Licking County Records & Archives Blog

Record of the Month! For the month of September, we are excited to feature two very rare will records dated prior to the 1875 Courthouse fire that have been recently discovered in the stacks. Left: The Last Will and Testament of James Tartton, Signed July 19, 1851. Right: The Last Will and Testament of Henry Wimer, Signed May 22, 1858. In 1831 the County built its’ first large stone courthouse in the center of the square, replacing 2 smaller log cabins. The courthouse stood for 44 years, before a mysterious fire reduced it to smoldering ruins in early hours of April 3 rd 1875. Sadly, the fire destroyed an estimated 2,500 boxes of early county and probate court records, making probate records prior to 1875 very rare. The first will to be discovered was written by James Tartton on July 19, 1851. From this document we know that James was a farmer, his wife was Elizabeth Tartton and they had two sons named James Meriett and Washington Vanburen. We also know that James had

In June the Records Center was awarded an OHRAB grant to purchase supplies for the purpose of cleaning historic county records, which were previously stored in the county’s courthouse attic. The records range several departments including the Clerk of Courts, Auditor, Treasurer, and Recorder, and date back to the early 1800s. There are roughly 300 books that will be cleaned, cataloged, and stored at the Records Center. Last week while cleaning, staff member Sophia came across the oldest book in the bunch so far: an 1834 real estate duplicate. As you might imagine, this book had a substantial amount of dust on it, being 185 years old. It’s possible that this book was placed in the courthouse attic any time after 1876, when the courthouse was rebuilt after the infamous 1875 courthouse fire, and hadn’t been moved since. In fact, it was impossible to even read the titled on it until it was vacuumed due to the thick layer of dust that had settled. The book provides a glimpse into

Record of the Month This month we are featuring records sealed with the Great Seal of the State of Ohio. The Great Seal of the State of Ohio Today the Great Seal of Ohio is the official signature of the state and of her government. In 1802, during the Ohio territory’s bid for statehood, Ohio’s constitutional delegates stipulated that the governor was to keep the Great Seal of the State of Ohio and that it was to be affixed to all official documents. As with all signatures, the Great Seal of the State of Ohio has changed multiple times over the last 216 years. Despite the changes, the general imagery of the Seal has stayed fairly consistent, featuring a sun rising over hills, a river, and a valley, along with a bundle of 13 arrows and a bundle of wheat standing in the front. From 1847 to the early 1900s, the Official Seal used by the governors featured a canal boat, which was a prominent mode of transportation for the state. However, throughout the 19 th Century there w