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Can you name these gentlemen?

A terrific photograph surfaced recently during a "winter" cleaning project at the Clinton County Courthouse. The 1921 Board of Supervisors for Clinton County are certainly a distinguished group of gentlemen, but who’s who?

Clinton County Clerk Diane Zuker has compiled a list of the various township supervisors who would have served on the county board in 1921, and is asking for assistance in matching up the names with the faces. Following is the list of names.

Bath Twp. - Alonzo Webster
Bengal Twp. - Patrick L. Gallagher
Bingham Twp. - Arthur Gage
Dallas Twp. - Wm. L. Simmon
DeWitt Twp. - Homer Brazee
Duplain Twp. - Clayton A. Sherman
Eagle Twp. - George Campbell
Greenbush Twp. - Dewight S. Morrison
Lebanon Twp. - Hayes L. Burch
Olive Twp. - Burr M. Eaton
Ovid Twp. - Wm. C. Wilson
Riley Twp. - Nelson R. Pratt
Victor Twp. - Calvin E. Sexton
Watertown Twp. - William Summers
Westphalia Twp. - Peter Trierweiler
City of St. Johns - Frank E. Stone, John T. Milman, Henry E. Walbridge.

Persons with information on the photo and "name search" should call the clerk’s office, 989-224-5140. Email responses may be sent to Zuker via the Clinton County website, www.clinton-county.org or the St. Johns Independent, mail@sjindy.com. We will forward the information to the clerk’s office.

See panels in the photo

The following information on the formation of Clinton County government is taken from the 1980 History of Clinton County.

The first elections in Clinton County were held in the several townships April 1, 1839. Elected as commissioners were Calvin Marvin, Ephraim H. Utley and Robert E. Craven.

The three commissioners received a salary of $30 each year, and formed the Board of County Commissioners. At first the business of the Board of Commissioners had to do largely with matters such as paying bounties to persons who could prove they had shot wolves. These payments amounted to $8 for each wolf, and often they went to Indians with names like Nowabano, Ashhabe, Sau-lo, Mewezan and Wabagunishcum to mention only a few.

The amount of property taxes levied that first year of 1839, as equalized by the board, was $741,825, covering 245,543 acres of land.

In 1842, the board was abolished and their responsibilities were taken over by a Board of Supervisors, one supervisor being elected by each township.

The first Board of Supervisors that began meeting July 4, 1842, was composed of the following: DeWitt, Jesse F. Turner; Eagle, Oliver Doty; Westphalia, Anthony Kopp; Riley, Atwell Simmons; Olive, Daniel Ferguson Jr.; Ovid, Isaac V. Swarthout; Bingham, Stephen W. Downer; Bengal, Chauncey M. Stebbins; Greenbush, David Sevy; Duplain, Robert E. Craven. They had all been elected by their townships, but Watertown, Ossawa and Lebanon were not represented.

From 1842 to 1970, the Board of Supervisors was the fiscal manager of the county. In 1970, the Board of Supervisors was discontinued, and on March 20, 1970, a new Clinton County Board of Commissioners was formed to handle the business of the county.

This change was brought about by adoption of a new State Constitution in 1963 which provides for the "one man, one vote" principle of representation.