Delaware Township ..
410
1,019
1,249
1.332
Genoa.
658
1,193
1,369
1,126
Harlem
525
963
1,182
1,289
Harmony*
241
676
Kingston
582
657
761
675
Liberty
619
811
1,050
1,178
Lincoln*
226
549
Marlborough ..
503
1,182
587
512
Orange
367
789 !
1,150
090
Oxford
415
774
829
1,133
* Transferred to new county organizations.
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
i
212
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
TOWNSHIPS.
1810.
1820.
1830.
1840.
1850.
1860.
Peru*
529
737
Porter.
304
678
1,037
1,079
Radnor
582
1,174
1,204
1,342
Scioto.
465
877
1,126
1,579
Sunburyi
518
Thompson
233
660
732
870
Trenton
1,188
1,238
996
Troy.
369
838
976
900
Westfield*
471
1,019
Totals in county.
±2,000
17,639. 11,523
22,060
21,817
23,902
By the census of 1870, the population had in- creased to 25,175, and at the present writing is per- haps not far short of 30,000. Numerous changes have taken place, as we have already stated, until at present the county is composed of the fol- lowing divisions, viz., Berkshire, Berlin, Brown, Concord, Delaware, Genoa, Harlem, Kingston, Liberty, Marlborough, Orange, Oxford, Porter, Radnor, Scioto, Thompson, Trenton and Troy.
The following pages on the political history of the county are written by the Hon. James R. Hubbell : In the early history of Delaware County there was but little party strife. The act of the General Assembly creating the county was passed the last year of the Administration of Thomas Jefferson, and the exciting events of the war of 1812, which soon followed, wiped out the old Federal party that had so bitterly assailed Mr. Jefferson. The war measures of Mr. Madi- son and the Republican party in Congress were earnestly supported by the citizens generally throughout the county. The scramble for the " loaves and fishes " of office, compared with a later date, was almost nothing. But few offices were sought for their emoluments. The most lucrative offices were filled by appointment, and not by popular election. The most important office, then as now, was that of County Auditor, which was filled by the appointment of the County Commis- sioners. It was not until the year 1821 that this office was made elective by the popular vote. The County Treasurer, Surveyor and Recorder of Deeds were also appointed by the Commissioners. The Prosecuting Attorney and Clerks of the Court were appointed by the court. These officers were made elective by the law of 1833. In most cases the offices were filled by faithful and com- petent men. The appointing power conferred by
the Legislature upon the Commissioners and the court, although anti-republican in principle, seems to be. judging from the experience of the past, the best calculated to secure efficiency and competency in office. Experience has shown that the less frequently changes are made, the better ir is for the public service. The early records of the county show, under the appointing power, but few changes. From 1820 until 1830, the duties of County Auditor were faithfully discharged by Solomon Smith, an honest and competent officer. and he was succeeded by Gen. Sidney Moore, who efficiently and satisfactorily performed the duties of the office during the period of another decade.
In 1822. Thomas Reynolds succeeded his brother-in-law, the Rev. Joseph Hughes, in the office of Clerk of the Court, which he retained until 1838. when he voluntarily resigned. Mr. Reynolds was a man remarkable for his personal attractions, and possessed qualifications for public and official duties, of a high order, and his resigna- tion of the office was a matter of universal regret with both bench and bar, as well as with the public. The office of County Surveyor, for about twenty years (from 1822 to 1842), was filled by James Eaton, a skillful and accurate officer; he was sub- sequently promoted to the office of County Auditor and State Senator. Of those who figured most conspicuously in the early politics and in official stations were Joseph Eaton, Azariah Root. Solomon Smith, Elias Murray, Pardon Sprague and Sidney Moore and his brother, Emery Moore. During the eight years of the Administration of James Monroe (the fifth President), between the years 1817 and 1825, there was no party politics. This period in our national history has been called the "era of good feeling," and during this time Delaware County seemed peculiarly favored and exempt from political animosity and strife.
The Presidential election of 1824 was attended with unusual excitement-probably the most ex-
* Transferred to new county organizations.
+ Divided among other townships.
# Aggregate population of county.
6
213
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
citing of any election that had ever taken place in the country, with the exception of the Presidential election of 1800, which resulted in the success of Mr. Jefferson over the elder Adams. At this election the Presidential candidates were Gen. Jackson, of Tennessee ; Henry Clay, of Kentucky ; John Q. Adams, of Massachusetts, and William H. Crawford, of Georgia. Each of these distin- guished gentlemen had his friends, who supported their favorite candidate from personal preference and not from considerations of party. At that election Mr. Clay was the choice of the majority of the voters of Delaware County, as he was of a majority of the voters of the State of Ohio, but he was not elected. In the Electoral College, Gen. Jackson led Mr. Adams by a small plurality, and Mr. Crawford was in number the third on the list of candidates, and Mr. Clay was dropped from the canvass. Neither candidate having a majority of the electoral vote under the Constitutional rule, upon the House of Representatives devolved the duty of making choice of President, each State, by its delegation in Congress, casting one vote. Mr. Adams was chosen by the casting vote of the State of Kentucky. Mr. Clay was a member of the House of Representatives, and its Speaker, and it was doubtless owing to Ohio's great influence and popularity that the delegation from Kentucky was induced to cast the vote of that State for Mr. Adams, an Eastern man, in preference to Gen. Jackson, a Western and Southern man. By that act, Mr. Clay was instrumental in organizing polit- ical parties that survived the generation of people to which he belonged, and ruled in turn the des- tinies of the Republic for more than a quarter of a century. In the new Cabinet, Mr. Clay was placed by Mr. Adams at the head of the State De- partment, which gave rise to the charge of " bar- gain and sale" between the President and his . chief Secretary, that threw the country into a blaze of excitement from center to circumference. At this time, no one doubts the patriotism and honesty of Henry Clay, but the charge was so persistently made by the partisans of Gen. Jack- son, it greatly injured Mr. Clay in the public esti- mation, and contributed largely to the General's success in the Presidential race of 1828. At the Presidential election following, party lines were closely drawn between Gen. Jackson and Mr. Adams, but the result of a hot and bitter contest was a small majority for the Adams electoral ticket in the county, as there was in the State. Gen. Jackson, the hero of New Orleans, was most
triumphantly elected both by the electoral and popular vote, and on the following 4th of March, the political power and official patronage of the country passed into his hands. At this time parties were known here, as elsewhere throughout the country, as the Jackson and anti-Jackson party. Delaware was almost uniformly classed, by her vote, as anti-Jackson. In 1824, Gov. Jere- miah Morrow, anti-Jackson, was re-elected Gov- ernor of Ohio, receiving a small majority over Allen Trimble, of the same political faith, and his principal competitor. Capt. Elias Murray, anti Jackson, was, at the same election, returned to the House of Representatives, in the State Legislature, and re-elected in 1825. Allen Trimble was elected at the October election in 1826, to succeed Gov. Morrow, receiving quite a large majority in the county and State ; Pardon Sprague, anti-Jackson. was chosen successor to Capt. Murray in the State Legislature, and re-elected in 1827. In 1828, Gov. Trimble was re-elected over the Hon. John W. Campbell, the Jackson candidate, long a distinguished member of Congress from Ohio. Gov. Trimble's majority was little less than three thousand in the popular vote, and a little over two thousand in the county. Milo D. Pettibone, anti- Jackson, at the same election, was elected Mr. Sprague's successor in the Legislature. Mr. Camp- bell was a member of Congress when Mr. Adams was chosen President by the House of Repre- sentatives, and was known to be opposed to Mr. Adams and for Gen. Jackson. Immediately upon the accession of Gen. Jackson to the Presidency. Mr. Campbell was rewarded for his friendship and fidelity to the General's fortunes with the appoint- ment of United States District Judge for the Dis- trict of Ohio. While holding a term of his court in Columbus, in the summer of 1833, he was taken suddenly ill, came to Delaware for the benefit of the sulphur-spring water, and in a few days died-we believe, of cholera. At the election in 1829, Col. B. F. Allen, who was known as a friend of the Administration, was returned to the Legis- lature. He was succeeded by Amos Utley, of Berkshire, in 1830. The Senatorial District of which Delaware County was a part, was composed of Crawford, Marion and Delaware Counties dur- ing this period, and from about the year 1828 to the year 1832, Charles Carpenter, anti-Jackson-a merchant living in Sunbury-then quite a young man, represented the district. He was from Luzerne County, in the Wyoming Valley, and the family connection in the eastern part of the county
1
1
214
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
was quite numerous and influential in its early history. Senator Carpenter subsequently moved West, we think to Missouri, where he held several official positions, and died soon after the elose of the late civil war.
In 1831, Gen. John Storm, who was anti-Jack- son, was elected to the Legislature by a small majority, over B. F. Allen, the Jackson candidate. Gen. Storm obtained his military title by being elected by the Legislature to the office of Major General in the ". Peace Establishment." He died before the close of his legislative term, greatly la- mented by his constituents and a numerous family connection. He was quite young, and his friends had predicted for him a successful political career.
In the Presidential campaign of 1832. such was. or had become, the popularity of Gen. Jackson, he swept everything before him. Col. James W. Crawford, who was a lieutenant in the company commanded by Capt. Elias Murray in the war of 1812, was elected as the Administration candidate, the successor of Senator Carpenter, and Capt. John Curtis, Administration candidate, was returned to the House of Representatives and re-elected in 1833. Gen. Sidney Moore was re-elected Auditor, and his brother Emery, re-elected Sheriff. The entire anti-Administration county ticket was elected, except the Whig candidate for the Legisla- ture. At the election in 1832. Robert Lucas, the Jackson candidate, was elected Governor over Darius Lyman, the candidate on the Clay ticket. by several thousand majority, although Delaware County cast a majority of her votes for Mr. Clay for President, and Lyman for Governor. It was about this time that the two great parties assumed distinctive names. The Administration party took the name of Democrat, and the opposition that of Whig. Delaware County was a Whig county. In 1834, Emery Moore was elected to the State Leg- islature, and Gen. Andrew H. Patterson, then Post- master at Delaware and a Democrat, was elected Sheriff as the successor of Mr. Moore. Gen. Pat- terson was a most remarkable man in many par- ticulars. He was a saddler by occupation. and his education in early life had been neglected, but he had great tact and shrewdness in the management of men, and was the most successful electioneerer Delaware County ever had. He was re-elected Sheriff in 1836, and in 1838 was elected to the Legislature over Judge Hosea Williams, Whig, by a majority of twelve votes. and in 1839 was elected by a majority of several hundred votes over Hon. T. W. Powell, the Whig candidate. Gen. Patterson
met with pecuniary losses in late life, moved. West, and it is believed he never retrieved his fortune.
The Whigs carried the county in 1836 for Gen. William H. Harrison for President. and Joseph Vance, Whig, for Governor, over their opponents, by large majorities, and the entire Whig ticket was elected, except Dr. Carney, the Whig candidate for the Legislature, who was defeated by Col. B. F. Allen, Democrat, by a majority of nine votes. The importance of one vote is to be seen in the re- sult of this election. Upon the Legislature chosen at this election, devolved the duty of electing a Senator in Congress, to succeed the Hon. Thomas Ewing, whose term would expire the 4th of March follow- ing. Mr. Ewing was a candidate for re-election, and was the favorite of his party in Ohio, and the West. Col. Allen had known Mr. Ewing in early life, and his friends elaimed, or represented in all parts of the county, that he would support Mr. Ewing, if he were the choice of the county. On
election day, printed petitions were presented at every election precinct for names, asking the Rep- resentative to support Mr. Ewing for a re-election. The ruse accomplished its object. Col. Allen was elected by a majority of nine votes, and his cote elected the late Gov. William Allen over Mr. Ewing, To what extent, if at all, Col. Allen was a party to the fraud, it is not known. He was a man of great firmness, but he was a zealous parti- san, and possibly he may have yielded, to the in- fluence and demands of his party, his conviction of duty, against his will, although ordinarily an honest man. At the following election, in October, 1837, Dr. Carney, on the "Ewing Fraud," as it was called, was elected over Col. Allen by over a hun- dred majority ; and, in 1838, Allen was elected to the State Senate. It was at this election, the late Wilson Shannon, Democrat. of Lawrence. Kan., was elected Governor of Ohio over Gov. Joseph Vance, Whig, but the Whig ticket for the county offices was elected, except Judge Williams, who was defeated by Gen. Patterson for Represent ative. In 1839, the entire Democratic ticket. for the first time after its organization, was elected. viz .: Will- iam W. Warner, Commissioner; Albert Picket, Jr .. Recorder; George W. Stark, Treasurer ; and Mor- gan Williams, Assessor. The average majority for these candidates was 300. The " hard-cider " campaign of 1840, greatly increased the forces of the Whig party, and the Whig ticket was elected by an average majority of over 600, viz. : Emery Moore was again chosen to the State Legislature; Col. John F. Dunlap, County Auditor ; Peleg
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
215
Banker, re-elected Sheriff, Horatio P. Havens, Commissioner, and D. T. Fuller, Prosecuting At- torney. It was during the memorable campaign of 1840, the " Liberty Party " was organized, and a ticket for President and Vice President nom- inated. For several years previous, the anti- slavery agitation had been making, slowly but un- mistakingly, its deep impressions upon the public mind, and more especially the minds of the relig- ious portion of the people, but it was not until about this period that the friends of the cause of emancipation proposed political action. James G. Birney, a former slaveholder of Kentucky, but then a resident of Michigan, was at the head of the ticket, and Thomas Morris, of Ohio, placed second. The electoral ticket for the candidates received about 100 votes in the county. This vote was taken principally from the Whig party. Four years later, the vote of this party was largely increased. This organization was possibly premature and misguided, but no party was ever actuated by loftier or purer motives. The Antislavery movement, at that time, was not larger than the cloud the Hebrew prophet saw, that so rapidly spread over the whole heavens and filled the earth with refreshing showers. At this time, no one expected to live to see the insti- tution of negro slavery in America abolished, but in less than the period allotted by Providence to a
generation of men, by an amendment to the Fed- eral Constitution, slavery and involuntary servi- tude of every species, in all the States and Terri- tories belonging to the American Union, was forever abolished.
But notwithstanding the drafts the Antislavery party, the Temperance party, and other parties from time to time, made upon the Whigs, they continued to be the dominant party until the repeal of the Missouri Compromise in 1854, which led to the organization of the Republican party, which then was and still is in the ascendency in Delaware County.
As pertinent to the organization of the county and its political history, we append an abstract of the vote cast at the first regular election ever hield in Delaware County, following it with a statement of the elections since the beginning of the war in 1861, as taken from the official vote. This state- ment shows merely the ticket elected in the county, and the majorities received by the State and National tickets. The vote cannot be given from the organization of the county, owing to the in- completeness of the records, and hence we begin with 1861, the most important epoch, perhaps, in the history of the county or the State. The first vote of the county, which was taken October 11, 1808, is as follows :
GOV- ERNOR.
SEN.
REPRE- ATE. SENTATIVE
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS.
SHER- IFF.
CORO- NER.
REP. IN CONGRESS.
TOWNSHIPS.
Samuel Huntington.
Thomas Worthington.
Jolın Hill.
Joseph Foos.
Josiah McKinnie.
John Blair.
Joseph McKinnie.
Ezekiel Brown.
John Welch.
N. W. Little.
Nathaniel Little.
Reuben Lamb.
N. Manville.
Avery Powers.
William Little.
Solomon Smith.
John Patterson.
John Weich.
William Hanaman.
Philemon Barker.
Jeremiah Morrow.
Joseph Food.
Delaware
32
24
7
26
5
26:
29
16
6
16
3
26
6
31
2 26
Liberty
21
21
16
4
5
20
11
16
10
13
8
21
21
.Berkshire
31
19.
12
10
21
23
23
12
14
17
4
20
10
31
6. 25
Radnor
Marlborough
Union.
24
14
14
14: 14
14
14
14
14
Sunbury
39
7: 27
15 24
21
2
32
28
41
9
6
5
1
22
26
2: 32
14' 28
2
Total.
123/ 31 91 48 76 65
2.100.114
801
50i
9/ 39|
4| 18
1| 81 64
2 129 43. 93/ 2
1
The result of other elections were as follows: 1861-David Tod, Governor, majority 1,224; Benjamin Stanton, Lieutenant Governor, 1,224; S. V. Dorsey, State Treasurer, 1,215; Isaiah Scott, Judge Supreme Court, 1,209; J. R. Riley, Comp-
troller of Treasury, 1,215; B. R. Cowen, Secreta- ry of State, 1,209; John Torrence, Member of Board of Public Works, 1,210: T. C. Jones, Judge Common Pleas Court. 1,215: J. A. Sinnett. State Senator, 1,202; J. R. Hubbell, Representative,
·
Benjamin Carpenter.
C
216
HISTORY OF DELAWARE COUNTY.
1,161; C. B. Paul, County Treasurer, 1,055; C. F. Bradley, County Commissioner, 4,027 ( no oppo- sition); Burton Moore, County Infirmary Director, 1,583.
1862-W. S. Kennon, Secretary of State, major- ity 417; F. T. Backus, Judge Supreme Court, 408; C. N. Olds, Attorney General, 436; W. D. Henkle, School Commissioner, 440; J. B. Gregory, Member of Board Public Works, 514; J. H. Godman, Congress, 470; R. W. Reynolds, County Auditor, 41; B. C. Waters, Sheriff, 507; H. M. Carper, Prosecuting Attorney, 486; R. T. McAllis- ter, County Commissioner, 427; Albert Worline, In- firmary Director, 320; B. F. Willey, Coroner, 463; G. C. Eaton, Surveyor (no opposition), 1,927.
1863-John Brough, Governor, majority 908; Charles Anderson, Lieutenant Governor, 904; J. H. Godman, Auditor of State, 905; G. V. Dorsey, Treasurer of State, S99; H. H. Hunter, Judge Supreme Court, 903; J. M. Barrere, Member of Board Public Works, 899; J. R. Stanberry, State Senate, 898; J. R. Hubbell, Representative, 899; B. F. Loofbourrow, County Clerk, 918; Thomas W. Powell, Probate Judge, 877; G. P. Paul, County Treasurer, 907; A. R. Gould, Recorder, 915; W. T. Watson, County Court, 912; George Atkinson, Infirmary Director, 909.
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