| COUNTY GOVERNMENT. |
[AS?] THE SUBDIVISION of the Northwest Territory into five States has already been described in the first portion of this volume, we need here go no further back than the organization of Wayne County in 1796, under the first form of our Territorial government, when that county comprised about twenty-six of the present counties in Ohio (being the northwest quarter of the State), the whole of the southern peninsula of Michigan, and the northern part of Indiana, including Wells County. Detroit was then the county seat, and is still the county seat of Wayne County. Subdivision of this territory into smaller counties went on as population increased, State boundaries were defined, etc., until we come to the date 1835, when Wells and Adams counties were set off from Allen County.
During the session, that year, of the Indiana Legislature, Colonel John Vawter, of Jennings County, Chairman of the House Committee on New Counties, introduced a bill for an act to "lay out all the unorganized territory to which the Indian title had been extinguished in the State into a suitable number of counties." This was approved February 7, 1835. The counties laid out under this act were Wells, Jay, DeKaIb, Steuben, Whitley, Kosciusko, Fulton, Marshall, Stark, Pulaski, Jasper, Newton and Porter. Wells County was named in honor of Captain William H. Wells, who had been killed in the massacre at Fort Dearborn, Chicago, in 1812, by the Indians.
An act was passed, and approved February 2, 1837, to organize the county May 1 following, appointing David Bennett, sheriff, to notify the electors to meet at the house of Robert C. Bennett, to elect three commissioners, and also appointing five commissioners, non-residents, to locate the county seat. As these five commissioners for some cause failed to meet, a special act of the Legislature was passed, and approved January 20, 1838, appointing Zachariah Smith, of Adams County, Christopher Hanna, of Jay County, Champion Helvey, of Huntington County, William Kizer, of Randolph County, and John Rogers, of Grant County, commissioners to locate the permanent seat of justice for Wells County. Having been duly notified by Isaac Covert, by this time elected sheriff of their appointment, four of them came, the absent member being Zachariah Smith. The contestants for the county seat of government were Bluffton and Murray, and at first the four commissioners were evenly divided between the two points. Their first vote was taken about dusk in the evening. Mr. Abraham Studabaker, whose land lay at Bluffton, conferred with Daniel Miller, of Adams County, who also owned property near Bluffton, and was present at the county seat contest. The result of the deliberation was that Miller should immediately post off on horseback to Adams County, and fetch in Smith, the absentee, in time for the final vote in the morning. It was very cold; ten inches of snow were on the ground; not a single road had been cut; and there were only traces through the timber. He followed the Wabash fourteen miles, to the residence of Peter Studabaker, where he obtained a fresh horse, and on he pushed twenty miles more to the St. Mary's River, near the State line, where he found his man, at three o'clock in the morning. Returning with him, they again obtained fresh horses at Peter Studabaker's, and reached Bluffton before the commissioners met in the morning, after the messenger had traveled nearly seventy miles, mostly during the night, through a deep, unbroken snow and severe cold. The vote thus procured cast the die in favor of Bluffton. One historian says that the victory was won for Bluffton by the $270 cash which Messrs. Bennett and Studabaker donated.
The report of the commissioners reads thus: "We met at the house of Robert C. Bennett, in said county of Wells, on the first Monday of March, 1838, and have selected the west half of the northeast quarter of section 4, township 26, range 12, for the site for the seat of justice of Wells County, which land was donated by Abram Studabaker with a reserve of two choice lots. He also donated 31.90 acres off the east end of the south half of the southwest quarter of section 33, town 27, range 12 east. Robert C. Bennett donates the southeast fraction of the northeast quarter of section 4, town 26, range 12 east, with a reserve of two and one-half acres in the northeast corner. Studabaker and Bennett also donated $270 in cash.
"Signed, March 9, 1838, Christopher Hanna, John Rogers, William Kizer, Zachariah Smith, Locating Commissioners."
But county government did not wait for the locating commissioners to do their duty. Long before the county seat was located the citizens, in June, 1837, proceeded to elect their county board of three commissioners, namely, Solomon Johnson, James Scott and R. C. Bennett, Sr., for three, two and one years, in the order named. At this election six or seven non-resident land-holders living in Ohio were permitted to vote, especially as they intended soon to move into the county, among them being Dr. George T. Riddile, Adam Hatfield and John Greer.
The first acts of these commissioners, as condensed from their journal, were as follows:
The Board met Friday, July 21, 1837, at the house of R. C. Bennett, in accordance with the above recited act, and produced the certificates of the sheriff that they had been duly elected and qualified. David Bennett produced his commission appointing him sheriff (signed by Governor Noble) until the next annual election. Bowen Hale also produced a similar document appointing him clerk of Wells County. Both were certified to as having taken the oath as required by law. This being done, the Board was organized, with Solomon Johnson as president.
1. Ordered that W. H. Parmalee be appointed agent of the three per cent. fund donated to the county by the State for roads and bridges. He accepted and gave bond.
2. That Adnah Hall be appointed treasurer of Wells County. He also accepted, and gave bond in the sum of $3,000.
3. That David Whitman be appointed assessor and collector of revenues for the county. His bond was fixed at $800.
That for county purposes there be levied 18 cents on each $100 valuation, and 50 cents on each poll.
For several years taxes were often settled for by a promissory note, endorsed by two good men. Adnah Hall, Treasurer, had a little book of blank notes printed and bound for the purpose, with his name as payee. For the first three years after the organization of the county it is said that the treasurer kept his office in his jacket pocket, but was never corrupted or approached with a bribe while discharging his trust. The fees of the office for a while necessarily exceeded the funds in the treasury, owing to the condition of things.
As at that time the Government lands were exempt from taxation five years after entry, there were but three tracts of land in the county subject to taxation. The first tax duplicate was made out on a single sheet of paper.
The fifth order made by the board next day was that Wells County be divided into two election districts, by a line commencing on the southern boundary of the county and running north between what is now Chester and Nottingham townships, and Harrison and Liberty townships; thence east two miles between Harrison and Lancaster townships; thence north to the county line. The territory on the east of this line was designated as Harrison Township, and that on the west as Rock Creek Township.
Since then the townships have been set off as follows: Jackson, September 4, 1837; Jefferson, March 3, 1840; Nottingham, January 4, 1841; Chester and Lancaster, March 1, 1841; Liberty, June 8, 1841, and Union, June 7, 1847, immediately after the land there came into market subsequent to the extinguishment of the Indian title. Jackson has been called the "lost township," because the counties around it happened to be so formed that it could not be attached to any one of them without forming a geographical projection.
At the above session of the board Bowen Hale was granted a license for one year, for the sum of $5, to retail merchandise and foreign groceries "not the product of the State or of the United States."
September 4, 1837, the board met, and "on motion took their seats." Bowen Hale was allowed $56 for books for the use of the office, and other stationery, namely, inkstands, ink powder, etc.
John Casebeer was appointed the first surveyor, and the first road established in the county was that part of the State road leading from Greenville, Ohio, to Marion, Indiana. The expense of location through Wells County was $56.62½. The next located in the county was the Fort Recovery and Huntington road, at the November session, 1837. For the opening of this road the board appropriated $1,000 of the three per cent. fund.
David Bennett was paid $32.50 in full for his services as sheriff; Solomon Johnson, $8 for his services as commissioner; David Whitman, $6.56 for his services as "assessor of the revenue" of Wells County for 1837. John Casebeer was appointed assessor for 1888, and Thomas T. Smith school commissioner—the first in the county.
In August, 1837, an election was held, when Isaac Covert was chosen sheriff, and James R. Greer associate judge.
March 9, 1838, Mr. Greer was appointed county agent, and gave bond in the sum of $5,000.
John Casebeer was allowed $38, May 7 following, for surveying and platting the site of Bluffton. The recorded plat bears the date March 23, 1838.
In January, 1839, the commissioners offered a premium of $1 for each wolf killed, the evidence of killing being the presentation of a fresh scalp. Adam Hatfield presented the first one the following May.
At the close of this year Adnah Hall, Treasurer, made his report, covering the period from November 6, 1838, to November 6, 1839, which showed that there had been received into the treasury from all sources the sum of $1,419.40. His commission was $19.43; notes, $301. Total assets of the county, $1,701.41. This was principally derived from fines and sales of lots.
At the November session, 1839, Bowen Hale, Clerk, reported that he had procured for the county a metallic seal, and the following description of the design was ordered to be placed on the minutes: "A sheaf of wheat is the main design; a plane, a rake, a pitch fork; surrounded by the following words, to wit: 'Commissioners of Wells County."' Prior to this date a scrawl seal had been used in official business.
The first acts of the commissioners concerning the sale of lots, etc., in Bluffton, will be found under the head of Bluffton, and those concerning the first court-house and jail, under those heads respectively, in the latter portion of this work.
The present status of the county is given under the head of "Census," on a subsequent page.