History of Summit County, with an outline sketch of Ohio, Part 40

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago, Baskin & Battey
Number of Pages: 1104

USA > Ohio > Summit County > History of Summit County, with an outline sketch of Ohio > Part 40

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THOMAS J. BUCHANAN, Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM MCLAUGHLIN, Speaker of the Senate.

MARCH 3, 1840.

The next thing in order was the passage of a joint resolution appointing Commissioners to locate the county seat, which was adopted by the House, February 7, and concurred in by the Senate, February 10, as follows:

Resolved, By the Senate and House of Represent- atives, that Jacob J. Williard, of Columbiana County, James McConnell, of Holmes County, and Warren Sabin, of Clinton County, be, and they are hereby appointed Commissioners to establish the seat of justice for Summit County, pursuant to an

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

act entitled " An act establishing seats of justice," passed February 23, 1824.

THOMAS J. BUCHANAN,

Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM MCLAUGHLIN, Speaker of the Senate.

The next stage in the proceedings, was the passage of a bill to organize the new county, which passed the House without opposition, on the 4th day of March, 1840, and unani- mously concurred in by the Senate, March 10, as follows:

SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio: That the county of Summit be, * and the same is hereby organized into a separate and distinct county.

SEC. 2. All Justices of the Peace and Constables within the territory taken from Portage, Medina and Stark Counties, shall continue to discharge the duties of their respective offices until their com- missions or terms of office shall expire, and until their successors shall be chosen and qualified; and suits commenced before the taking effect of this act, shall proceed and be prosecuted as though this act had not been passed. Provided, That all writs and other legal process to be issued after the first Monday of April next. shall be styled of Summit County, instead of Portage, Medina or Stark County. SEC. 3. That on the first Monday of April next, the legal voters residing within the limits of the County of Summit, shall assemble in their respect- ive townships, at the usual places of holding elec- tions, and proceed to elect their different county officers in the same manner pointed out in the act to regulate elections, who shall hold their offices until the next annual election, and until their suc- cessors are chosen and qualified.

SEC. 4. It shall be the duty of the Commission- ers of said county of Summit, on or before the first day of June next, to take charge of all paupers, idiots and insane persons belonging to either of the townships included in said county of Summit, and now supported by either of the counties of Portage, Medina or Stark, and the same to maintain there- after at the proper expense of said Summit County.

SEC. 5. The county of Summit. for judicial pur- poses, is hereby attached to the Third Judicial Cir- cuit, and the first Court of Common Pleas to be holden in said county, shall commence its session in the town of Akron, on the second day of July next, and the second term of said court shall com- mence on the eighth day of December next.

SEC. 6. That the Auditor of State in the re-ap- apportionment of the surplus revenue received from the General Government, according to the enumer- ation of the year 1839, shall apportion to the county of Summit that amount, which according to the enumeration of the several townships taken from the Counties of Portage, Medina and Stark, said county will be entitled to receive, which revenue shall be paid to the order of the Fund Commis- sioners of said county on the first day of January, 1841. Provided, If within three months from said first day of January, 1841, said Fund Commission-

ers do not draw for said revenue, the Auditor of State shall be governed in the disposition of the same by the first seetion of the act to provide for the distribution and investment of the State's pro- portion of the surplus revenue, passed March 28, 1837.

SEC. 7. That in all elections for members of Con- gress, the county of Summit shall be attached to the Fifteenth Congressional District.

THOMAS J. BUCHANAN, Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM MCLAUGHLIN, Speaker of the Senate.

As soon as the news of the final passage of the bill erecting the new county reached Akron, by the arrival of the overland mail from Co- lumbus, on Monday evening, March 2, 1840, (the bill having passed the Senate the previous Saturday, February 28, though not engrossed and signed by the Speakers of the two houses until March 3), there being no railroads or tele- graphs in those days, an impromptu jollifica- tion took place, which is thus graphically de- scribed in one of the local journals of the day : " With the rapidity of lightning, the news was spread from house to house, and in less than half an hour the whole town was in motion. Cheers, congratulations, bonfires and illumina- tions were the order of the day, while the deep- toned thunder of our cannon continued to pro- claim the birth of the new county to all the surrounding conntry. Such a spontaneous and universal burst of feeling has seldom been wit- nessed under any circumstances. It was a scene to be looked upon, but cannot be de- scribed ; such a noise as the shronds make at sea in a stiff tempest, as loud, and to as many tunes. Hats, caps and cloaks, I think. flew up. and. had their faces then been loose, this night had lost them." In fact, the recollection of the writer is to-day vivid and distinct, looking back through the dim vista of the forty-one intervening years, that through the entire night, "until broad daylight in the morning." both solid and liquid jollity and happiness prevailed. Nor did the citizens of Akron confine the re- joicing over the glorious result to themselves alone, but immediately took the initiatory steps for a general new county celebration on Wednesday, March 4. A committee of twelve citizens of Akron and one from each town- ship was appointed, and measures taken to spread the " glad tidings " as widely as possi- ble. Dr. Jedediah D. Commins was made President of the day ; Col. James W. Phillips,

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

Col. Justus Gale and Jacob Brown, Esq., of Akron, and Col. Frederick A. Sprague and Benjamin Rouse, Esq., of Richfield, and Col. Solomon Markham, of Green, Vice Presidents ; Gen. Lucius V. Bierce, of Akron, was consti- tuted Chief Marshal, with Col. Erastus Torrey and Maj. Ithiel Mills, of Akron, as assistants. A national salute was fired from the high ground between the two villages, North and South Akron (the present court house site) at sunrise. The military display was very fine, being participated in by the Summit Guards, the Akron Light Infantry and Cavalry, the Copley Light Artillery, the Akron Band, under the leadership of Mr. Henry S. Abbey, and the Military Band, under the lead of Capt. Cleve- land. The procession of several thousand men and boys, after marching through several streets, was joined by a large cortege of ladies, dressed uniformly alike and carrying parasols, who took their position between the Committee of Arrangements and the military, and marched the balance of the route to the place of feast- ing, on the present court house grounds. After dinner (abundant and toothsome), the following regular toasts were announced and responded to by the firing of cannon, music and cheers : 1. The Legislature of Ohio-They have at length done justice to themselves and us. Bet- ter late than never ! 2. Our Senator and Rep- resentatives-Many have done well, but these have excelled them all ! 3. The County of Summit-An infant Hercules. Give him a wide berth, for he'll be a whopper ! 4. Our Struggle-Almost another Trojan siege. The pangs and throes it has cost our parents to bring us forth are a certain presage of future greatness. 5. Akron-Look at her as she was, as she is, and as she will be ! 6. Our Young County-The pride of our affections ; unsur- passed in the elements of future greatness ; al- ready populous and wealthy. If such is its childhood, what will it be when it becomes a man? 7. Portage, Stark and Medina-Among them they have hatched a young eagle, full- fledged and on the wing. She will soar above them all ! 8. The Buckeye State-A germ of future empire, marching right ahead in the road of prosperity. She will not be turned aside from the high destiny that awaits her. 9. Our Canals and Public Improvements-If such things be done in the green tree, what will be done in the dry ? 10. The Late Meeting at

Ravenna-Malignity feeding on envy ; daws pecking at eagles ; a striking instance of folly re-acting on itself ! 11. The Memory of Greg- ory Powers-We mourn the untimely fate of this patriot, statesman and jurist. His memory will long be cherished in the county of Summit, his native and resting place. 12. The memory of George Washington-The greatest and best man ever produced in the tide of time. When nature had formed him, she broke the mold, that he might stand peerless and alone ! 13. The Ladies of Summit-It is the summit of our ambi- tion to stand in the summit of their affections ! At the conclusion of the regular toasts, volun- teer toasts were offered by Benjamin Rouse, Esq., of Richfield ; Gen. Samuel D. Harris, of Ravenna ; Hiram Bowen, Esq., editor of the Beacon, Akron ; Dr. Joseph Cole, Akron ; Col. Justus Gale, Akron ; Maj. Ithiel Mills, Akron ; Col. Erastus Torrey, Akron ; Capt. Philo Chamberlin, Akron ; John Hunsberger, Esq., of Green ; Dr. Jedediah D. Commins, Akron ; Julius A. Sumner, of Springfield ; Robert K. Dubois, Akron ; Col. James W. Phillips, Ak- ron ; Dr. Asa Field, Akron, and others. These " sentiments " would, no doubt, be interesting to the readers of these pages, but are altogether too voluminous for the space at our disposal in this chapter. In the evening, a convivial party partook of a very fine supper at the Ohio Exchange (present site of Woods' Block, corner of Main and Market streets), and, says the local reporter, "the day was closed with- out accident or other untoward circumstance to mar the festivities, amid bonfires and every demonstration of joy. The 4th of March, 1840, will long be remembered in Akron !"

In accordance with the provisions of the bill to organize the new county, an election for county officers was held on the first Monday of April, 1840, both Whigs and Democrats placing tickets in the field, the Whigs securing the as- cendency, and electing their entire ticket as follows :

Commissioners-John Hoy, of Franklin ; Jonathan Starr, of Copley, and Augustus E. Foote, of Twinsburg.

Auditor-Birdsey Booth, of Cuyahoga Falls. Treasurer-William O'Brien, of Hudson.

Recorder-Alexander Johnston, of Green. Sheriff-Thomas Wilson, of Northfield.

Prosecuting Attorney-George Kirkum, of Akron.

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

Coroner-Elisha Hinsdale, of Norton. Real Estate Appraiser-Frederick A. Sprague, of Richfield.

Assistant Appraisers-Milo Stone, of Tall- madge, and Thomas E. Jones, of Franklin.

The Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas, was at that time appointed by the Judges of the Court ; the Judges, in turn, being appointees of the Legislature. The offices of Probate Judge and County Surveyors were then un- known among the County officials of Ohio.

Having given the requisite notice, the Com- missioners elect, Messrs Hoy, Starr and Foote, met, according to the record. at " McDonald's Tavern," northeast corner of Main and Ex- change streets (a portion of the same building still remains standing in the same site), on the 9th day of April, 1840, for the organization of the county offices. The Commissioners having had the usual oath of office administered to them by the one of Justices of the Peace of Portage Township, one of their number administered a similar oath to the other officers elect, and the organization of the county was complete.

At this meeting, proposals for the rent of rooms for county offices and court purposes, pending the permanent location of the seat of justice, and the erection of county buildings, were received from Jacob Brown, Esq., for May's Block, corner of Main and Exchange streets, now the Clarendon Hotel, owned by F. Schumacher, Esq. ; Benjamin W. Stephens. Esq., for his three-story brick block on South Main street, now part of Merrill's Pottery, and from Hiram Payne, Esq .. for the upper part of the large three-story stone block, corner of Howard and Market streets. on the site now oc- cupied by the fine brick stores of M. W. Henry, Esq., and Major E. Steinbacher.

At a subsequent meeting of the Commission- ers, held on the 11th day of May, the proposi- tion of Mr. Payne was accepted, the large room in the third story, afterward for several years known as "Military Hall." being used as a court-room, with entrance from Market street, the southeast corner of the hall being partitioned off for a jail, the county offices being located in other portions of the second and third stories of the building.

The Locating Commissioners, Messrs. Will- iard, McConnell and Sabin, assembled in Akron and entered upon the task assigned to them about the middle of May, 1840. In the mean-

time, not only had a sharp rivalry sprung up between North and South Akron for the prize, but Cuyahoga Falls also put forth a vigorous effort to wrest it from both, claiming, with a good degree of plausibility and justice, not only superior water-power for manufacturing pur- poses, but also to be considerably nearer to the geographical center of the county than Akron was ; and also claiming for that village superi- or healthfulness, and a more advantageous lo- cation for the building-up of a large manufact- uring town or city, while the completion of the Pennsylvania & Ohio Canal. then about to be opened through from Akron to the Ohio River, would give them transportation facilities fully equal to those of Akron.

At that time, too, " The Portage Canal and Manufacturing Company." with a capital stock of $500,000, was in the full tide of " prospective" prosperity. The managers of that corporation claimed that on the consummation of their project of bringing the entire waters of the Big Cuyahoga River. through the race they were then constructing, to "Summit City," now known under the chaste and classical name of the " Chuckery," just north of the present limits of the city of Akron, and one of its most pleasant suburbs, a great manufacturing town --- a second Lowell-would immediately spring into existence. As a compromise, therefore, between Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, as well as in its own behalf. and in the interests of the people of the county at large, the " Chuckery " put in its claim for the location of the seat of justice of the new county within its borders. and, through its officers, urged the advantages of the location upon the attention of the Com- missioners.

After visiting and fully examining the sev- eral localities named, and patiently listening to the arguments of the several claimants. pro and con, the Commissioners decided unanimously in favor of Akron, and accordingly proceeded. in the presence of a large concourse of interested and jubilant spectators, to stick the stakes for the county buildings upon the " gore " (where they still stand), then a wedge-shaped piece of unplatted land between North and South Akron. belonging to Gen. Simon Perkins, of Warren, the father of our present venerable fellow-citi- zen, Col. Simon Perkins, of Akron.

The people of Akron were, of course, greatly elated over the decision of the Commissioners

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

in their favor, and as the buildings had been located upon neutral ground, about as incon- venient to the one as to the other, local jeal- ousies were for the time being subordinated to the common weal, and the people of the two rival villages, cordially " shaking hands across the gore-y chasm," set themselves vigorously and unanimously at work to raise the neces- sary amount of money and materials to con- struct the public buildings, which, together with the grounds, were to be provided free of expense to the tax-payers of the county. The land was donated by Gen. Perkins, by deed re- ceived by the Commissioners, July 14, 1840, and the building fund was raised by voluntary contributions ; the contract for the erection of the court house and jail being entered into be- tween the County Commissioners and Simon Perkins, Jr., and others, as Trustees, on the 24th day of September, 1840. The sub-con . tractors, Maj. Ithiel Mills, of Akron, upon the court house, and Sebbens Saxton, of Norton, upon the jail, commenced work at once, the foundations of both structures being completed before the closing in of winter the same year.

The term of Mr. Perkins, as State Senator, having expired, Elisha N. Sill, Esq., of Cuya- hoga Falls, was chosen as his successor in Oc- tober, 1840. Though Mr. Sill, in behalf of the people of Cuyahoga Falls, had made a valiant fight for the location of the seat of justice within the limits of that enterprising village, there was very little if any opposition made to his nomination and election by the people of Akron, for the reason that it was supposed that, the location having been legally and fairly made, and the public buildings commenced, a finality had been reached, and that the arrangement could not be disturbed. Through the influence of Senator Sill, however, aided largely by the same interests, if not the same men, that had opposed the erection of the new county the year before, the question of location was re- opened, during the winter of 1840-41, Summit County's Representative in the House, Hon. Henry G. Weaver, of Springfield, making a vigorous but unsuccessful opposition against the scheme. The following is the new act in relation to the matter :

AN ACT TO REVIEW AND ESTABLISH THE SEAT OF JUSTICE OF SUMMIT COUNTY :

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio: That Jacob C. Hoagland, of

Highland County, Valentine Winters, of Montgom- ery County, and William Kendall, of Scioto County, be, and they are, hereby appointed Commissioners to review the seat of justice of Summit County; and if, in their opinion, the public interest requires it, to relocate said seat of justice at such point in said county of Summit as they may deem most in ac- cordance with the public interest and convenience; and said Commissioners shall be governed, in all their doings, by an act passed February 3, 1824, es- tablishing seats of justice.

SEC. 2. That if the above-named Commissioners shall, upon review, change the location of said county seat, all subscriptions of money and land, and all bonds shall be void which have been made to the County Commissioners of said Summit County, and which were conditioned upon the loca- tion of the county seat at its present location; and all sums of money or other property, if any, which may have been paid on account of said subserip- tions to the Commissioners of said Summit County, shall be repaid by the Commissioners to the said subscribers having so paid the same; or if said money or other property has been expended by said Commissioners according to law, the same shall be repaid, as above, out of the subscriptions provided for in the third section of this act; and the property for which said expenditures may have been made shall be appropriated by said Commissioners toward erecting the county buildings of said county where the county seat shall be relocated.

SEC. 3. That the above-named Commissioners shall be authorized to receive subscriptions, payable to the County Commissioners, for the purpose of erecting county buildings for said Summit County, and said Committee of review, hereby appointed, shall relocate said county seat only upon condition that said county buildings shall be erected by such subscriptions at the place where said committee shall so relocate.

SEC. 4. That each of said Commissioners shall receive the sum of $3 for each day he may be en- ployed in the discharge of his duties under this act, and $3 for each twenty miles travel in going to and returning from the seat of justice of said county, to be paid out of the treasury of said county.

SEABURY FORD. Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM M. MCLAUGHLIN, Speaker of the Senate.

MARCHI 25, 1841.

The reviewing Commissioners, Messrs. Hoag- land, Winters and Kendall, came upon the ground early in the summer of 1841. After examining the several localities named, they resolved themselves into a high court of inqui- ry, at the stone church-then Universalist, now Baptist-on North High street, when the claims of the different points were exhaustively argued before them by the following gentle- men, viz .: Hon. R. P. Spalding, for Akron ; Hon. E. N. Sill, for Cuyahoga Falls, and Dr. E. W. Crittenden, for Summit City; the church,

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HISTORY OF SUMMIT COUNTY.

throughont, being crowded to its utmost capac- ity by the anxious, and, at times, demonstra- tive, backers of the respective speakers. After listening to the able and eloquent addresses from the gentlemen named, and " sleeping over it " during an intervening night, the committee proceeded the next morning to the " chuckery," and, upon the first narrow bench of level land north of the Little Cuyahoga River, at a point about where the house of Mr. R. A. Grimwood now stands, commenced measuring off the ground and formally sticking the stakes for the county buildings, in the presence of a large crowd of interested, as well as indignant specta- tors. While thus engaged, Dr. Daniel Upson, of Tallmadge, who, though living and having large property interests somewhat nearer to Cuyaho- ga Falls than Akron. rather favored the latter place, rode up from the direction of Bettes' Cor- ners. After watching the proceedings for a few minutes, the old Doctor, with the emphatic tone of voice and the peculiar curl of lip, so characteristic of him when aroused, exclaimed : " Nobody but fools or knaves would think of locating county buildings in such a place as that !"

The bluff old Doctor's indignant remark so aroused the ire of the majority of the Commis- sioners, already probably somewhat prejudiced against Akron, that they forthwith gathered up their locating paraphernalia and drove straight to Cuyahoga Falls, where they struck the stakes for the county buildings, on the very handsome site now occupied by the Congregational Church, on the south side of Broad street, and between Broad and Second streets east and west.

The relocating committee were not unani- mous, however, as will be seen by the following extract from the journal of the Court of Com- mon Pleas of July 23, 1841 :

In the matter of the review and relocation of the seat of justice for Summit County, Jacob C. Hoag- land and Valentine Winters, two of the Commis- sioners appointed by the Legislature to review and locate the seat of justice of Summit County, having returned to the office of the Clerk of this Court their joint report, and William Kendall, the other Com- missioner, having returned to the Clerk of this Court his separate report, this day George Kirkum, Esq., a citizen and Prosecuting Attorney for said county, presented the same reports to the Court, and moved that the report of said Hoagland and Winters be filed and entered of record. Whereupon, the Com- missioners of said county of Summit appear by their

attorney and object to the filing and entering of said reports of record, for various reasons by them set forth, and the parties were heard by counsel, and the Court, being equally divided in opinion: ft is ordered that the said George Kirkum, Esq,, take nothing by his said motion.

The Court being thus divided as to the legal- ity of the proceedings, and the County Com- missioners also being divided in opinion on the same subject, Commissioner Foote favoring the majority report, and Messrs. Starr and Hoy the minority report, the county officers also assum- ing the prerogative of deciding, each for him- self, where his office should be kept, Auditor Booth establishing his headquarters at Cuya- hoga Falls, and Treasurer O'Brien having his main office at the Falls, though maintaining a branch office in Akron, no further action was had in regard to the public buildings, the work already commenced in Akron remaining in statu quo until the following year.

At the October election, in 1841, the county- seat question being the issue, Rufus P. Spald- ing and Simon Perkins, Jr., were elected to the Legislature, Summit County that year being en- titled to two members of the House, Represent- atives, under the old constitution, being elected annually, instead of biennially, as now. Sen- ators, then, as now, being elected for two years. Mr. Sill of course held his position during the session of 1841-42. Through the exertions of Messrs. Spalding and Perkins, the following bill, submitting the question to popular vote. was enacted, the filibustering tactics to retard and defeat it being much less determined and persistent in the House than upon the original bill for the erection of the new county, but vig- orously opposed in the Senate, the vote stand- ing, in the House, yeas, 45; nays, 19; and in the Senate, yeas, 20 ; nays, 16, on the final pas- sage of the bill, as follows :

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History of Summit County, with an outline sketch of Ohio, Part 40

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848- Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Chicago, Baskin & Battey Number of Pages: 1104

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?; Graham, A. A. (Albert Adams), 1848-
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Chicago, Baskin & Battey
Number of Pages: 1104