William White

As printed in 1881

WILLIAM WHITE, Judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio, Springfield. The hardy growths of nature are those that battle the storms, the fiercer the conflict the more robust becomes the trunk, and the deeper down do the roots descend. Man is but a part of nature, and he who has endured the storms of life from childhood, mounting, step by step, the rugged path leading to success, winning recognition by his talent and force of character, until he has reached one of the highest positions in the gift of his adopted State, is the strong growth, the man of mark. In every generation, a few such men come to the front, and the people recognize them; they make our laws, mold our institutions and free the minds of the masses from that ignorance that would otherwise trammel its intellectual development. In the foremost rank of this class of men ean be safely placed the Hon. William White, Judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio, who was born in England Jan. 28, 1822; his parents having died when he was quite young, he came to the United States with his uncle, James Dory, in 1831, who took up his residence in Springfield; when Wilham became 12 years of age, he was apprenticed to a cabinet-maker for nine years; after serving six years, he obtained a release from his master, giving his notes for a considerable amount, which he paid by working at his trade in Springfield; he was instilled with a laudable desire to obtain an education, and to secure the necessary means for this purpose, he devoted all his energies to his trade, working during vacation, and such other spare time as he had; his principal education was obtained at the Ohio Conference High School, under the tutorship of Chandler Robbins; on completing his studies, he was encouraged by the late William A. Rodgers to read law, which he did, managing to earn sufficient means to defray his expenses by teaching school at intervals and serving as night clerk in the post office; in 1546, he was admitted to the bar and immediately taken into partnership by his preceptor, Mr. Rodgers; this relation continued to exist until 1851, when the latter was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. Mr. White was elected Prosecuting Attorney at the Oetobor election of 1847, and continued to hold that office eight years, receiving large majorities at each succeeding contest; in 1856, without solicitation on his part, he was put in nomination as an independent candidate for the Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, by the members of the bar of his subdivision, embracing the counties of Clark, Greene, Warren and Clinton, and was elected by a large majority over the nominee of the dominant party, his own county giving him an almost unanimous vote; in October, 1861, he was re-elected; on the resignation of Judge Hocking H. Hunter, Judge White, at the request of the bar of his district, was appointed, by Gov. Brough, Judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio, in February, 1864, and in October of the same year was elected to the unexpired term; in October, 1868, he was re-elected, and again in 1873 and 1878. At the latter election he received in the county 2392 majority, being about.double the usual party majority; his vote in the State was also the highest of any candidate on the State ticket. He has always been devoted to his profession and regarded as a pre-eminently safe Judge; his reported decisions (see Ohio State Reporte, Vols. 14 to 26 inclusive, and Vols. 29, 31, 34 and 35) are distinguished for clearness and accuracy, and are justly held in high esteem by his cotemporaries. He married, Oct. 21, 1847, Miss Rachel, daughter of Charles and Margaret Stout. Her family were old residents of Springfield, and her mother, now upward of 86 years of age, resides with Mrs. J. Warren Keifer, who is also a daughter. Mrs. White is a member of the Second

Presbyterian Church, and a pleasant, intelligent lady. Of their six children, three are living— Charles R., Mrs. Robert Rodgers and Nora R., all of whom have received the advantages of a liberal education.

As printed in The History of Clark County Ohio, (1881). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.