Directory of Old Burlington Court
These newspaper clippings about the early court records from Burlington, Ohio, were transcribed from the Ironton Register, Ironton, Ohio,
Ironton Register, Jan. 15, 1903
Hammond Howe finished the Burlington courthouse and received his pay for the same on August 6, 1839, at a special session of the county commissioners. C. Scoville and Richard Jones.
March 5, 1839. Report of survey of Proctor store and Patriot Road by an act of the legislature of..[do not have end]
February 23, 1838: Joshua Louk, Charles Neal, and Winchester Wakefield, commissioners layout said road. Ordered recorded by C. Scoville, R. Jones, and S. Reckard.
In 1837 the following persons were taxed for their professions: Solomon Beckley, as a lawyer, $4; John H. Wells, a lawyer, $1; John S. Kelvy as ________ $___. R. M. McDowell, as a doctor, $4; Dr. Brown, $4; Dr. Case, $4; Dr. Hollingsworth, $4. (The reason for the difference in assessing is not stated.)
The county directory in 1821 contained the following list of officers:
Court – Hon. Ezra Osburn, president; Judges John Davidson, William Miller, and Gabriel Kerr, associate; Joseph Wheeler, clerk pro tem; Joseph Davidson, sheriff; Solomon Beckley, attorney at law; William G. Robinson, recorder; William Carpenter, the surveyor (by appointment); justices of the peace – Fayette, Daniel Brubaker, Thomas Kerr, and Solomon Beckley; Union, Thomas Templeton, and Edward Miller; Rome, Joel Bowen and Jacob Miller; Windsor, Peter Wakefield, and Bazil Lewis; Symmes, David Spurlock; Mason, Jacob Powell, and Henry Spear; Lawrence, Jas. Webb and Elias Webb; Upper, Peter Linebarger, and John Kelly; Elizabeth, Thomas Triggs, and Andrew Wolfe.
At this time, Burlington, the county seat, had two stores, three taverns, one English school, one hatter’s shop, one blacksmith shop, one tailor, five carpenters, two tanners, and a horizontal flour mill, propelled by oxen. There were 685 voters in the county. Thomas Kerr, postmaster at Burlington, and Thomas Waller, at Portsmouth, were the only postmasters in the two counties. The population of Portsmouth at this time was 570.
The clerk used the same book in which records of the court were kept for his licenses and affidavits, but he turned it upside down and commenced in the back part for these matters of record.
The first justice of the peace for Lawrence county was James Webb. The same day Webb was sworn in, Joseph Davidson made an oath to perform the duties of county commissioner.
This was on the 12th day of April 1817. Joel Bowen and David Spurlock were the other two commissioners.
The following is a copy of the first marriage license issued after the organization of the county:
“These are to license and permit any licensed Minister of the Gospel of Justice of the Peace duly commissioned and sworn in and for said county, to join together in the holy state of matrimony, John Ferguson and Elizabeth McCoy, and for so doing this shall be your warrant. Given under my hand and the seal of my office this 14th day of April 1817. “W. G. Robinson, “Clerk pro tem.”
The following is the certificate of marriage of the persons named in the foregoing and is the first written in the marriage book of the Probate Court:
“I do hereby certify that on the 11th day of April 1817, I joined together in the holy state of matrimony, John Ferguson and Elizabeth McCoy. Given under my hand. “John Lee.”
It will be observed that the date of the above certificate is prior to that of the license, but it is to be presumed that the minister who tied the knot was satisfied that a license would be forthcoming. At any rate, the worthy couple was properly united three days before the authority for the union was granted. Whether legal or illegal, under the circumstances is a question of technical dispute.
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