USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > The courts of justice, bench & bar of Washington County, Pennsylvania > Part 15
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HISTORY OF THE NEW COURT-HOUSE, ETC.
At the close of the foregoing responses, Mr. James I. Brownson,1 county solicitor, introduced by the master of ceremonies, delivered an address outlining the history of the erection of the new court-house and other public buildings, as follows:
MR. PRESIDENT, LADIES, AND GENTLEMEN:
Washington County has had three court-houses preceding the one whose dedication now occupies our attention. The
1 Mr. James Irwin Brownson was born at Washington, Pennsylvania, on January 25, 1856, of Rev. Dr. James I. and Eleanor M. (Acheson) Brownson ; graduated at Washington and Jefferson College in 1875; studied law with Mr. Alexander Wilson, and was admitted to the Washington County bar in 1878; and succeeded Mr. James Q. McGiffin as county solicitor, on the death of the latter on February 4, 1899.
JAMES I. BROWNSON, ADMITTED, 1878. COUNTY SOLICITOR FROM 1899. [Half-tone by Bragdon, from photograph by Hallam.]
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS, MR. JAMES I. BROWNSON.
first was a log building, completed in 1787, and used until its destruction by fire in the winter of 1790-91. The erection of the second was commenced in 1791, and completed in 1794. Repairs and additions to this building were made in 1819. Contracts for the building of the third structure were let in 1839, and it was finished in the fall of 1842. This was a substantially built, well-proportioned edifice, constructed of brick. At the time of its erection, and for many years there- after, it provided accommodations for the transaction of the public business which answered fully all requirements, with but one exception, viz., that the danger of the destruction of the public records by fire was not sufficiently guarded against. But after it had been in use for about a half- century, it began to be felt that it was no longer adequate to the public needs. The population of the county, which was about 42,000 at the time of its completion, had more than doubled by 1897; and the increase of population, together with the material development of the county, and the diversi- fication of its business interests through the opening up of coal mines and oil and gas fields, the building of railroads, and the introduction of various lines of manufacturing industry, resulted in very much more than the doubling of the business to be transacted by the county offices.
In 1842, Washington was a part of a judicial district composed of three counties, Fayette and Greene being the other two. In 1897, it not only was a separate dis- trict of itself, but had two law judges occupied in dis- patching its judicial business. Having but one court-room, and lacking sufficient jury-rooms and other very necessary accommodations, the court-house had ceased to be adequate for the needs of the courts. And the increase of the business in the different offices had been such that the quarters
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provided for the officers no longer afforded sufficient room for its convenient transaction and for the storing and safe-keeping of the ever-increasing bulk of valuable records. With the growth in the county's wealth, and the rapid development of all its material interests, these records were constantly taking on greater value as muniments of title and evidences of indebtedness, and of rights of various kinds. That they were in jeopardy of destruction by fire while kept in the then existing court-house, no one doubted, and the experiences of the people of Chicago and Cincinnati, following the burning of the public buildings in those cities, showed what the appalling results would be were our temple of justice to be consumed by fire.
Our county jail was also greatly inadequate. It had been erected in 1867 and 1868, with the belief that it would provide ample prison accommodations for several generations. But the rapid transformation of our county from an almost exclusively agricultural to a mining and manufacturing region has been accompanied by such an increase in the criminal class that the jail was subject to overcrowding, and it was impossible to keep it in a sanitary condition.
The state of things being as described, it began to be felt, some time previous to the year 1897, that the time had come when new county buildings, better adapted to the needs of the present and future, should replace those that were then standing, and many citizens of the county advocated this idea, upon the ground of absolute necessity.
In January, 1897, a new board of county commissioners, composed of John M. Dunn of Morris township, William G. Shillito of Smith township, and John P. Charlton of Wash- ington, went into office, and appointed Mr. George E.
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COURT-ROOM NO. 2, TAYLOR, A. L. J. [Half-tone by the Chasmar-Winchell Press, New York, from photograph by Hallam. ]
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Lockhart as commissioners' clerk, and Mr. James Q. McGiffin as county solicitor. The members of this board were at once asked by many tax-payers to take steps to bring about the erection of new buildings, it being urged that the need was great, and that the circumstances were propitious, the county not having a dollar of indebtedness. On January 11, 1897, the Washington Bar Association appointed a committee from its membership, composed of T. F. Birch, L. McCarrell, J. P. Miller, M. L. A. McCracken, and Winfield McIlvaine, Esquires, for the purpose of considering the project of securing new buildings, with power to take action in the matter.
Moved by the representations of this committee, and of other prominent citizens, as to the necessity and propriety of the step, the commissioners took the matter under consider- ation, with the result that on February 12, 1897, they presented to the Court of Quarter Sessions their petition, setting forth that "on account of the increase in population, wealth, and business in said county, and the ravages of time," etc., the court-house and jail had become too small, inconvenient, and insecure for the public accommodation, and praying that the court take such action as the law may direct. The petition was accompanied by statements and affidavits of H. T. Bailey, clerk of courts, W. S. Campbell, prothonotary, and E. N. Dunlap, recorder of deeds, setting forth the inadequacy and insufficiency of their respective office-rooms for the proper conduct of the public business, and by the affidavit of J. V. Clark, high sheriff, stating, inter alia, that " besides being too small, said jail is also wholly unsanitary in its construction and appliances, and is not sufficiently secure to prevent the escape of persons confined therein."
The petition having been referred by the court to the consideration of the grand jury sitting at February term,
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that body, after investigation, by unanimous presentment, recommended "the erection, at the seat of justice of said county, of a new court-house, adequate in size, and convenient in form and plan of construction for the accommodation of the courts, and of the several officers of said county, and for the reception and safe-keeping of the records and other papers in charge of such officers, and the erection of a new county jail, adequate in size, and with proper sanitary equipments for the safe-keeping and humane treatment of the prisoners com- mitted for trial or upon sentence after conviction."
In accordance with the provisions of law, the court referred the matter, for consideration and action, to the succeeding grand jury, at May term, 1897. On May 18, 1897, this jury returned to the court a presentment, similar in its recommen- dations to that made at the February term.
On May 24, 1897, the judges of the court, the Hon. J. A. McIlvaine, P. J., and the Hon. J. F. Taylor, A. L. J., entered an order approving the presentments of the grand juries, and directing, authorizing, and empowering the county commis- sioners "to erect, at the county-seat of justice, a new court- house, adequate in size, and convenient in form and plan of construction," etc., "and a new jail, adequate in size, and with the proper sanitary equipments," etc., the plans and specifica- tions to be submitted for approval under the act of April 19, 1895, P. L. 38.
In entering upon the discharge of the duties laid upon them by this order, the first practical question that confronted the county commissioners arose out of the fact that a part of the ground owned by the county, and needed for its new build- ings, was not in its possession.
The town of Washington was laid out in 1781 by David
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COURT-ROOM NO. 3, FOR ARGUMENTS. [Half-tone by the Chasmar-Winchell Press, New York, from photograph by Hallam.]
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS, MR. JAMES I. BROWNSON.
Hoge. His original plan thereof designates a parcel of ground two hundred and forty feet square, situated at the southwest corner of Monongahela (now Main) Street, and Ohio (now Beau) Street, as given gratis for a court-house and prison. The act of March 28, 1781, erecting the county of Washington, contained a section authorizing James Edgar, Hugh Scott, Van Swearingen, Daniel Leet, and John Arm- strong, or any three of them, to purchase and take assurance to them and their heirs of a piece of land, to be approved by the President and Supreme Executive Council, in trust and for the use of the inhabitants of the county, and thereupon to build a court-house and prison. Under this authority the trustees named in the act purchased from David Hoge, on October 18, 1781, the piece of ground above mentioned, and by deed dated that day, recorded in Deed Book B, vol. 1, p. 39, Mr. Hoge conveyed the same, in consideration of good will to the inhabitants of the county, and five shillings in hand paid, to Hugh Scott, Van Swearingen, Daniel Leet, and John Armstrong, "for the use and behoof of the inhabitants of said county of Washington."
Under authority of an act of assembly, approved Feb- ruary 16, 1869, P. L. 177, the commissioners of the county, on March 12, 1869, leased to the borough of Washington, for the term of fifty years, a part of the ground granted to the county by Mr. Hoge, for the purpose of the erection thereon by the borough of a town hall, the lease, which is recorded in Deed Book O, vol. 4, p. 276, describing the ground so leased as bounded on the north by a line twenty-six feet from the south face of the court-house, and parallel therewith, on the south by Cherry Alley, on the east by Main Street, and extending back one hundred feet from a line in the plane of the east face of the court-house, or so much of said distance as may be occupied
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by the erection of the town hall building. Upon this piece of ground the borough, in 1869-70, built its town hall, a brick structure of two stories. This building was still standing and in use, and the lease of the ground occupied by it would not expire until 1919. But its removal was absolutely essential to the erection of such a court-house as the needs of the county required, and negotiations looking to this end were opened between the official representatives of the county and the borough. The final result of these negotiations was an agreement between the county commissioners and the borough authorities for the cancellation of the lease, in consideration of the payment by the county to the borough of the sum of $12,000 toward the expense of removing the town hall build- ing to another location. The question of the power of the commissioners to make such agreement having been submitted to the court by a petition of the commissioners, filed Septem- ber 14, 1897, the petition was answered by an opinion filed the same day, to the effect that the ground belonging to the public square, which was occupied by the town hall, was in the view of the court absolutely necessary in the erection of the buildings recommended by the grand jury, and that the commissioners had power, and it would be their duty, to expend any reasonable sum necessary to be paid to clear the public square by the removal of the town hall. The agree- ment between the county and borough was thereupon formally executed and carried out. The building was removed bodily to a location at the rear of a lot of ground extending from Wheeling Street to Cherry Alley, which had been purchased by the borough from A. M. Todd, Esq. This removal cost the borough in the neighborhood of $2,000 more than the sum paid by the county under the agreement.
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS, MR. JAMES I. BROWNSON.
As soon as it became known that Washington County was about to erect new public buildings, applications began to come in from architects who desired to submit plans, and these reached the number of one hundred and one. The commis- sioners concluded to adopt the method of choosing six archi- tects to present preliminary plans in competition; if one of the competitors should be chosen as the architect of the build- ing, the others to receive two hundred and fifty dollars each to recompense them for their work, to be deducted from the commissions of the successful competitor. This scheme was carried out, and plans were submitted by the six selected com- petitors.
The choice for the position of architect fell upon Mr. F. J. Osterling, of Pittsburg, and a formal contract was entered into between him and the commissioners, providing for the preparation by him of the final plans and specifications, and defining his duties as the architect of the buildings. It was provided therein that there should be employed a superin- tendent of construction to be approved by the commissioners. Mr. J. M. Yohe, of Sheraden, Pennsylvania, was afterward appointed to this position.
The Bar Association had appointed a committee, consisting of James I. Brownson, L. McCarrell, J. P. Miller, Sr., T. J. Duncan, and Winfield McIlvaine, to serve as a medium of communication between the bar and the commissioners in making known the ideas of the former respecting the planning and arrangement of the court-house so as to afford the proper and needed facilities for judicial and office business, and to render any aid to the commissioners in connection with the building that they might require. The first suggestion made by this committee was that the area of the ground owned by
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the county was insufficient for the proper placing of the court- house and jail, with due regard to light, ventilation, fire pro- tection, and the allowance of room in their different parts for the increased needs of the future. In pursuance of this sug- gestion, the attention of the court was called to the question of the need of additional ground, by a petition presented by this committee on November 12, 1897. The petition was referred to and laid before the grand juries which sat at the November term, 1897, and February term, 1898, each of which, after full investigation and consideration, reported in favor of the purchase by the county of a parcel of ground adjoining and immediately west of the county property, fronting one hun- dred feet on West Beau Street, and extending back therefrom two hundred and forty feet to Cherry Alley. The recom- mendation of the grand juries on this subject having been approved by an order of the court filed March 17, 1898, the commissioners proceeded to acquire title to this ground for the county. The ownership appeared to be, as to a part of it, in the borough of Washington, and as to the remainder, in the devisees of James W. Kuntz, deceased; but the title to both parcels was disputed, being claimed by the heirs of Mary Ann Braden, deceased. In consequence of this dispute, con- demnation proceedings were instituted on March 21, 1898, to No. 80 May term, 1898, of the Court of Common Pleas. The same viewers were appointed to pass on each property ; viz., J. Murray Clark, William B. Chambers, A. T. Anderson, J. M. Miller, J. R. McLain, A. G. Happer, and L. M. Marsh. The viewers made reports, assessing the amounts to be paid by the county at $4,500 and $10,000 respectively, but reporting further that the title was in dispute, and they were unable to determine to whom said moneys should be paid. The award of $4,500 on the property claimed by the borough having
JUSTICE.
TO THE LEFT, ABOVE THE FRONT PORTICO. [Half-tone by the Chasmar-Winchell Press, New York.]
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS, MR. JAMES I. BROWNSON.
become absolute, the amount thereof was paid into court on May 26th. From the other award an appeal was entered by the devisees of James W. Kuntz, but they permitted the county to take possession pending the appeal, without filing a bond. On May 2, 1899, in consideration of the increase of the award, by way of compromise, to $10,750, they withdrew the appeal, whereupon the sum last named was paid into court by the county.
The additional ground required having been provided for by the institution of the proceedings just mentioned, Mr. Osterling proceeded to complete the final plans, arranging them with reference to the available space. Of the skill and taste embodied in them, the finished buildings, as they now stand, will be an enduring monument. Upon their completion the plans and specifications were presented to the court on April 4, 1898, for approval, whereupon the court made an order fixing the 11th day of April, 1898, as the time for hear- ing anything which the commissioners and tax-payers might desire to present, in favor of or against the approval of the plans, and directing that in the mean time they should be kept open to public inspection in the court-house. After a public hearing upon the date named, the court, in an opinion and decree filed later in the same day, approved the plans and specifications as prepared by the architect. The jail plans also received the requisite approval of the state board of charities.
In March, 1898, the old buildings had been sold at public auction to William Hockley for $200, the purchaser being re- quired to remove them without expense to the county. This removal was effected in the spring and summer of 1898. The
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town hall building, in the new location to which it had been moved, was secured as a temporary place for holding court during the removal of the old buildings and the construction of the new, and quarters for the county officers were provided in that building and in a large brick dwelling-house erected on the Wheeling Street front of the Todd lot. The sheriff was provided with a dwelling and office in a brick house, since removed, standing upon the Kuntz lot, in the rear of which house a temporary jail was constructed.
The commissioners having advertised for sealed bids for the erection of the court-house and jail, and the bid of William Miller & Sons, of Pittsburg, being the lowest, viz., $379,900, using sandstone as the material, the bid was accepted and the general contract was let to them, and signed on May 24, 1898. Messrs. Miller & Sons promptly entered upon the work of construction. In the carrying out of their contract precedence was given to the work upon the new jail, in view of the im- perative requirement, upon considerations of humanity, that a proper place for the confinement of criminals and accused persons awaiting trial be provided at the earliest possible day. The result was, that the jail building was practically under roof before the corner-stone of the court-house was laid. The jail was occupied in June, 1899.
The contract with Miller & Sons did not embrace the heating and ventilating appliances, the plumbing, gas-fitting, etc., etc. In the summer of 1898, Halpin, Kennedy & Co., of Pittsburg, a firm afterwards reorganized, on the death of Mr. Halpin, as Stinson, Kennedy & Co., received the contract for the plumbing, gas-fitting, and sewering work called for by the specifications, at $11,068; and the contract for the power plant and heating and ventilating apparatus was given to Maginn & Lewis, of Pittsburg, at $26,300, to which was
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS, MR. JAMES I. BROWNSON.
added $2,000 for the use of the Warren Webster system of heating.
Every contractor on the buildings was required to and did deliver to the commissioners, upon the signing of the contract, a bond with approved sureties, securing the faith- ful and full performance thereof. The county was further secured by a provision in each contract that ten per cent of the amount of each estimate given the contractor by the architect should be retained until the final completion of the contract to the architect's satisfaction. The contracts also provided that alterations and additions might be ordered at any time, and when so ordered they should be valued by the architect at the same rate as the work covered by the original contract, and the amount of such valuation added to or deducted from the contract price, as the case might be.
On July 24, 1898, John P. Charlton, one of the county commissioners, died. His colleagues, by a resolution entered in their minutes at the time of his death, placed upon record their appreciation of him as a patriotic and loyal soldier in the war for the Union, a competent, faithful, and upright official, ever willing to do his duty, and a genial and generous friend.
To fill the vacancy occurring by reason of Mr. Charlton's death, Mr. James Murray Clark, of Canonsburg, was appointed commissioner by the court. Mr. Clark had previously mani- fested great interest in the building enterprise, and had co- operated as a private citizen in the movement. As a member of the board of commissioners, he took up with enthusiasm the work of carrying out the plans already made, and during his tenure of the office, until January 1, 1900, labored indus- triously to that end, bringing to his official work the results of an extended business experience.
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The work of building being in progress, it became necessary to make financial provision for the estimates coming due to the contractors. For the purpose of providing money for the expenditures connected with the building operations, it was determined to issue $500,000 of four-per-cent county bonds. In the summer of 1898 the commissioners advertised exten- sively, inviting bids for the proposed issue. A large number of bids were received from financial houses and institutions in different parts of the country, most of which sent represent- atives here to be present on the day when they were to be opened. On August 2, 1898, the bids were opened by the commissioners in the presence of the committee of the Bar As- sociation and officials of the different national banks of Wash- ington, and with the assistance of these gentlemen were tabulated and compared. When this had been done the rep- resentatives of the several bidders were called in, and the amounts of the different bids announced to them. It appeared that the highest and best bid received was that of the Dollar Savings Bank, of Pittsburg, which offered a premium of $48,700. In view of the fact that the bids received were all based on a sale and delivery of the entire issue of bonds at once, the commissioners, after consideration, rejected all bids. On the next day, August 3d, negotiations were renewed with the Dollar Savings Bank, resulting in the sale of the bonds to the bank at the premium specified in its bid, with the privi- lege to the county of delivering the bonds in monthly install- ments of $40,000 each, the bank to pay for each lot as delivered, at their face and accrued interest. By this arrange- ment the commissioners were enabled to put out the bonds as moneys were needed to pay the estimates to contractors, and thereby effected a very large saving to the county in in- terest charges. The result of this sale was most gratifying.
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JAMES Q. McGIFFIN, ADMITTED, 1882; DIED, 1899. COUNTY SOLICITOR, 1899. [Half-tone by Bragdon, from photograph with Mrs. McGiffin, surviving.]
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS, MR. JAMES I. BROWNSON.
The placing of these bonds, bearing but four per cent interest, at such a high premium, and on such favorable terms as to de- livery and the commencement of interest charges, and this while the government was engaged in a foreign war, was an achievement of which our citizens may well be proud, as evi- dencing the high financial standing of our county.
On September 7, 1898, the " statement " required by the act of April 20, 1874, P. L. 65, regulating the manner of incurring indebtedness by municipalities, was filed in the Court of Quarter Sessions, and on October 3, 1898, the first of the bonds were issued and paid for. The five hundred bonds, which were of the denomination of $1,000 each, were so drawn that part of them will mature each year from 1901 to 1926 inclusive. They were engraved and printed by the American Bank Note Company of New York, and their gen- uineness certified by the United States Mortgage and Trust Company of the same city. Before being issued they were registered with the Union Trust Company of Pittsburg.
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