OLD DOCUMENTS.
VOTING IN THE COUNTY SIXTY YEARS AGO.
A Few Names and Some Candidates.
Author Unknown.
Ironton Register, February 19, 1891
Under the Judge’s table at the Court House was a pile of old papers that the Register man happened to knock over, and out tumbled an ancient roll. It was a package of the poll books of Lawrence county for 1832. We untied the package, which was bound with old-time white tape. It had a very ancient appearance.
In Aid township, there were 39 votes cast. Samuel Russell, Wm. Bruce and Adam Dickey were the judges. John Vermillion and Parker Dare were the clerks. Thomas Templeton, Charles Wilgus, and William Lambert were the candidates for Sheriff. Mr. Wilgus is still living. He got a majority in Aid. Jacob Powell got nearly all the votes for Commissioner and Cyrus Sprouse for Auditor.
Decatur cast only 13 votes. Christian, Daniel, and Henry Halterman were judges. David Lambert and John Pethoad were clerks. Robt. Lucas
was running for Governor and S. F. Vinton for Congress. Dan’l Brubaker and Jacob Powell were nip and tuck for Commissioner, but Wm. Lambert was away ahead of Templeton for Sheriff.
Elizabeth township cast 106 votes. Robert Hamilton, James Mayes, and James Rodgers were the judges. Jos. McIntyre and Geo. Cutright were clerks. We looked in vain over the long list to find any of the voters now living. The contest for the offices was sharp. Robert Lucas, for Governor, got
58 votes, and his opponent, David Lyman, 47. George House, for Congress, had four majorities over Vinton. Cyrus Sprouse got all the votes for Auditor. Thos. Templeton beat C. Wilgus 28 votes for Sheriff. D. Brubaker was way ahead for Commissioner, and W. G. Robinson led for County Assessor. Charles Wilgus also ran for County Assessor.
There were 92 votes cast in Fayette. John McKee, Elijah Frampton, and Wm. Nixon was the judge. Solomon Buckley and Ignatius Boss (?) the clerks. Robert Lucas received 48 votes for Governor. David Lyman 48. Vinton got a big majority in Congress. C. Wilgus, for Sheriff, and D. Brubaker, for Commissioner, led the ticket. Among the familiar names in this poll book, we notice Solomon Beckley, E. B. Greene, Isaac C. Hunter, Joseph Wheeler, and Thos. Kerr, Jno. Gillen, Wm. Lynd, Wm. and Thos. Campbell, C. C. Shute, B. Hatcher, Jno. Crawford, Jno. McKee, Wm. Ballard, Jno. Ankrim, Elijah Frampton, Jno. Ellison, D. Corbin, David Woods, Peter Spears, Curtis Scovill, A. Smith, J. H. Drury, Joshua Hambleton, J. B.
Kite, Jas. Crumlish, J. S. Kelvey, Mrs. Scovill, C. Matteson, Geo. Kouns, H. Kimble, Jonas Combs, W. C. Johnston, and others.
Lawrence township cast 31 votes. Robert Rose/Ross, John Gilkerson, and Samuel Crawford were judges; John Layne and John H. Gough were clerks. Lucas led for Governor; George House for Congress; Jacob Powell for Commissioner; and Wilgus for Sheriff and Assessor. Among the voters, we see Tull Webb, Pleasant McKnight, James Gibson, Levi Kelley, and other familiar names.
Mason gave 28 votes. Silas Shumate, John Higgins, and John Brumfield were judges; Nicodemus Vermillion and Wm. Vanansall, clerks. Familiar names on the poll book-the Paynes, Massies, Brumfields, Rapps, Elcessors, Powells, Corns, Higgins, and others. Lyman got all but five votes for Governor. House beat Vinton. C. Wilgus, for Sheriff, and Jacob Powell, for Commissioner, received nearly all the votes.
Perry cast 45 votes. The Judges were James Collier, James Sperry, and Charles Hatcher; David Chatfield and Charles McCoy were clerks. Many familiar names in this list – the Allens, Kouns, Chatfields, Colliers, Webbs, Fergusons, Blankenships, Winters, &c. Lucas got nearly all the votes. Vinton ran ahead. Wilgus and Templeton, for Sheriff, are about even. Brubaker got nearly all the votes for Commissioner. Walton gets the vote for Surveyor. Joseph Wheeler receives two votes for Recorder, evidently, a mistake, for this is the first vote for this office that appears.
Rome cast 80 votes. Jacob Miller, James Nash, and David McLaughlin are the judges; James Haskell and Bartemius Beardsley are the clerks. Lyman for Governor, Vinton for Congress, each get 74 votes. Chas. Wilgus, for Sheriff, gets 80. Powell nearly all for Commissioner. What a list
of old pioneer names in that list – Alanson Gillett, who is still living; Wm. Locey, Robt. Miller, Jacob Neff, Hugh Howard, Fidello Gillett, Jos. McKnight, N. Pritchard, Henry Radford, Thos. Walton, Thos. Gardner, Jacob Miller, Joel Bowen, John Chapman, M. Reed, David Walls, Joseph Miller, Giles Judd, Moses Varnum, A. T. F. Fuller, J. C. Swain, Chas. Hall, John Tierman, and others of these families. How familiar some of them are to the Lawrence county historian!
Symmes cast 18 votes. John McDaniel, Peter Nelson, and John Stewart were the judges; Wm. Burk and George Irwin, clerks. Lyman ran ahead for Governor; Vinton ran behind; Wilgus got all the votes for Sheriff; and Jacob Powell, nearly all for Commissioner. There are five Nelsons on the poll book, three McDaniels, Andrew Bandy, David Smith, A. Boggs, Wm. Hobbie/Hobbs? and M. Rose are others.
Union cast 91 votes. The judges were Solomon Simpson, Cornelius Handley, and James Wilgus. Clerks, Wm. spears, Hoadly Holbeck. The vote was close between the candidates – Lucas, Vinton, and Wilgus coming out ahead. Among the voters, we notice these familiar names: Richard.
Morrison, James Forgey, John McCorkle, R. Adams, Isaac Frampton, Bird Smith, Allen Whitehead, Jeremiah Russell, James Wilkes, Wm. Brammer, Roland Brammer, Andrew Porter, Geo. Sumpter, Wm. Johnston, W. Snell, Jno. Ward, Wm. Gillen, Thomas Langdon, C. Webb, Mordecai Suiter, Robert Boothe, Wm. Suiter, J. Graham, &c.
Upper cast 100 votes. John K. Smith, Nathaniel Davidson, and Richard Lambert were the judges. Peter Lionbarger and John N. Kemp, clerks. Upper then included Hamilton. The voting between the candidates was nearly even. Lucas and Lyman, for Governor, were a tie. Vinton lost by ten votes. Brubaker was ahead for Commissioner. Wm. Lambert nearly two to one for Sheriff. This was his township. For Assessor, W. G. Robinson had 43, and C. Wilgus had 44 votes. This poll book has many familiar names: Samuel Henry, Isaac Davidson, F. Barles, Elias Harparee, Hugh Means, John Lee, Jesse Sherman, John Davidson, D. Feurt, Edmund Brammer, Jno. Ellison, Jas. Brammer, Jno. McCarney, Robert Young, Reuben Kelly, Jacob Heplar, Joel Stover, Jesse Davisson, George Trumbo, James Henry, Christian Yingling, Isaac Martin, George Turley, Darby Kelly, Jno. Kelly, Daniel Winters, Jno. Deering, Isaac Austin, Wm. Lambert and other names of the old pioneers whose grandchildren are now with us in the prime of life.
Windsor polled 59 votes. The judges were Wm. Holderby, Jonathan Dennison, H. Helfenstein; clerks, G. W. Dennison and John Falkner. Lucas was three ahead for Governor. House and Vinton ran exactly alike for Congress. Wilgus was 39 for Sheriff and Templeton 16; Powell was two to one for Commissioner. Among the familiar names on the poll book, we see Simeon Shattuck, Wm. Holderby, Jno. Falkner, Jno. Mann, Moses Mann,
Fountain Simmons, Peter, Benjamin Wakefield, Lewis Singers, Hugh Forgey, Chas. Earles, Kinley Mann, Bennet Earles, Coleman Hamlin, Robert Simmons, Hugh Pratt, Henry Willis, John McMahon, Z. Carberry.
The entire vote of the county was 711, about the vote of Elizabeth township now. Charles Wilgus was elected Sheriff, and Jacob Powell was chosen County Commissioner. Wilgus was also elected Assessor for the whole county. Joseph Wheeler was County Clerk at the time.
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