USA > Ohio > Hancock County > History of Hancock County, Ohio : containing a history of the county, its townships, towns portraits of early settlers and prominent men, biographies, history of the Northwest Territory, history of Ohio, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc > Part 31
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William M. Patterson was admitted to the bar at Tiffin, July 4, 1843, on the same day as Machias C. Whiteley. He was born in Harrison County, Ohio, March 24, 1812, and in the spring of 1834 came to Findlay with his parents, Major John and Elizabeth Patterson. He read law with Charles W. O'Neal, and upon his admission began practice in Findlay. In 1844 he was elected prosecuting attorney and served one term. He was married, in 1834, to Susan Amspoker, and resided in Findlay till 1854, when, with his wife and four children, he removed to Kansas, and died in the spring of 1858, from the effects of an accident caused by a boiler explosion in the fall of 1855, in a saw-mill which he was then operating.
Hon. James M. Coffinberry became a member of the Findlay bar in the fall of 1845. He was born in Mansfield, Richland Co., Ohio, May 16, 1818; whence in 1836 his father, Andrew Coffinberry, removed to Per-
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HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.
rysburg, Wood County. Here James M. read law in his father's office, and in 1840 was admitted to the bar. His father, widely known as "Count" Coffinberry, was one of the leading attorneys of Northwestern Ohio, and practiced in this portion of the State throughout the earlier years of its his- tory. Soon after admission, James M. opened a law office in Maumee City, and subsequently served as prosecuting attorney of Lucas County. Late in the fall of 1845 he settled in Findlay, where he purchased an inter- est and took editorial charge of the Findlay Herald, the local organ of the Whig party. In the spring of 1846 he became sole owner of the Herald, which he published about three years, then sold out to Dr. David Patton. From the date of his coming to Findlay, Judge Coffinberry took and retained a leading position at the Hancock County bar; and in 1852 was a prime mover in the establishment of the Findlay Bank, the first financial in- stitution established in the county. Feeling the need of a larger field for the full exercise of his maturer powers, he concluded in 1855 to remove to Cleveland, where he at once assumed a high rank among the eminent law- yers of that city. In 1861 he was elected on the Union ticket, judge of the common pleas court, and served five years on the bench. Upon the expiration of his judicial term, he resumed his professional duties, and con- tinued in the enjoyment of a large and lucrative practice till 1875 when he retired, and has since devoted his energies to the management of his private estate. Judge Coffinberry is a man of broad culture, a clear, vigorous and forcible writer, and has justly been recognized as a brilliant advocate, a log- ical and comprehensive reasoner, and an upright, unswerving and impartial judge. "His charges to the jury," says one high authorily, "were models for clearness, directness and logical compactness, and it is complimentary to his judicial learning and professional ability, that no legal opinion pronounced by him was ever reversed on review by a higher court." Judge Coffinberry has always taken a deep and active interest in the social and material prog- ress of the beautiful city of his adoption.
Charles S. Coffinberry, a younger brother of the Judge, practiced law in Findlay about three years. He was a native of Mansfield, Ohio, born Feb- ruary 1, 1824; read law with his father at Perrysburg, and came to Find- lay in the spring of 1846, where he formed a partnership with John H. Morrison. In 1849, in company with many others from this portion of Ohio, he went to California, and was afterward appointed by President Fillmore to take the first census of that State. In the discharge of this laborious undertaking he was ably assisted by his father, who had followed him to California. He finally returned to Ohio, and for a few months was associated with his brother in the practice of the law in Cleveland; but fail- ing health compelled him to again relinquish his professional labors, and he went to Oregon and New Mexico, where he spent the latter years of his life, dying of consumption about thirty miles south of Pueblo, December 17, 1873.
Aaron H. Bigelow was a native of Vermont and a graduate of Middle- bury College. He there read law and was admitted to practice. In July, 1841, he located in Findlay, and for a few years was engaged in mercantile pursuits. He then began the practice of the law, which he followed until 1856, when he gave up the profession and subsequently removed to Indiana, where he died about ten years ago. Mr. Bigelow possessed a good educa- tion, and was a fair speaker, but never acquired much practice.
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HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.
John E. Rosette first located in Mt. Blanchard, where he was mar- ried. In 1848 he removed to Findlay, and in April, 1849, was appoined prosecuting attorney, vice Abel F. Parker, resigned. He was twice elected to the same position, serving until January, 1854. He was a modest, quiet man, of studious habits, possessing good legal judgment, but diffident and lacking self reliance. Soon after the expiration of his last term as prose- cutor he removed to Springfield, Ill., where he rapidly secured recognition as a sound, reliable lawyer. He was appointed by President Johnson United States district attorney for the southern district of Illinois. For some years before his death he enjoyed a wide reputation as a criminal law- yer, and commanded the confidence of a bar embracing many distinguished men.
Henry Brown, the present prosecuting attorney of Hancock County, is one of the oldest and best known members of the bar. He was born in Albion, Orleans Co., N. Y., November 5, 1826, and received a good literary and classical education at the Albion Academy. In May, 1844, he came to Ohio, and engaged in school teaching near Fostoria, which vocation he fol- lowed three years. During this period he commenced the study of law under Hon. Warren P. Noble, of Tiffin, and in the fall of 1848 was admitted to practice. In January, 1849, he located in Findlay, as a member of the law firm of Goit, Bigelow & Brown. In January, 1851, Mr. Brown became one of the editors and proprietors of the Hancock Courier, which he con- tinued to publish until January, 1854, when he sold his interest to his part- ner, Aaron Blackford, who had also been his law partner for the last two years. In January, 1855, he assumed entire editorial control of the Courier, and carried on the paper till December 20, 1856. He was elected auditor in October, 1854, and served till March, 1857. Mr. Brown was then com- pelled by ill health to retire from active business. After a period of need- ed recuperation he resumed the practice of his profession, and has ever since remained at the helm. In November, 1862, Mr. Brown was appoint- ed prosecuting attorney to serve the unexpired term of James A. Bope, re- signed; was elected as his own successor, and re-elected to the same posi- tion. In 1868 he was the Democratic senatorial candidate for election in this district, and made a splendid race, reducing the previous Republican majority 1,973 votes, being defeated by only 227. Mr. Brown was again elected prosecutor in 1875, and re-elected in 1877. In 1884 he was once more chosen to fill the same office, and is the present incumbent. Mr. Brown has hosts of friends, and no member of the bar stands higher in the esteem and confidence of the people of Hancock County. He is regarded as one of the county's safest and most honorable attorneys, and for many years has enjoyed a large and well paying practice, all of which he justly deserves.
William Gribben is one of the present members of the bar, and might have been to-day one of its brightest ornaments if he had devoted his talents to his profession. He was born in Allegheny County, Penn., March 11, 1825, and the following autumn his parents removed to what is now Ash- land County, Ohio, where William grew to maturity and received a com- mon school education. He read law with Johnson & Sloan, of Ashland, and was admitted to the bar in the fall of 1850. The same autumn he lo- cated in Findlay, and formed a partnership with John H. Morrison, and subsequently with Judge Whiteley. In 1853 he was elected prosecuting
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attorney, and re-elected in 1855, serving two consecutive terms. He served in the Legislature from 1862 to 1864, and received the certificate of re- election, but lost the seat on contest. This was during the most exciting period in the political history of the State, when Democrats were publicly branded as rebels, and political passion ran high.
In 1851, Philip G. Galpin came to Findlay and entered into partner- ship with his brother-in-law, James M. Coffinberry, which was the beginning of his legal career. He was born in Buffalo, N. Y., in 1830, reared in New Haven, Conn., graduated from Yale College, read law in New Haven and was admitted to the bar at Columbus, Ohio, in 1851, whence he immediately removed to Findlay. After about two years' practice at this bar, Mr. Gal- pin went to Toledo, and subsequently to New York City, where he practiced his profession several years with flattering success. Frequent bleeding at the lungs warned him that he must find a more congenial climate, and he sought and found deliverance at San Francisco. In that great metropolis of the Pacific coast he soon won recognition as the peer of the many able members of his profession. He now stands at the head of the California bar as a real estate lawyer, and is in the full tide of a distinguished and useful career.
Aaron Blackford is one of the oldest and most prominent members of the Hancock County bar, to which he has belonged for about thirty-four years. He was born in Columbiana County, Ohio, February 8, 1827, and removed to Findlay with his parents, Price and Abigail Blackford, in Octo- ber, 1834. He received his education in the public schools of Findlay and at Delaware College, Delaware, Ohio. He read law with Henry Brown, of Findlay, attended the Cincinnati Law School, and was admitted to the bar in May, 1852. In January, 1851, he became associated with Henry Brown in the publication of the Hancock Courier, which they jointly edited till January, 1854, when Mr. Blackford became sole editor. He conducted the paper about one year, and then disposed of his interest to his former part- ner. During this period Mr. Blackford also practiced law, and with the passing years has attained considerable local eminence in his profession. He is well known throughout this portion of the State, and his practice has kept pace with the growth in wealth and population of his adopted county.
Andrew, familiarly known as "Count" Coffinberry, was conspicuous among the old time lawyers of the Maumee Valley, and though not a resident of Findlay until a few years prior to his death, he practiced at this bar before the county possessed a single attorney. He was born at Martinsburg, Berkley Co., Va., August 20, 1788, where his grandparents had emigrated from Germany in 1750. In 1794 his father, George L. Coffinberry, a Revolutionary patriot, removed with his family to Ohio County, Va., and in 1796 to Chil- licothe, Ohio. In 1807 the family settled at Lancaster, Ohio, where the father established a newspaper-the first published in that town. Andrew worked in the office, and subsequently, in partnership with John C. and James M. Gilkinson, succeeded his father in its publication, first at Lan- caster and afterward at St. Clairsville. Finding the business not very remunerative, Andrew went to Philadelphia and worked in a newspaper office and on a press formerly owned and conducted by Benjamin Franklin. From there he shipped on the United States frigate "Constitution," com- manded by Capt. Isaac Hull. After a naval service of two years he joined his parents, who had removed to the then embryo village of Mansfield, Ohio.
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HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.
It is said he used to read the one weekly paper which came to Mansfield as early as 1811, from a big log on the public square to the assembled citizens of the village. He read law in the office of John M. May, of Mansfield, and was admitted to practice in 1813. Mr. Coffinberry was the first law student, the first justice of the peace and the second lawyer in Mansfield, and one of the earliest, if not the first, common pleas clerk of Richland County. Though residing at Mansfield his practice extended to the western boundary of the State. We find him in Findlay as early as 1831, and he may have been here prior to that date. In the spring of 1836 he removed with his family to Perrysburg, Wood County, where he resided till 1849-50. From Perrysburg he removed to Sidney, Shelby Co., Ohio; there he left his family and went to California. Upon the death of his wife, which oc- curred during his absence, his son James M. brought the family to Findlay, where their father joined them on his return from California. Here he continued in practice until his death, May 11, 1856. Count Coffinberry was not only a lawyer of ability, but possessed considerable literary talent and gave some attention to the Muses. "The Forest Rangers," a descriptive poem on the battle of Fallen Timbers, is yet well remembered as one of his productions. "He was," says a recent biographer, "a man of rare endow- ments and marked characteristics, widely known and greatly esteemed for his pure and upright life, while his quaint wit and genial manners gave him ready access to the hearts of all classes. He was called the 'Good Count Coffinberry' by the younger members of the profession (all of whom if living are now past middle life), in grateful recognition of services rendered and courtesies shown them when they most needed direction and encourage- ment from such veterans of the bar. His sobriquet of 'Count' was first playfully given him by his professional associates, from some real or sup- posed resemblance to the illustrious German jurist and publicist Count Puf- fendorf. The title was recognized as being so appropriate to the man that it stuck to him for life, and thousands of those who knew him long and well never learned that it was not his real name."
Hon. William Mungen is a native of Baltimore, Md., born May 12, 1821, and removed to Carroll County, Ohio, in 1830. Here he received a common school education and subsequently studied Latin, German and the physical sciences. He came to Findlay in October, 1842; in February 1845, took possession of the old Hancock Farmer and changed the name to the Hancock Democrat, and on the 1st of July, 1845, became the editor and proprietor of the Hancock Courier, consolidating the two papers. Excepting one year that the office was rented to William M. Case and a short period to B. F. Rosenberg, Mr. Mungen published the Courier until January, 1851, when he sold the establishment to Henry Brown and Aaron Blackford, two leading members of the present bar. In 1846 Mr. Mungen was elected auditor of Hancock County and re-elected in 1848. In 1851'he was chosen to represent this district in the State Senate and declined a re-nomination, which was then equal to election. In the meantime he had been reading law during his spare moments, and in 1852 was admitted to the bar and began practice. When the Rebellion broke out in 1861, Mr. Mungen was foremost in recruiting the Fifty-seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was commissioned colonel of that gallant regiment, which he commanded until April, 1863, when he resigned his commission. Col. Mungen served as a Democrat two terms in Congress, from 1867 to 1871, and in recognition of
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HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.
his services in the army is now receiving a pension. During the active period of his career Col. Mungen was recognized as a clear, forcible and logical writer, a fair lawyer and a shrewd, vigorous politician. When not engaged in the duties of the several public offices he has filled, Col. Mungen devoted his attention to his profession. in which he was quite successful.
John F. Caples came to Findlay from Fostoria (then Rome) in the fall of 1854, and practiced law here till the spring of 1858, when he removed to Warsaw, Ind. He subsequently went to Portland, Oreg., where he is still engaged in the practice of his profession. "John F. Caples," says Judge Coffinberry, "is one of the best known and most distinguished lawyers of his adopted State, and one of the most entertaining and eloquent forensic speakers on the Pacific coast. He is in good circumstances, has reared an interesting and accomplished family, is full of anecdote and bubbling over with fun." During his stay in Findlay he was recognized as a good speaker and a promising young lawyer.
Daniel B. Beardsley, one of the older members of the present bar, . was born in Licking County, Ohio, May 12, 1832, and was brought by his parents to Hancock County in 1834, where he has ever since resided. Mr. Beardsley was educated in the public schools of the county, and followed school teaching for some years. He read law under Walker & West, of Bellefontaine, and was there admitted to the bar in August, 1856. In March, 1857, he located in practice in Findlay, since which date he has belonged to the bar of this county. In 1858 he was elected a justice of the peace of Findlay Township, and re-elected eight times, serving continuously from the spring of 1858 to the spring of 1885, a period of twenty-seven years. Mr. Beardsley was prominent in the organization of "The Hancock County Pioneer and Historical Association," and an active member during its exist- ence. His connection with this society prompted him to write a history of the county, which he published in 1881. Since retiring from the office of justice in the spring of 1885, he has devoted his attention to his profession.
William C. Bunts located in Findlay in the spring of 1858, whither he removed from Youngstown, Mahoning Co., Ohio, of which county he was a native. He graduated, in 1854, from Allegheny College, Meadville, Penn., read law with Ridgley Powers, of Youngstown, and upon admission began prac-
tice with his preceptor. Mr. Bunts practiced law in Findlay till 1860, and then returned to Youngstown and resumed partnership with Mr. Powers. During the war he served for a time on the staff of Gen. Rosecrans, and then settled at Nashville, Tenn. He afterward came back to Youngstown; thence removed to Cleveland, where he filled the positions of Assistant United States District Attorney and city solicitor, dying January 16, 1874, while holding the latter office.
Hon. John M. Palmer was born in Clinton County, N. Y., July 5, 1814, learned the cabinet-maker's trade in Rutland, Vt., and worked at his trade in that State. In 1837 he came to Ohio, and attended Granville Seminary. He studied law with Hon. Henry Stansberry, of Cincinnati, and was there admitted to practice in 1841. In 1843 he was married at Lancas- ter, Ohio, to Miss Ellen Weaver, and located in practice at Somerset, Perry County. In 1846 he removed to Defiance, where he followed his profession till 1852, when he was elected judge of the court of common pleas. While still on the bench Judge Palmer removed to Putnam County, in which county he had considerable landed interests, and a township of which was named
16
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HISTORY OF HANCOCK COUNTY.
in his honor. In June, 1858, he settled in Findlay, and resumed the prac- tice of law in partnership with John Maston. From 1861 to 1863 he was a. commissary in the army with the rank of captain, but resigning the office remained in the South for some time. Returning to Findlay he again took up his practice and followed the profession up to the illness which resulted in his death, November 29, 1876.
Col. James A. Bope, of the firm of Whiteley & Bope, is a native of Adams County, Ohio, born November 30, 1833. His parents removed to Fairfield County, where our subject grew to maturity and received the advantages of a public school education. He graduated from Wittenberg College, Spring- field, Ohio, in 1855, and soon afterward entered the law office of Hunter & Dougherty, of Lancaster, Ohio. In the fall of 1857 he was admitted to practice, and the following year opened an office in Lancaster. Col. Bope came to Findlay in the fall of 1859, where he has ever since prosecuted his profession. In October, 1861, he was elected on the Democratic ticket pros- ecuting attorney of Hancock County; but he entered the army as captain of Company D, Ninety-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in July, 1862, and resigned the prosecutorship the following October. He served until the close of the war, and came out with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Resum- ing practice in Findlay he soon became recognized as one of the most prom- inent attorneys of this bar. Col. Bope is a careful, conscientious, scholarly lawyer, who believes thoroughly in the dignity of his profession, and is one of the most courteous, popular and successful members of the legal fra- ternity.
A few other lawyers, besides those mentioned, practiced for a brief period in Findlay prior to 1860. Alonzo Monroe was here as early as 1847, and after a few years' limited practice left the county. Jacob Carr was admitted to the bar in 1848, but after a couple of years' trial abandoned the profes- sion and has since practiced dentistry. Charles C. Pomroy was practicing here in the spring of 1857, and in 1858 was elected mayor of Findlay, but he soon after removed from the town. S. F. Hull's name appears among the attorneys of this bar in June, 1856, but he remained only a couple of years. John Maston was a partner of Judge Palmer, in June, 1858, and he, too, soon left the county. Philip Ford, who came in October, 1859, and a few other names might be added to these, though none of them staid suf- ficiently long to acquire much practice, or to become fully identified with the interests of the Hancock County bar.
Brief biographies of the principal resident attorneys of the county who practiced at this bar prior to 1860 having now been given, it only remains to add the following alphabetical list of the present bar: William H. Anderson, Oren A. Ballard, Frank Ballard, Daniel B. Beardsley, Jesse C. Bitler, Aaron Blackford, Jason Blackford, James A. Bope, Ezra Brown, Henry Brown, Jacob F. Burket, William L. Carlin, Ira B. Conine, Elijah T. Dunn, Alfred Graber, William Gribben, John M. Hamlin, John H. Johnston, Samuel A. Kagy, Robert Morris, William Mungen, George F. Pendleton, James M. Platt, John Poe, Aaron B. Shafer, Morgan D. Shafer, John Sheridan, Theodore Totten, Machias C. Whiteley, Willis H. Whiteley and Albert Zugschwert.
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CHAPTER VII.
EDUCATION IN OHIO-LANDS ORIGINALLY GRANTED FOR EDUCATIONAL PUR- POSES-COMMISSIONERS OF SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL LANDS IN 1822-THE SCHOOL LANDS SOLD AND A SCHOOL FUND ESTABLISHED-ANNUAL DISTRI- BUTION OF SCHOOL MONEY-PIONEER SCHOOLS, SCHOOL-HOUSES AND BOOKS IN HANCOCK COUNTY-CHARACTER OF THE EARLY TEACHERS-"BARRING OUT" THE MASTER-HOW PIONEER TEACHERS WERE USUALLY PAID- GROWTH OF EDUCATION-GOVERNMENT AND PROGRESS OF SCHOOLS PRIOR TO 1851-SCHOOLS FOR COLORED YOUTH ESTABLISHED-REORGANIZATION OF SCHOOLS UNDER THE LAWS OF 1853-THEIR PRESENT GOVERNMENT AND THE EDUCATIONAL ADVANTAGES THEY AFFORD.
T THE most casual observer cannot but have noticed, notwithstanding the privation and discomforts attending the lives of the early settlers, the zeal they manifested in education, and that, as soon as a sufficient number of pupils could be collected and a teacher secured, a house was erected for the purpose. The period just preceding the Revolution was characterized by its number of literary men, and the interest they gave to polite learning; and the patriots who where conspicuous in that struggle for human liberty were men not only of ability, but of no ordinary culture. We can readily understand that the influence of their example had its weight in molding public sentiment in other respects besides that of zeal for the patriot cause. To this may be added that, for the most part, the early pioneers were men of character, who endured the dangers and trials of a new country, not solely for their own sakes, but for their children, and with a faith in what the future would bring forth, clearly saw the power and value of education. Then we find, from the beginning, this object kept steadily in view, and provision made for its successful prosecution; and the express declaration of the fundamental law of the State enjoins that "the principal of all funds arising from the sale or other distribution of lands or other property granted or intrusted to the State for educational purposes, shall forever be preserved inviolate and undiminished, and the income arising therefrom shall be faithfully applied to the specific objects of the original grants or appro- priations, and the General Assembly shall make such provisions by taxation or otherwise as, from the income arising from the school trust fund, shall secure a thorough and efficient system of common schools throughout the State."
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