Wayne County Court House
(Villages battle to be County Seat)
On April 11, 1823, the State Legislature established the boundaries of Wayne County. Three commissioners were appointed by this Act to locate the county seat - chosen from distant parts of the State, to avoid partiality. The contest for county seat developed between Wolcott and Lyons and prominent men of both villages descended upon Albany to plead their case. Lyons was the choice of the commission.
The first court house built in Wayne County was a two
story brick building in the center of the village square on land donated by the Village of
Lyons. The jail was in the basement and the court room was on the second floor. This
building was important to the social life of the community as the court room also served
as a hall for lectures and church services.
By 1850, it became apparent that the old Court House was in need of extensive repair or rebuilding. On April 11, 1853, the New York State Legislature passed "an act to provide for erecting a new Court House and jail for the county of Wayne." The jail and Court House were to be erected in the village of Lyons and the commissioners to superintendent of the construction were John Adams, Steven Marshall and Francis E. Cornwell.
The jail was completed in 1855 and was located on Butternut Street. The building housed the jail of 24 cells and the sheriff's residence and was used in that capacity until 1960. The building is now used as a County Museum and office of County Historian.
A local committee purchased property on the north side of the village square and gave the land to the county for the site of the Court House. Construction on the Court House began in the summer of 1853. The Commissioners took over complete supervision, but there is no record of an architect. A Court House of similar design was built in Albion, Orleans County, New York and is a fine example of Greek Revival architecture with striking Ionic columns on the front portico. Final cost of the Court House and jail was $43,906.16.
In November 1896, the Board of Supervisors were instructed to take immediate steps to renovate the Court House. A movement to move the county seat to Newark got underway and began to vie with groups from Lyons. Events moved quickly between November 1896 and April 1897. The village of Newark was ready to raise $50,000 to build a new Court House, County Clerk's office and jail in Newark if the county seat was theirs. On April 13, 1897, Mr. George Koester, Supervisor from Lyons, placed on a table before the County Board, the entire sum needed for additions and improvements to the Court House - $17,500. A gift to the county from the Village of Lyons. Lyons would remain the county seat.
Architects Kelly and Headly of Rochester were engaged and alterations were begun, with Schreiber and Schattner as contractors. By December 1897, the extension had been completed and the interior renovations finished. Total cost of the job was approximately $17,000.
On Saturday, April l7, 1897, The Marion Enterprise reported:
Lyons people won the day by placing before the Board of Supervisors $17,500 in gold to be used in the repairs if the county buildings could be retained. This was a "hand with two jacks and an ace' winning for Lyons by a vote of 8 to 7.
Although Newark loses the county seat she saves $50,000 and wins $17,000 for the county by her effort. All should now bow to the inevitable and let the matter drop.
But J. Wilson, publisher and editor of The Newark Courier was not about to do so. On Thursday, April 15, 1897, he published:
...On behalf of Lyons, a bag of several pounds in weight was brought into the room and the supervisors were assured that it contained $17,500 all in gold. But as we understand it, no one knows except those who brought the bag in, just what it contained. Bags sometimes are filled with cats...The board took somebody's word for it, and they really believe that they have $17,500...deposited to their credit in the Gavitt bank...Then let us ask, why didn't they make it an even $18,000? We assume that no larger sum could be raised in Lyons, and if Newark had only known what was going on, she would cheerfully have sent in...an even $20,000 or $25,000...
A week later, Wilson reported on the celebration in Lyons:
The people of Lyons celebrated their victory over Newark in the Court House matter Tuesday evening, 13th, by firing cannon. The town was ablaze with fireworks, and a large delegation of enthusiastic citizens headed by the Twenty-seventh Regiment Band, marched through the principal streets.
But he also took the opportunity for more insults. Among them:
According to all accounts they had one grand jubilee in Lyons on the night of the 13th. Many would not go home till morning, but when morning came, some of them were not able to go home. It is said that a large ambulance force was required to take care of the disabled.
Starting in 1976, the repair of the Court House was again the subject of discussion. But this time, restoration and renovation was to take place. In anticipation of the Court House being 125 years old in 1979, the Wayne County Board of Supervisors appropriated money for the project. The layers of grey paint were removed and the natural color brick was allowed to show, probably for the very first time since the building's completion in 1854. The 150-year-old limestone steps were replaced with granite, which will be sure to last another 150 years. Today the building is a proud reminder of the county's heritage.
The Wayne County Court House has been in continuous use since 1854. The court room on the second floor has been the scene of many trials. In 1860, William Fee was convicted of murder in that court room and sentenced to die by hanging. Fee was the only person to be executed within Wayne County. The hearing for Oliver C. Perry, infamous train robber, was also held in the court room. The actual trial and sentencing of Perry took place in Rochester by a federal judge, as his crime was a federal crime.
The chambers for the Wayne County Supervisors were for over a hundred years located on the first floor. In 1978, the main court room received some minor alterations to accommodate the Supervisors' meetings. The main court room is the one room in the building which most closely resembles the original look of the court house, and great care was taken to preserve the room intact.
The Supervisors now meet on an average of twice a month. In the earlier days of county government, the Supervisors met less frequently. Records indicate that they sometimes met twice a year, but those meetings could last several days.
Other offices housed in the Court House include: Surrogate Court, County Court, Family Court, the Probation Department, District Attorney, County Attorney and Personnel Department.
(Editor's Note: In March 1997, construction was completed on a new building adjacent to the courthouse. The court operations moved to the new Hall of Justice on Broad Street, but supervisors continue to meet in the large second-floor courtroom of the Court House.)
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© 1997
Newark Courier-Gazette
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