A Sketch of the Supreme Court of Ohio.
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A SKETCH OF THE SUPREME COURT OF OHIO. IV. By Edgar B. Kinkead, of the Columbus Bar. Charles Cleveland Converse was born at Zanesville, July 26, 1810. His par ents were members of the Ohio Company. He graduated at Ohio University and at tended Law School at Harvard. He at tended lectures by Story and Greenleaf, and enjoyed the friendship of such men as Benj. R. Curtis and Charles Sumner. In 1849 he was elected to the State Senate and chosen presiding officer of that body. In 1854 hewas elected judge of Court of Common Pleas and in 1855 judge of Supreme Court. On account of his health he could not take his seat, and shortly after resigned. He died Sept. 20, 1860. OziAS BOWEN was born in New York, July 21, 1805, and died at Marion, Ohio, Sept. 26, 1871. He came to Ohio when young; was admitted to the bar in 1828, commencing his practice at Marion, Ohio. Feb. 7, 1838, he was elected by the legisla ture president judge of the second circuit, was re-elected and served until the adoption of the Constitution of 1851. In June, 1856, Governor Chase appointed him to the vacan cy created by the resignation of Judge Con verse, and he was subsequently elected to fill out the unexpired term. He was a dignified judge, especially noted for his assiduity and thorough preparation of cases as a practic ing lawyer. He was one of the Ohio elec tors who elected President Lincoln. JosiAH SCOTT was born December 1, 1803, in Washington County, Pennsylvania, on a farm a few miles from Cannonsburg, where Jefferson College is located, and where Judge Scott received his education. He graduated with the highest honors of his class in the year 1823. Thrown at once upon his own resources, he entered with courage upon the life-work ahead of him.
Going to eastern Pennsylvania, he there taught in a classical academy in Newton, Bucks County, where he prepared a num ber of students for the freshman class at college. Next he went south and taught in one of the schools of Richmond, Virginia, for two years. His leisure time during these two years was spent in the study of law. He, at the end of his two years in Richmond, returned to his native home, and was there chosen as a tutor in Jefferson, where only four years before he had graduated with such high honors. He taught but one year in Jefferson, and having kept up his legal studies he decided at the end of that time to come to Ohio, and go into the practice of law. On the back of a horse he started westward, and reached Mansfield in the spring of 1829, visiting the Hon. Thomas W. Bartley, who had been a pupil of Scott's at college, and they were afterwards associated in the practice of law. In June, 1829, he located at Bucyrus, which was then but a hamlet in the wilderness; nearly one-half of the county remained an Indian Reserva tion for fifteen years afterwards and was occupied by the YVyandots. He soon made a reputation for himself, and came to be looked upon as a strong advocate both with judge and jury. In 1840 he was elected to the General Assembly for the counties of Crawford, Marion and Delaware. In 1851 he went to Hamilton, Butler County, where he distinguished himself as a sound lawyer in competition with such able advo cates as John Woods, Lewis D. Campbell, Thomas Milliken and William Bebb. In 1856 he was elected judge of the Su preme Court, his term beginning the 9th of February, 1857. Soon after his election he was appointed by Governor Chase to fill a
