The following is and exerpt from the book written by Arnold VanHorn about the history of The Guernsey County Sheriff's Office.We would like to express our thanks for his contribution to this web site.
The office of sheriff for Guernsey County came into being during the first meeting of the associate judges on April 23, 1810. At that time Thomas Knowles was appointed as the first sheriff for Guernsey County. The duties of the sheriff were to enforce all the laws that affected the public peace in the county. He was also to operate the county jail and to serve the courts of the county. Even to this day the sheriff is by law the number one law enforcement officer in the county. Even though there are other enforcement agencies that operate in the county, the sheriff has the authority to take over any case or investigation that is being done in the county.
Thomas Knowles only served as sheriff until the summer of 1810. At that time Elijah Dyson was elected as sheriff. He served Guernsey County as sheriff until 1816. Over the years there have been 45 different men that have held the position as sheriff. Two of these men served two different times. These men were John Beymer and William H. C. Hanna. John Beymer served as sheriff from 1835 until 1839 and then again from 1841 until 1845. William H. C. Hanna served from 1873 until 1875 and then again from 1889 until 1893. Sheriff James U. “Peanut” Carpenter served the most years as sheriff. He served from 1980 until 2001. He had served as a deputy sheriff from 1965 until 1980.
Two sheriffs were murdered after they left office. James Mason had moved to California and was working as a security guard when he interrupted a safe cracking in progress. He was killed by the burglar and left at the scene. His murderer was never found. The second man that was murdered was Robert “Doc” Willis. After leaving office he and a former Cambridge police officer went into business at a tourist camp in the Summymeade Addition east of Cambridge. Both of these men were murdered during a robbery of their place of business. They were killed several years apart. The men that killed Robert Willis were captured and sent to prison for their crimes.
At least three sheriffs died in office. John F. Bell died shortly before he was to leave office. William Birch also died a few months before he was to leave office. Listen Burris took over as sheriff several months before he was elected as sheriff. Sheriff Robert Cook died just a few months after taking office in 1965.
Two of the men that served in this position served as acting sheriffs until a permanent sheriff could be elected or appointed. William Israel was the coroner for the county in 1834. Sheriff Metcalf’s term ended, and Israel served for a few months from the fall of 1834 until January 1835. During this time period he held both positions of coroner and acting sheriff. The second man that served as acting sheriff was Russell Haynes, Jr. He served in the spring and summer of 1965. He was a deputy sheriff for Sheriff Robert Cook. Sheriff Cook found out that he had
cancer shortly after taking office. He was sick for several months before he died. Haynes served as acting sheriff during the time that Sheriff Cook was not able to perform the job of sheriff and again after his death until a sheriff could be appointed.
For many of the years there was very little in the way of training in law
enforcement before the sheriff took office. Some had served as a deputy sheriff for another sheriff and had some experience. Many of those that were elected were tavern owners, farmers, or ran a business of some kind. It was not until the mid 1900’s that training for the office of sheriff was required. The standards for being sheriff have risen over the years. Today, a candidate for sheriff must have training and already be active as a law enforcement officer to run for this office.
For many years a sheriff was limited to two terms in office. A term was for 2 years. Many served either two or four years as sheriff. It was not until the mid 1930’s, when Sheriff Harry Totten was sheriff, that the laws were changed. Totten served a total of six years as sheriff. Sheriff Forest Warden was the first man to be able to serve two full four-year terms. He served as sheriff for eight years.
In the first years, the sheriff handled the office either alone or with one deputy. It was not until after the highway system greatly increased the number of people passing through the county that the number of deputies was increased. Sheriff Wilson was the first one to have three deputies. During Sheriff Andrew Beros’ term as sheriff, the number of deputies finally exceeded three or four officers. It was also during Sheriff Beros’ term in office that a detective bureau and a juvenile bureau were formed.
It is the mission of the Guernsey County Sheriff’s Office to enforce the laws of the State of Ohio, to deter and detect offenses against the public, in the most efficient and cost effective manner.
