The Old Court House

The author, Judge Alfred George Washington Carter, wrote in a very brief preface that the book’s purpose “…is fulfilled in showing mostly the sunny, or funny side of the old court house – only this and nothing more.” The subject court house was completed in 1819, and was destroyed by fire in 1849. In the introductory chapter the author provides the names of all judges and members of the bar in Cincinnati in 1819 (a total of 31), 1825, 1831, and after 1831 to 1849. The volume appears to consist entirely of amusing anecdotes, with witty and often caustic characterizations of lawyers and judges. Overall, it is a perceptive and frequently critical account of the legal system of the day.