KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 225 The flag of this regiment was turned over to Governor Brough by Captain George F. Laird and the following inscription was placed upon it: "Romney, Blue's Gap, Front Royal, Harrison's Landing, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Bristoe, Mine Run, Norton's Ford. The 'Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Po River, North Anna River, Prospect Hill and Cold Harbor.- Indeed a proud record to have participated in all of these terrific engagements. the hardest fought of the war. THE TWENTIETH OHIO REGIMENT. Upon the reorganization of this regiment in October, 1861, three companies went from Knox county, A, E and G. The first named was made up largely from about Chesterville and Fredericktown, and Dr. Elisha Hiatt was made captain. The company numbered one hundred and thirteen men. George Rogers, of Mt. Vernon, and John N. Cassell, of Fredericktown, each raised a company, A and G. of about one hundred men each. These men all served in the awful trenches in front of Vicksburg. It was also at the fall of Atlanta. Many of its number from this county suffered in the prison pens of Anderson and Charleston, some making their escape, while others died awful deaths. THE THIRTIETH REGIMENT. The third company recruited in Knox county was that raised by Emory Muenscher of Mt. Vernon. It consisted of sixty men who reported at Camp Chase in July and became Company A. of the Thirtieth Regiment. They were soon sent to Virginia and saw much hard service. It was at Mission Ridge and marched with Sherman on his famous "March to the Sea." It had traveled over thirteen thousand miles and was finally permitted to participate in the Grand Review at Washington, D. C. THE THIRTY-SECOND REGIMENT. Company C of this regiment was recruited in Mt. Vernon in July. 1861, and James Blackstone Banning was elected its captain. It participated in the West Virginia campaigns and after hard fighting at many points, finally had to surrender at Harper's Ferry, parolled and sent to Chicago, from which place they, without orders, came home for a time, but later were ordered to Cleveland. In January. 1863, the regiment was exchanged and (15) 226 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. sent to the front, being attached to the Seventeenth Corps. It was in the Vicksburg campaign, re-enlisted in 1864 and was with Sherman in his march to the sea-board: was at the surrender of Johnston and at the Grand Review at Washington. May, 1865. THE FORTY-THIRD REGIMENT. Company K of the Forty-third Regiment was largely recruited in the south and eastern portions of Knox county. As this regiment camped at Mt. Vernon during the winter of 1861-2 for three months or more, the camp was called "Camp Andrews," after Colonel Andrews of this county. It was organized in 1862 and its colonel was J. L. Kirby Smith. a nephew of rebel General Kirby Smith. He was wounded at Corinth and died October 12, 1862. As late as 1881 a letter was written by Lieutenant E. L. Lybarger. an officer in that regiment, which will show how they were appreciated at Mt. Vernon during their winter stay here: "Everything was done by the citizens to make the soldiers comfortable, contented and happy. The camp was daily in receipt of some token of the people's good will in the shape of luxuries and sweetmeats of all kinds: while the sick in the hospital were as well cared for and as kindly treated by the patriotic ladies as if they had been at home with their mothers, wives and sisters " After being at Island Number Ten and many Mississippi points, the regiment was sent to accompany Sherman on a victorious march. and the first battle in which they took part there was at Resaca, where they lost heavily. Their last engagement was at River's Ridge on the March to the Sea. They. too, were permitted to view that wonderful military pageant, the Grand Review at Washington. in 1865. THE SIXTY-FIFTH REGIMENT. Two and a half companies from Knox county appeared in the makeup of the Sixty-fifth Regiment from Ohio. Early in October. 1861, Alexander Cassil, of Mt. Vernon. was commissioned to raise a company for this regiment. N. L. Williams was also engaged at raising another company. These became Companies A and F. The men went largely from the eastern portion of this county. In the draft of October, 1861, forty-four men of Knox county were drafted and assigned to this regiment. The Sixty-fifth became a part of Sherman's brigade and was mustered into service in December 1861. In March. 1862. this regiment, under Gen. James A. Gar- KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 227 field, marched by way of Columbia to Savannah. It was at Shiloh, but not in the engagement. It fought at Corinth and at Stone River. All the commissioned officers were either killed or disabled. The loss was fearful. Sergeant C. Henwood bravely took command and led it through the battle, for which act he was commissioned lieutenant by Gov. Tod. Alexander Cassil, who vent out as captain of A, rose to the rank of lieutenant-colonel in his regiment. The regiment was at Lookout Mountain, Kenesaw, Peach Tree Creek and Atlanta. It was paid off and discharged at Camp Chase, January 2, 1866. THE NINETY-SIXTH REGIMENT. When Lincoln called for more troops in 1862. four companies were immediately sent from Knox county. The first two went into the Ninety-sixth Ohio Regiment, the others into the One Hundred and Twenty-first. Joseph W. Vance, an active loyal supporter of the government, was commissioned to raise a regiment in the eighth congressional district. This became the Ninety-sixth Regiment. Companies A and B, from Mt. Vernon, were placed at the head. Vance was commissioned as its colonel; Lieutenant-Colonel A. H. Brown, an old Mexican soldier, and Maj. Charles H. McElroy. formerly captain of a company of the Fourth Ohio, were field officers. Company B had for its leader Captain Joseph Leonard. The two joined the Ninety-sixth Ohio and made the regiment number a thousand and fourteen men, rank and file It was sent "down the river" with Gen. W. T. Sherman, landing at Miliken's Bend and were caught in the thickest of the fight at Grand Coteau where they had many killed and wounded, including those from Knox county. Later they went with Banks on his Red River (Texas) expedition and there saw no easy soldier life. At Sabine Cross Roads the gallant Colonel Vance lost his life. Captain Coulter was taken a prisoner and died in great agony. The regiment marched 1.68o miles ; was transported by boat 7,686 miles, and by rail 517 miles, making a total of 9,886 miles. A TOUCHING LETTER. Col. Joseph W. Vance, who had been a ruling elder in the Old School Presbyterian church at Mt. Vernon, in a letter home to his wife, gives the key-note of true American patriotism, mingled with the duty of a real Christian soldier. It was not long before he was killed in battle. The letter was dated February. 1863. in sight of Vicksburg. It reads : 228 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. "You really distress me by urging me to resign, and if you properly understood the matter, you could not think of it. Would you have me disgrace myself by tendering my resignation in the face of the enemy? No, my wife I would rather die in these hated swamps than do so. I know and fully appreciate the interest you and my aged mother, my children and all my friends take in me. but all this was very fully considered by me before I took the field in defense of my country and its constitution. The sacrifice, I felt. was a great one, vet, I felt that it was my duty to make it, and I feel so yet. And if the Great Ruler of the universe intends that my life shall be sacrificed in the great struggle between freedom and despotism, then so it will be. In his hand I am willing to leave the issue. If I fall he will be God of the fatherless and widow, and a way will surely be provided for you. Then ask me, my wife, no more to resign. God Almighty will take care of you and me. and until the last foe to freedom and free institutions shall succumb or bite the dust I shall not sheathe my sword." This was the type of manhood that put down the Rebellion. Peace to his ashes now reposing in the Mt. Vernon cemetery. ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIRST REGIMENT. In the summer of 1862 President Lincoln called twice for more men to increase his army of volunteers, and they were forthcoming. War had come to be a settled fact and the life of this nation was hanging as if in a balance. Under these calls Knox county at -once sent to the front four companies of her younger men, those of Captain Mitchell. Captain Leonard, Captain Stephens and Captain Yager. The two first named were completed first and entered the Ninety-sixth Regiment; those making up the latter companies were a part of the gallant One Hundred and Twenty-first. These were more than full companies, four hundred and sixty-three men in all. They came from townships in Knox county as here noted : Jackson. two; Union, sixteen; Brown, ten ; Harrison, one; Morgan, nineteen ; College, twenty ; Pike, fourteen ; Morris, fourteen: Miller, five; Liberty, twenty-six; Middlebury, sixteen ; Butler, three: Jefferson, twelve; Howard. four; Clay, twenty-four; Pleasant, twelve; Monroe, nineteen; Berlin, twenty-four ; Clinton, twenty; Milford, eighteen ; Wayne, forty-three; Hilliar, forty-eight ; Mt. Vernon (city), eighty-one. Nearly all farmers, yet they rose to manly soldiers soon. Capt. John Yager sacrificed his life in the thunder of the conflict at Kenesaw Mountain, after having been promoted to major. It is true that at the battle of Perryville, some of these mere saplings of boys, used to the plow and nothing more. seeing the fine guns in the enemies' hands and ob- KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 229 serving their own trifling muskets, threw them down and fled the field, but later went back and cared for the dead and wounded, and later still made the watchword, "Wipe out Perryville," and made excellent fighting soldiers on many a well-fought battlefield. Colonel Banning was soon in command of this regiment by appointment of the war department. In May, 1864, this regiment moved along with General Sherman to the sea and was in that memorable campaign in front of Atlanta. Colonel Banning's report said : "We started with four hundred and twenty-nine officers and privates. Four officers were killed and eight wounded ; twenty-two men were killed upon the field, and two hundred and five wounded ; one captured." The chaplain of the regiment wrote as follows concerning the regimental flag: "The patriotic ladies of the district presented us with a beautiful flag when we left Ohio. Two years have passed, and a remnant of that flag remains. This flag was the first one planted at the mouth of Buzzard's Roost gap, shared in the victory at Resaca, and was the first one planted on the rebel works at Rome, Georgia. It floated defiantly in the face of the foe at Dallas and Kenesaw. It was the first to cross the Chattahoochie; it was planted the first on Peachtree creek, whose waters had run crimson the day before with the blood of our braves. In all the engagements before Atlanta this flag bore a conspicuous part. It was the first planted on the Montgomery railroad. At the battle of Jonesborough it was the first to cross the enemy's works, and was planted upon Sweets, captured a rebel battery ; and here its gallant defenders -resisted two desperate charges of the enemy to retake their guns. Through fire and blood this flag has been carried, and although tattered and torn by the bullets of the enemy, it has never been disgraced." THE ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIFTH REGIMENT. During the autumn of 1862, drafting, hiring substitutes and volunteering under the two calls made a total demand for six hundred thousand more men. One company in Knox county was raised mostly in the vicinity of Martinsburg, by Capt. S. R. Parks. About a half company was raised in the county. A squad under Lieutenant Barnes formed part of Company G. Finally the One Hundred and Twenty-fifth Regiment was organized; Emerson Opodyke was made colonel and H. B. Banning lieutenant-colonel. Captain Parks' company became Company F. It saw its hardest fighting at Chickamauga. So brave and fearless was this command that General Woods christened it the "Tiger Regiment of Ohio." Its next fight was at Mission- 230 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. ary Ridge in November, 1863, where its loss was great. On the Atlanta campaign General Howard sent word for the best regiment on the field to dislodge the enemy at Rocky Face Ridge, and the One Hundred and Twenty-fifth was sent. At Lost Mountain it again won laurels, sweeping across a deep stream, and carrying the enemy before them like a whirlwind. At Kenesaw again they were in the hardest of the fight and there lost gallant General Harker. Its last battle was at Nashville. It was mustered out at Camp Chase, October 17, 1865. SECOND OHIO HEAVY ARTILLERY. During the summer of 1863 the Union forces had captured many strongholds and batteries of heavy artillery, and it became needful that our side recruit for the fortification and holding of such batteries. These heavy artillery regiments must have twenty-four hundred men each. Ohio raised two of the number. The companies numbered about two hundred each. One of these was partly recruited in Mt. Vernon, where forty men entered Battery I, Second Ohio Heavy Artillery, under Capt. Thomas A. Stevenson. This mustered in September, 1863, at Covington, Kentucky. It did much good service and returned in August, 1865. THE EIGHTEENTH UNITED STATES REGULARS. Forty men were recruited in Knox county, in 1861, under Lieutenant Ogden of the United States Army (regulars), at a station at Mt. Vernon. The same were attached to the Eighteenth United States Regulars at Columbus that fall, and did fully their share during the war. It took part in most all the heavy battles. Several Knox county boys lost their lives in this command- and Lieutenant Freeman fell into Libby prison, also at Macon, Columbia and Charleston, but finally escaped. OTHER SOLDIERS FROM KNOX. Besides the above men who went from Knox county, must not be overlooked numerous squads who went in as many commands in different parts of the army. Capt. Charles H. Coe, of Centerburg, raised a squad of sharpshooters. Others went in the Third Ohio Regiment of cavalry. These were later transferred to many different regiments. A squad of thirty-odd men were recruited in the fall of 1861, and taken into the Eighty-second Regiment by Lloyd Lippet, of Mt. Vernon. KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 231 ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY-SECOND OHIO HOME GUARDS. Another branch of the military must not be missed notice, and that is what was known as the "Home Guards," later the "National Guards." Just before Lee was driven back from Pennsylvania, at that terrible strife at Gettysburg, in the summer of 1863, many of the Northern states were threatened with an invasion from the rebel armies. To checkmate this warfare, the governor of this state, with others, ordered that home guards of militia should be organized and drill for emergency, while the main army was doing its harder fighting South. Ohio's quota of the one hundred thousand men thus asked for was thirty thousand. This was prompted by a dispatch from General Burnside, and was speedily acted upon and all able-bodied men in the several townships in Knox county responded at a lively rate. Their own homes and families were in danger, as it was believed. The above named regiment was among the others raised in Ohio. The first company recruited and organized at Mt. Vernon was in July, 1863, by William C. Cooper, who was elected captain, and later colonel of his regiment. But as General Lee was routed from the North at Gettysburg, these men did not have to fight then, but later—in 1864—when Lincoln was determined to end the war by raising a larger army than ever, these men were requested to join the regular forces as National Guards. They were in no way obligated to leave Ohio soil, but many responded manfully. They left plows in the field, goods on the counter and tools on the bench and cheerfully filled up the missing links for "Men Wanted." These men were enlisted for one hundred days. They were sent to Washington and there strengthened the fortifications at Ft. Lyons; then on to Cold Harbor to care for the dead and dying. They performed many brave, hard things, as good soldiers and were finally mustered out at Columbus, Ohio, at the end of their enlisted time, one hundred days. The regiment was made up of about eight hundred men, of whom fifty-odd lost their young lives. THE "SQUIRREL HUNTERS." This was a unique company of about eighty men, who in the autumn of 1862 were on the alert, expecting an invasion of old Kirby Smith, the rebel general, who it was believed was attempting to gain entrance to Ohio soil, through the aid of rebel sympathizers here ( for be it known that even all men in Ohio were not loyal in those dark days). and they banded themselves to see that he did not make this invasion. The people at Cincinnati were greatly alarmed over the Southern army crossing the Ohio river. Of the 232 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. hundred odd men who served in such service, the eighty above named were sent from Mt. Vernon to other points in Ohio and were termed "copperhead killers" by some, who knew their real mission. They were armed with squirrel rifles, hence the name. Their influence was certainly felt at home, as well as at distant places in Ohio for several months. The author regrets that no detailed account of their wanderings and doings can now be obtained for this history. IN MEMORIAM. Many of the brave soldiers who battled for the Union—many, yes very many—have "gone before," and they now wait on the threshold of Paradise for the coming of the loved ones left behind, when they, too, shall have exchanged the feeble pulses of a transitory existence for the ceaseless throbbing of eternal life. Faithful and fearless, on the march. in the strife, at victory or defeat, they at last laid down at the mysterious frontier, leaving the exalted hope behind that, though the world was lost forever, there would be unfurled another realm of unimaginable glory, where they, and all whom they loved and cherished dear on earth, might realize the promise which the Great Ruler of the universe has made to the just. It may be here stated that an even one hundred soldiers were buried in the Mt. Vernon cemetery alone, and their graves are remembered and appropriately marked by sweet, fresh garlands of flowers with the return of each Decoration Day occasion. SOLDIERS' MONUMENT. In the center of the pretty public square at Mt. Vernon stands a magnificent monument to the soldier dead from this county. It was unveiled July 4, 1877, with impressive speeches, orations and other ceremonies. This was brought about by the formation of a society called "Young Ladies' Union League" in 1863, and which designed to raise fifteen thousand dollars for a large monument, but before the amount was raised the war ended and the matter was dropped until Centennial year. 1876, when it was revived and about five thousand dollars raised by subscription, etc., for the beautiful Vermont granite shaft on the square now. The corner-stone was laid July 4, 1876, with appropriate ceremonies, Hon. Henry B. Curtis delivering the oration. When the finished monument was unveiled, July 4, 1877, Hon. Columbus Delano delivered the address. Many articles lie tightly sealed from destroying elements within the base stone of this memorial to Knox county KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 233 soldiers and sailors, including copies of newspapers, lodge officers, names, etc. On the west side of the main base-stone is the inscription, "Erected by the Mount Vernon Ladies Monument Association, July 4, 1877." On the east side is the inscription, "Our Country ! By that Dear Name We Wave the Sword on High and Swear for Her to Live, for Her to Die." On the north side of the base is the lettering, "In honor of the Victories and Triumphs of the National Arms, in the War of the Great Rebellion and in Memory of the Noble Sons of Knox County, Ohio, Who Fought and Who Fell in that Conflict." On the south side of the base is a long sentimental inscription. The high fluted shaft or column of this monument, probably forty feet high, is surmounted by a life-size figure of a volunteer infantryman,. with gun in hand and facing the Southland. The whole monument is enclosed within a tasty wrought-iron fence of unique panels. The amount paid out of the county funds for the aid and support of indigent soldiers and sailors in Knox county for the year ending August 31, 1910, was three thousand three hundred and thirteen dollars. GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC. This soldiers' society which is found represented in every loyal state in the Union. has been popular and strong in Knox county. With the passing of the years many of the veterans have fallen by the way, and are now resting in graves within the county, yet most of the posts are still in existence. The one at Mt. Vernon is strong, having almost two hundred members left on its rolls. The following is an abridged account of the various posts of Knox county : Joe Hooker Post No. 21, department of Ohio, was organized October 25, 1880. It has a membership at present of about two hundred. The following are the 1911 officers : Commander, George S. Harter; senior vice-commander, James R. McElroy; junior vice-commander, Dan C. Stone; surgeon, Dr. George H. Heard ; chaplain, M. M. Murphy; officer of the day, William C. Hoey ; quartermaster. Oramel G. Daniels ; adjutant, John V. V. Elder; officer of the guard, J. K. Butler ; sergeant major, John McCrory ; quartermaster sergeant. M. P. Martin; color sergeant, Horace G. Hildebrand; banner bearer, John O. Worley ; picket, Alexander Cochran. The past post commanders have been : 1880, Harry G. Armstrong; 1881, Oramel G. Daniels ; 1882, Oramel G. Daniels: 1882, George J. Ingman ; 1883, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1884, John J. Scribner ; 1885, Alexander Cassil; 234 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. 1886, LeRoy G. Hunt; 1887, Henry P. Bennett; 1888, William J. Horner; 1889, George Wythe; 189o, Thomas H. Trimble; 1891, Charles F. Cochran; 1892, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1893, William H. Whittington; 1894, Charles G. Smith: 1895, Marcena M. Murphy; 1896, LeRoy G. Hunt ; 1897, George S. Harter 1898, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1899, T. Bent Cotton; 1900, William McFadden; 1901, Labynetus Stoner; 1902, William E. Sefton; 1903, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1904, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1905, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1906, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1907, Marcena M. Murphy, 1908, Marcena M. Murphy ; 1909, Marcena M. Murphy; 1910, Marcena M. Murphy. In other parts of the county the posts are : At Danville, LeRoy Baker Post No. 120, organized April 27, 1883. At Brandon, Fry Post No. 706, organized December 23, 1889. At Centerburg, Debolt Post No. 396, organized May 23, 1887. At Martinsburg, Emmerson Updike Post No. 486, organized August 26, 1884. At Mt. Liberty there was a post, but it has long since surrendered its charter. This county has been represented in the state department of Ohio by Senior Vice-Commander 0. G. Daniels, who served under Commander David Pugh in 1898, when President McKinley was the guest of Columbus at state fair time. The citizens of Mt. Vernon aided liberally in the furnishing of the post rooms, to the amount of more than one thousand dollars. THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. The Spanish-American war, of 1898, that occurred over the sinking of the American battleship "Maine," and which resulted in the liberating of Cuba from Spanish rule and the acquiring of our provinces in the far-away Pacific ocean, was supported by troops from Ohio to the number of ten regiments, made up largely from the National Guards of the state, who enlisted in the United States army. Under President William McKinley's call for troops Knox county was represented in the Fourth Ohio Regiment by Company L as follows : Captain, Fred M. French ; first lieutenant, Charles E. Bigler; second lieutenant. Sherman E. Ward ; first sergeant, Earl F. Thuma ; quartermaster sergeant, Edwin J. Scott ; sergeants, George D. Lewis, James H. Graff, Burr Wyant, Robert H. Westlake; corporals, C. R. Jackson, John J. Jacobs, J. Louis Ewalt, S. U. Kirby, Oscar Adams, Edwin J. Myers, William M. Edwards, E. L. Mendenhall, Jacob K. Davis, D. Horton White, Henry L. Thuma ; musicians, Charles W. Wood, Lewis Herrod ; artificer, William Gregory ; wagoner, H. B. Jacobus. KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 235 The privates were as follows : Vance L. Armstrong, Walter G. Ashton, Oscar Adams, Fred Barber, John S. Braddock, Anson Bishop, Ed. L. Baughman, Clyde L. Brentlinger, Charles K. Banbury, Arthur L. Bigler, Eugene F. Bigler, Cyrus Barnhart, George K. Bucher, Jesse B. Critchfield, William H. Clark. Michael F. Clark, Arthur Christman, Charles 0. Cooper, Ward B. Cochran, Walter Cochran, William L. Daniles, William C. Dunlap, James F. Dickson, Jr., Joke J. Davis, Charles E. Davis, William I. Edwards, Henry L. Gingham, George Graff, Sherban J. Hersh, Walter M. Harris, Lewis F. Haule, William Harker, Charles Hutchinson, James M. Hayes, John L. Heddington, John L. Hessing, John D. Kinney, Dan V. Long, John S. Magill, Philip J. Lambert, Frank B. Labock, Charles D. Lockwood, George M. Lane, John T. Lee, Jacob L Loose, Wilson G. Long, Ralph McMahon, William McConnell, Andrew J. McKeown, Leon H. Mitchell, Ray C. Mory, Timothy G. Osborn, Charles Perrin, Ossin C. Porter, Byron D. Rowley, William Rowley, Williard Robinson, Ed. Simco, James A. Smalle, Edward Stoyle, Walter S. Shetler, Oliver S. Smith, Frank W. Sapp, A. Simpson, Rupert L. Sherman, William F. Tighe, Walter C. Vernon, Edgar J. White, Harry Williams, Fred F. Wagner, Ralph Waite, E. F. Waldruff, Frank D. Wright, Charles B Welshymer, William F. Weider, Fred W. Wolfe, Herbert C. Wood, William M. Whitney, Bruce M. Wade, Clinton Wright. These all saw service in the Pacific ocean campaigns. CHAPTER XVII. THE BENCH AND BAR OF KNOX COUNTY. Regardless of whatever may have been said in times past, and at the present, by ignorant and thoughtless persons, against this, one of the greatest and most useful vocations in the world, the legal profession today stands higher than ever. It stands for all that is uplifting and dignified. It settles disputes and gains the rights of mankind for the just and innocent as against the unprincipled and unjust portions of all communities. The greatest characters in all American history have been members of the bar and successful attorneys at some time in their career. The bar of Knox county has already furnished one governor, two United States senators, ten members of the lower branch of Congress, a dozen state senators and as many, or more. representatives, a half dozen probate judges, one United States attorney, one commissioner of internal revenue, one secretary of the interior, one solicitor of the United States treasury, one clerk of the lower house of Congress, foreign ministers, two or three foreign consuls, one Indian superintendent, two major-generals in the army, one brigadier-general, one state marshal, three members of the state constitutional conventions. This bar has furnished men to fill almost every office below that of probate judge in Knox county, at one time or another in its history. While volume two of this work will contain detailed and interesting biographical sketches of many of the members of the present bar, with numerous ones of the long departed attorneys, it will be the province of this chapter and volume to mention more briefly as many of the rank and file of the old lawyers as the present-day compiler of local annals can possibly secure. It will also treat some of the early courts and judges and pioneer ways of trying cases and sentencing prisoners convicted before the bar and courts of Knox county. The records show that the first court held in this county convened May 1, 1808, with Hon. William Wilson, of Licking county, presiding judge, and assisted by Charles Loffland, clerk pro tempore, and associate judges, John Mills and William Gass. The members of the first grand jury in Knox KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 237 county were these : Matthew Merritt, foreman; John Herrod, Samuel H. Smith, James Walker, Jr., David Miller, Joseph Walker, Gilman Bryant, James Walker, Sr., William Douglass, Ziba Leonard, Stephen Chapman, Benjamin Butler, Jonathan Hunt and Ichabod Nye. The first petit jury were as follows : James Loveridge, Henry Smith, Aaron Brown, James Smith, Benjamin Brown, John Beam, William Nash, Daniel Demick, Michael Brown, Peter Baxter, Archibald Gardner and Levi Herrod. This court convened almost one hundred and four years ago—three generations have come and gone since its deliberations were held in the interest of. supposed justice—hence no one now lives who participated in or heard what was said and done, but fortunately, the graphic pen of that ever interesting and reliable local historian, Banning Norton, has left its well written description of that first court occasion in Knox county. He writes these words : "On the first of May. 1808, the faces of old and young, great and small, of the male and female, upon Owl creek's stormy banks, were anxiously turned to the south to catch the first glimpse of that august personage, 'the court,' then expected to make a first visitation to Mount Vernon. Ben Butler and Aunt Leah had their house all in 'apple pie order' for their grand reception Jim Craig, at his house on the corner of Mulberry and Gambier streets, had laid in a fresh supply of whisky and other refreshments, and had got ready. Gilman Bryant had got a bran new horn for his customers, and had rubbed his little store up until the stock looked as bright as a dollar ; and Sheriff Brown had caused the little wagon-maker's shop of Coyle & Son to be swept out and supplied with smooth, round logs for the comfort of the jurymen and others in attendance to sit on. Every man and boy who had been fortunate enough to kill his deer had buckskin leggings and his new hunting shirt, and every woman who had a wheel had spun and dyed and made herself and little ones a. good home-spun garment. Some few who could stand the expense, had purchased of store calico three to five yards, at seventy-five cents a yard, and fitted themselves with a two or three breadth dress, the third breadth made into gores. so as to be wider at the bottom ; for in those days there were no fashionable women to parade the streets with a fifteen or eighteen yard dress, and no disposition toward extravagant displays of wearing apparel. The court itself traveled on horseback, handed the saddle-bags to `Knock Harris,' and after rest and refreshments, bright and early in the morning of the second day of May 'opened' and proceeded to business. The whole population—men, women and children—were out in their best rig, to witness this great event." 238 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. FIRST JURY TRIAL. The first jury case tried was entitled: State of Ohio vs. William Hed rick. The following is the exact wording of the minutes made on the court's docket, in the case: "Agreeable to an act of the General Assembly of the state of Ohio. passed on the thirteenth clay of January. 1808. for establishing and organizeing the county of Knox. "Be it therefore remembered and known, that we. William Wilson, president. John Mills and William Gass, associate judges for said county of Knox did on the day to-wit: Monday. the second day of May. in the year of our Lord 1808, meet at Mt. Vernon. the temporary seat of justice for the county aforesaid, and proceeded to the appointment of a clerk for the said county, whereupon it was declared by the court that Charles Loffland was duly elected clerk pro tempore, who came into court and was duly qualified as the law directs. "Samuel H. Smith, Esq., was duly elected surveyor of Knox county. "Present: William M. Farquhar, gentleman: James Armstrong, James Dunlap and Isaac Cook, gentlemen. who were appointed by the Legislature on the ninth of February last for fixing the county seat for Knox county. made their report to the court of common pleas, for the county aforesaid that Mt. Vernon should he the seat of justice of said county. "At this court four indictments were found against one William Hedrick. as follows: For stealing a watch from William Bowen: for stealing a bay mare, property of William Wallace: for stealing one pair of overalls, the property of Joseph Cherry Holmes: for stealing one bell and collar, the property of William Wallace. On each indictment Hedrick was found guilty and judgment rendered against him as follows: "First charge, fine five dollars, pay the owner, William Bowen, fifteen dollars, and he whipped on his naked back ten stripes, imprisoned one month, pay the cost, and stand committed until the sentence is complied with. "Second charge, prisoner be whipped twenty lashes on his naked back, and pay a fine of twenty dollars, and be imprisoned one month, and pay the owner of the mare, pay cost, and stand committed, etc. "Third charge, prisoner be whipped five stripes on his naked back, pay fine of two dollars, be imprisoned one month, pay the owner five dollars, double the value of the overalls, pay cost, and stand committed, etc. "Fourth charge, prisoner to he whipped five stripes on his naked back, pay a fine of one dollar and a. half, the value of the bell and collar, pay the costs, and stand committed, etc." KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 239 Banning Norton relates in his annals how this lot of sentences on the poor thief's bare back were put into execution by the sheriff, Silas Brown : "The judgment of castigation was executed upon the public square of Mt. Vernon, shortly after the adjournment of court, in the presence of all the people. Silas Brown was the sheriff, and it fell to his lot as such to serve the 'legal process' upon the body of William Hedrick. There was at that date a small leaning hickory tree upon the east side of the public square. a little south of where the old jail later stood, and this tree bent in such a way that a man could stand or walk around under it. To this delectable spot the culprit was taken, and his hands were stretched up over his head and tied to the tree, and the stripes were applied by the sheriff to his naked back. He was struck forty times with a heavy raw-hide whip. "The first few blows with the raw-hide were across his kidneys. Mr. Bryant, one of the bystanders, at once called out to the sheriff to whip him elsewhere—that was no place to whip a man—he should strike higher up: and the rest of the lashes were applied across the shoulders. "The criminal sobbed and cried piteously, and when released went off weeping and groaning. In many places the skin was cut to the bone, and the blood oozed out, making a pitiable spectacle. And yet such was the feeling against him that few seemed to sympathize with him. 'You should not blame me for this, for it was not my fault.' Bob Walker replied : 'No. you wouldn't have stood up and been whipped that way, if you could have helped it.' And at this prompt, reply and retort to Hedrick and his explanation and apology, the crowd laughed uproariously." The above account of the first and last public whipping in Knox county was given to Mr. Norton by members of the jury and others who witnessed the affair. when men were dealt with in a shocking manner as compared to the worst punishment in these days. aside from lynch law, which no respectable person sanctions for a moment. There being no attorney present at this the first term of court, the judge appointed Samuel Kratzer, a good citizen, to defend said Hedrick. To him the county paid the first attorney's fees, six dollars, ever paid in Knox county. When no other attorney was present, in the early courts, Kratzer officiated as prosecuting attorney. Among the proceedings of the first term of court was the granting of a license to William Thrift, a Baptist minister, to solemnize marriages. Samuel Kratzer and Stephen Chapman were authorized to retail merchandise in Mt. Vernon. on payment of five dollars into the county treasury. Kratzer was also licensed to keep a house of entertainment in Mt. Vernon. on the payment of six dollars, and Daniel Ayers was licensed to keep one in Fred- 240 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. ericktown. for five dollars. The last will and testament of William Leonard was proven. The second term of court was held in September, 1808, and the first case on the docket was titled "State of Ohio vs. Samuel H. Smith," on a charge of selling merchandise without a license. The court fined Smith two and one-half dollars and costs of the prosecution. The defendant paid up and also put up ten dollars for a license allowing him to deal in merchandise and also took out a tavern license at five dollars. The first session of the supreme court of Ohio, held in Knox county, was commenced August 3, 1810. by Honorables William W. Irwin and Ethan Allen Brown. James Smith was appointed clerk for seven years. Prior to 1851, and the new Ohio code, the president judges who dispensed justice and punished crime in Knox county, aside from Judge William Wilson. above mentioned as the first judge, were George Todd, of Trumbull Alexander Harper, of Muskingum; Lane and Higgins, of Huron; and Ezra Dean, of Wayne county, succeeded by the judges elected under a new judicial system which was prescribed by the new (present) state constitution. The early bar of Knox county was composed entirely of visiting attorneys of no little distinction, who were regular attendants for a number of years. Among these may be named such able men and learned barristers as Philomon Beecher, Charles R. Sherman, Thomas Ewing, Henry Stanberry, W. W. Irwin, Hocking H. Hunter, of Fairfield county ; Edward Herrick, William Stanberry, Joshua Mathoitt, Israel Dille and George B. Smythe, of Licking county ; Wyllis Stillman, Samuel Harper, Charles C. Converse, C. W. .Searle and George James, of Muskingum county ; Orris Parish, of Franklin county, and David Spangler, of Coshocton county. All of these named were brainy men, who made a national mark for themselves and held national positions of honor and trust. THE FIRST RESIDENT LAWYERS. The first man to practice law in Knox county, as a resident attorney, was Samuel Mott, a native of Vermont, who came to Mt. Vernon in about r81 T. He had much to attend to in the early courts and legal affairs of this county. At one time he was also engaged in the mercantile business at Mt. Vernon. William C. Enos was probably the first lawyer to be admitted to the bar in this county in about 1812-13. He was even at that early day called a "self-made man." He was an intelligent man and peacefully inclined—would rather settle a case than try it through legal channels. KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 241 Hosmer Curtis was the second resident attorney. He was a native of Connecticut and came here in about 1815. For a long term of years he was called "the father of the Knox county bar." In 1816 he was appointed prosecuting attorney and in 1822 was elected to the state Legislature. In 1858 he moved to Iowa, and died in 1874, aged eighty-five years. Henry Barnes Curtis came to Mt. Vernon. Ohio, in 1817, read law with his brother, Hosmer ; was admitted to the bar and later to the United States courts at Columbus, and supreme court at Washington, District of Columbia. In December, 1872, he retired from his active career as an attorney, having practiced a half century. In the early days in this county Attorney J. C. Hall practiced here and later cast his fortunes in Iowa, where he was a congressman and held other offices, at the same time making his mark as a first class lawyer in his adopted commonwealth. Of John W. Warden and Benjamin S. Brown all that can be traced of them is that they stood eminent as barristers before the Knox county bar in their day and generation. John K. Miller also ranked high as a legal light and was mentioned in connection with many of the important cases in his day. He was known in Congress two terms from Knox county as being a painstaking man and represented and not misrepresented his people at home. Later he was appointed as consul to one of the French ports. He died comparatively young, cutting short a thus far brilliant career. Matthew H. Mitchell 'early in his career was a man of much superior tact and native ability in his chosen profession. Indeed we find a record saying, "he had no superior in the Knox county bar." It was he who in 1850 represented this county in the constitutional convention of Ohio that gave the present Ohio code, now about to be revised by another convention. He died late in the seventies or early in the eighties. One of the capable, yet highly erratic, members of this bar was Major Hoey, a man of a superior education, a fine legal mind, but, socially, he left his dignified calling and commingled too much with the gay and trifling companions with whom he took pleasure in meeting. rather than those of his ability and scope of mind. Of one member of the Knox county bar there cannot too much be said or written, Hon. Columbus Delano, a master mind and an honored citizen throughout his entire life. He was from the sturdy old Green Mountain UI state, and inherited its broad, free way of putting and doing things. He was admitted to the bar in 1831 having removed to Mt. Vernon, Ohio, in about 1817. In 1844 he was representative from Ohio to Congress, serving on the committee on invalid pensioners. In 1847 he was candidate for governor of (16) 242 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. Ohio and only lacked two votes of winning out in the spirited contest. He was in public life many years. Was commissary-general early in the Civil war period, under Lincoln. Again in 1862 he lacked but two votes of being nominated United States senator from Ohio. He was delegate to the Baltimore convention and supported Lincoln and Johnson in the contest over McClellan in 1864. He was re-elected to a seat in the thirty-ninth Congress and was chairman of the committee on claims. He forsook his legal practice and engaged extensively in agricultural labors. Also became a leading banker was delegate to the Philadelphia Loyalist convention in 1866, and in 1868 was again seated (after contest); over G. W. Morgan, in the fortieth Congress. After leaving Congress he was appointed commissioner of internal revenue; also appointed secretary of the interior department in 1870. by U. S. Grant. Friday morning, October 23, 1896, amid the scenes hallowed by long associations, came the final summons to this one of nature's true noblemen. Full of years and well earned honor. Columbus Delano passed from earth's shining circle to his eternal rest. He died of heart failure, superinduced by old age. Judge Rollin C. Hurd was for many years counted the most prominent lawyer in Knox county. He was a live, go-ahead Yankee from Vermont, pushing his way to the fore rank as an attorney. He was educated at our own Kenyon College, at Gambier, this county studied law with Benjamin S. Brown and admitted to the practice in 1837. In 1863 he was admitted to practice in the highest courts of the land. In 1852 he was elected judge for this district. He later in life did much for his profession by publishing a law book on habeas corpus. He was also closely allied in the construction and management of the Cleveland, Columbus & Mt. Vernon railroad project. He died February 12, 1874. Joseph Slocum Davis, another graduate from Kenyon College, who was graduated there in 1835, also studied law under Benjamin S. Brown: was admitted to the legal profession in 1837. Ill health caused him to retire from his profession after a few years. William Dunbar came to Mt. Vernon, Ohio, in 1847, and became proprietor of the Democratic Banner. He was a native of Pennsylvania, born 1896, and admitted to the bar in 1842. Gen. George W. Morgan came to Mt. Vernon, Ohio, in 1843, and read law under Hon. J. K. Miller. He served bravely in three wars, Texan independence, Mexican and Civil war. He was thrice elected to Congress and held foreign appointments of much importance. Hon. William R. Sapp ("Major," as he used to be called more than a half century ago here in Knox county) stood high as a lawyer. He served two terms in Congress and held the office of internal revenue collector and United States commissioner KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 243 John C. Stockton came to Mt. Vernon from Zanesville about 1855. He represented Muskingum county in the state Legislature in 1814. He was a man of profound professional education and had much ability in many respects. William McClelland, of the firm of McClelland & Culbertson, was a native of Pennsylvania, came to Mt. Vernon in 1844 and was largely interested in the settlement of estates in Knox and adjoining counties. He served as one of the county commissioners for thirteen years. William Craig Culbertson, a native of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania. read law under Gen. Aquila Wiley, of Wooster, Ohio, and was admitted to the bar in 1871: he came to Mt. Vernon the next year and entered into law partnership with William McClelland. Charles H. Scribner was admitted to the bar at Mt. Vernon in 1848, and in June. 1869, removed to Toledo and entered into partnership with Hon. Frank H. Hurd. In 1867 he was elected to a seat in the state Senate, was the author of a valuable legal work. "Treatise on the Law of Dower," and was also a member of the proposed constitutional convention of 1873. Joseph C. Devin was educated in the seminary at Norwalk, Ohio, at the Wesleyan University, at Delaware ; studied law under Hon. Columbus Delano and William R. Sapp. was admitted to the bar in 185.1. In 1863 he was elected to the Ohio Senate from this district. His law partner was Henry L. Curtis, a native of Mt. Vernon. a son of Hon. H. B. Curtis and a worthy graduate of Kenyon College. Frank H. Hurd was educated at Kenyon College. graduating in 1859, when only eighteen years of age. He immediately began the study of law and was admitted to the legal practice in 1862. During the same year he was elected prosecuting attorney of Knox county and in 1866 to a seat in the Ohio Legislature as a member of the Senate. He moved to Toledo in 1867, and in 1874 was elected to Congress from his district, and was re-elected in 1878. He was the author of the "Ohio Criminal Code of Procedure." In 1876 he published a second edition of his father's work on "Habeas Corpus" and one of his own on "Homestead and Other Exemptions." William C. Cooper. a native of Mt. Vernon, was admitted to the bar in 1854. He had a successful career as lawyer, politician and military man. Mr. Cooper was one of the most conspicuous figures in the history of the bar in Knox county, and possibly in many ways within the state. He entered upon the practice of law more than half a century ago; his success soon came. for he was well equipped. he having been a close and careful student of the fundamental principles of the law. Nature had endowed him with a strong intellect and a wonderful energy and will power. He was a man of sound 244 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. judgment and a logical reasoner, with a ready command of the English language. At the bar he stood for all that was manly and honorable among his fellow lawyers. He died September 2, 1902, aged seventy-one years. Bright's disease was the immediate cause of his death. A sketch of this man and his career in state and nation will be found elsewhere in this work. David Carter Montgomery, a native of Pennsylvania. was admitted to the bar in Mt. Vernon in 1858. He served as sheriff in Knox county from 1846 to 1852. Henry Harrison Greer is a native of Knox county, Ohio, born in 1837, and studied law under Messrs. Delano. Sapp and Smith. He was admitted to the practice of law at this bar in 1860 and has been in active and highly successful practice ever since, more than a half century. In 1861, which was the first year of the war of the Rebellion, he was elected county treasurer and refused a second term of that office. Notwithstanding his age, this venerable lawyer is more active than a majority of the younger members of the bar in Knox county, and may be found at his desk daily. year in and year out. Joseph Watson was a native of Ireland, born in 1827. and came to America in 1849, settling in Newark, Ohio. He came to Mt. Vernon in 1850 and ever afterwards made this his home. He commenced reading law in 1859 with Clark Irvine, Sr.; was admitted to the bar in 1861 and at once entered upon his professional career. In April, 1880, he opened an office in Columbus, Ohio. Charles Edward Critchfield commenced reading law in 1862 with Maj. William R. Sapp; was admitted to the .bar in 1864 and practiced about four years and in 1869 was elected, and in 1872 re-elected, probate judge. which place he filled ably a number of years. Samuel J. Brent commenced reading law just before the Civil war began and after that terrible strife had ended resumed his studies-and was admitted to the bar in June, 1866. In 1869 and 1872 he was elected to the office of clerk of the court of common pleas and in 1878 re-elected for his third term. David Wesley Wood read law with Judge Hurd ; was admitted to the bar in 1868 and to the practice in Knox county in 1869. His preceptor was Judge A. K. Dunn, of Mount Gilead. Alfred R. McIntire began his study of the law in April, 1867, with Judge Hurd : was admitted to the bar in 1869 and made an excellent attorney. He had for his law partner. at one time. D. B. Kirk, who was the son of Hon. R. C. Kirk, a native of Mt. Vernon. John Bryan Waight read law with Lewis Lewton, of Cadiz, Ohio, and was admitted to the bar in Carrollton, Ohio. in 1873. In January following he opened his law office in Mt. Vernon, Ohio. He held numerous local offices. including that of solicitor for his city. KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 245 Frank Moore was educated in the city schools of Mt. Vernon and read law with Messrs. Cooper, Porter and Mitchell, and was admitted to the bar in 1875. In 1878 he was elected prosecuting attorney and re-elected in 1880. Clark Irvine, Jr., studied law with his father ; was elected prosecuting attorney in 1874 and again in 1876. At the state Democratic convention, held at Cleveland in 1880, he was elected a member of the Democratic state central committee. and was secretary of that body, as well as a member of the executive department. Later, he was elected and served one term as judge of the court of common pleas for this district. William McKeen Koons read law under William McClelland and was admitted to the bar July 1, 1874. When yet a youth, he learned the trade of a machinist and draftsman. In 1871 he was elected by the city council of Mt. Vernon as its fire engineer, continuing as such until January, 1876. In April of that year he was elected city solicitor and was re-elected in 1878, but resigned in January, 1880. In the fall of 1879 he was elected a member of the Ohio House of Representatives. Charles Austin Merriman read law at the Ann Arbor law school ; was admitted to the bar in Michigan in 1876. and the same year in Ohio. Frank C. Lewis was educated in the city schools of Mt. Vernon; commenced reading law December 6, 1876, with H. H. Greer, and was admitted to the bar at Columbus, February 6, 1878. Sidney Wood began reading law in 1873, was admitted to the bar at Mt. Gilead in July, 1879. and later in Indiana. He read law with D. W. Wood. In May 1880. he .formed a law partnership with his brother in Mt. Vernon. Frank Harper, after graduating from the city high schools, read law with Col. NV. C. Cooper ; was admitted to the bar July 7, 1879, and immediately entered into the practice of his chosen profession. He soon drifted into the newspaper business and is now owner of the Banner, at Mt. Vernon. Charles W. Doty came to Mt. Vernon with his parents in 1863. He read law with General Morgan, and was admitted to the bar July 7, 1879. A. Banning Norton studied law with Col. W. C. Cooper and was admitted to the practice in the supreme court at Columbus. January 6, 1880. He also wrote the history of Knox county and moved to Texas, where he died. He became a prominent man there ; was elected judge of the United States circuit court and was postmaster of the Dallas office ; also an editor in Texas. It may he well, in passing along with the outline history of the men who have made up the Knox county bar, to state that a few have gone away to seek fortunes in other states and cities and finally achieved eminence, such as did Daniel S. Norton, Jr.. and William Windom. who left Mt. Vernon about 246 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. the same time for Winona, Minnesota. Norton was a native of Mt. Vernon and Windom of Middlebury township, this county. Windom was soon elected to Congress from his Minnesota district, being a member of the lower house, while Norton a few years later was elected to the United States Senate. After his few years of service there he died in the freshness of his middle-aged manhood and Mr. Windom was elected his successor and finally became secretary of the treasury and was talked of as a Presidential candidate when Senator Allison, of Iowa, another Ohio genius, was a candidate and when McKinley ran the first time, and was elected. Lafayette Emmett, a native of Mt. Vernon, also removed to Minnesota, in which commonwealth he became one of the supreme judges. James Smith, Jr., son of the grand old minister, Rev. James Smith, was admitted to the bar of Knox county in 1839 and up to 1856 was counted among the leading attorneys of this county. He was a partner for a number of years of Col. Joseph W. Vance, who was killed at the battle of Sabine Cross Roads, April 8. 1864. In 1856 Mr. Smith took up his residence in St. Paul, Minnesota. where he entered into partnership with Judge Lafayette Emmett. He was a member of the Minnesota state Senate in 1861-62-63 and 1865. Walter L. Simons located in Kansas, and was soon afterwards elected to the state Senate. William F. Turner went west and became chief justice of Arizona. Fletcher W. Sapp. after practicing in Knox county a number of years, located in Council Bluffs, Iowa, where- he was appointed United States district attorney, by the President, and served as colonel of an Iowa regiment during the Rebellion. He then served two terms in Congress. Henry B. Banning, mentioned at length in the military chapter. was a member of the lower house of Congress for three terms. Robert B. Mitchell, in 1846, soon after he was admitted to the bar, volunteered for the Mexican war, in which he was elected a lieutenant. After the war ended in 1848, he practiced law in Knox county a few years and went west, served in the Union cause in the Civil war and came home a major-general. He was acting governor of New Mexico territory. James G. Chapman read law with Hon. H. B. Curtis, and later became his law partner. Early in Civil war times he was attorney in the celebrated sheep-slaughtering case, in which he appeared for the sheep men. He was not successful in this particular suit and went west, finally located in Nebraska, where he achieved success and was elected to the Legislature of that state. KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 247 Julius B. Galusha was a law student under Hon. Samuel Israel, and soon after he was admitted to the bar of Knox county he became his preceptor's partner. Subsequently he forsook the profession and became cashier of a bank in Monroe, Wisconsin. Caleb J. McNulty came to Mt. Vernon from Zanesville about 1838. He is spoken of by members of the bar as being a very intelligent man and an excellent lawyer. He practiced many years and has long since been dead. William T. Curtis, a son, and William S. V. Prentiss, a step-son of Hosmer Curtis, of Mt. Vernon, were engaged in the practice of law here for a short time about 1850. Young Curtis went to Oregon, and Prentiss located in Columbus, Ohio: both are long since dead. Louis H. Mitchell, another Knox county boy, while still at his books in the high school at Mt. Vernon. left all and enlisted in the Union cause during the Civil war. He was a first lieutenant under Colonel Vance. Upon his return from the war he entered the law office of Colonel William C. Cooper. studied the regular period and was made a partner of Mr. Cooper and Henry T. Porter. About the last of the seventies, he removed to Chicago, where he was highly successful in the legal practice. Another Mitchell, Louis Y., entered the army, fought through the war and came home a captain, studied law. and was admitted to the Knox county bar. Later he received an appointment in one of the departments at Washington. Frank Green also went through about the same career as Mitchell. Capt. W. A. Coulter. came to Mt. Vernon from Delaware, Ohio, having served three years in the Rebellion. and became a promising lawyer he practiced here about three years and then moved .to Detroit, Michigan. John T. Lennon. a native of Canada. enlisted in 1861 in a New York regiment. served through the Civil conflict with much bravery and military distinction. In about 1872 he came to Mt. Vernon from Wooster. Ohio. and began the reading of law, held some government position in the South for a year, then completed his legal studies and commenced the practice of law. In the first months of 1880 he removed to Columbus, where he associated himself. as a partner. with one of the leading lawyers of that city. THE LAWYERS OF 1880. In 1880 the following were practicing the legal profession at Mt. Vernon, possibly a few others: John Adams, who was then serving out his second term as district judge. 248 - KNOX COUNTY, OHIO. Abel Hart, Jr., at one time a partner of judge Adams, was then counted a first class attorney here. In 1876-78 he was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives. Henry T. Porter. a native of Knox county, had been in practice several years in r880 and was highly successful. His health failed and he was forced to protect himself by taking out-of-door exercise. J. D Critchfield and T. B. Graham, associated as a firm, were then doing an excellent law business at Mt. Vernon. Both were born in this county and of old and honorable families in Ohio. Both were graduates of Kenyon College, this county. John M. Critchfield. son of Peres Critchfield and wife, also native to Knox county, and a graduate of Kenyon College. commenced his legal career in 1879. Ewing brothers and partners, J. D. and D. F. Ewing. came to Knox county from Holmes county, Ohio, about 1875 or 1876. Clark Irvine, Sr.. who died late in the seventies, was another Mt. Vernon attorney who should not be forgotten. He was prosecuting attorney in 1850 and made an excellent officer. He possessed a rare mind, was self-made and built up a good legal practice. John M. Andrews. who came to Mt. Vernon in 1846, in the eighties, was still enjoying a lucrative practice. B. A F. Greer. a native of Knox county, entered the Union army at the commencement of his professional career, served through the war and then came home with a broken down constitution was elected to the office of justice of the peace, and later to probate judge of this county. Charles F. Baldwin, another lawyer, never practiced much, but engaged in other business. He was connected with the internal revenue department and served as department foreman in the main offices of the Pennsylvania railroad system, at Columbus, Ohio. J. Clark Irvine was a son of Hon. Charles C. Irvine and in the early eighties was practicing law in Missouri. Judge Lafayette Emmett, born in Mt. Vernon, May 8, 1822, was a .brother of Daniel Decatur Emmett, author of "Dixie." He studied law in the office of Columbus Delano, was admitted to the bar, served a term as prosecuting attorney of his native county, moved to Minnesota in 1851, was appointed attorney general of that territory, was member of the constitutional convention and at the first election of state officers was chosen chief justice of the supreme court. He moved to Las Vegas, New Mexico, where he lived until called to the position of territorial librarian of New KNOX COUNTY, OHIO - 249 Mexico. His daughter married Miguel A. Otero, at one time governor of that state. A. A. Cassil, son of Col. Alexander Cassil, William B. Ewalt, R. M. Brown, E. I. Mendenhall, H. Clay Robinson and Samuel Kunkel were all practicing law in Mt. Vernon in 1880-81. Mr. Cassil was city civil engineer for Mt. Vernon about that date. Mr. Kunkel was admitted to the bar in 1879 ; his preceptor was Gen. G. W. Morgan. Before he was admitted to the bar, he had served as county recorder for two terms. Samuel W. Farquhar, while a lawyer, always held some county position. Later he moved to Iowa. R. S. Lockwood and a Mr. McIntyre opened law offices in Mt. Vernon in 1850, in the old market house. Lockwood was also a preacher and held the office of mayor of Mt. Vernon at one time. He went west in the early seventies, but returned in 1879 and died. ACTIVE MEMBERS OF THE BAR 1N 1911. At the present date (1911) the following are practicing the legal profession in Knox county : Park B. Blair, P. A. Berry, L. T. Crumley, C. F. Colville, C. E. Critchfield, George Coyner. R. L. Carr, H. C. Devin, Columbus Ewalt, D. F. Ewing, j D. Ewing, H. H. Greer, R. M. Greer, J. B. Graham, S. R. Gotshall, L. B. Houck, W. A. Hosack, William M. Koons, William G. Koons, H W. Koons, F. O. Levering, J. L. Leonard, Frank 'Moore, R. R. McIntire, Hugh Neal, Frank Owen, W. F. Rimer, W. L. Robinson, W. C. Rockwell, L C. Stillwell, J. A. Schaeffer, B. E. Sapp, J. B. Waight, P. L. Wilkins. all of the above practicing at Mt. Vernon. The outside attorneys in Knox county are : B. B. Ferenbaugh, Danville ; Henry Weaver, Fredericktown ; A. J. Workman, Danville; B. F. Moree, Fredericktown, and Mr. Remmington, of Brinkhaven.