Plaque lists county court clerks
By MARY ANN GREIERLISBON - For Clerk of Courts Anthony Dattilio, one name in particular stood out on a new plaque listing the clerks who served Columbiana County - that of Carl Stacey, his late father-in-law, mentor and direct predecessor.
The wound from his loss on June 9 remained fresh on Wednesday as Dattilio brushed away a tear or two while talking about Carl's contributions to the county. He stands as the longest serving Clerk of Courts in the county with 33 years service from 1958 to 1991 when he retired.
The person closest to his record is Dattilio, who was appointed to fill his post in 1991 and has been elected to the position ever since, now serving in his 17th year with number 18 around the corner this fall.
"He was a good role model, a good mentor and I learned a great deal of knowledge from him that I was able to bring forward as Clerk of Courts," Dattilio said. "He'll be deeply missed by everyone."
He called Carl a well-respected officeholder who gave good service to the people of Columbiana County.
"He'll be long remembered in everybody's hearts," he said.
His name is one of 26 etched onto metal plates on the plaque commemorating all the clerks from 1803 through the present day with Dattilio. The years of service are included with each name.
"We've been looking into doing this for a couple of years now," Clerk of Courts Chief Deputy Systems Administrator Tod Mumpire said.
They got the idea from a plaque inside county Auditor Nancy Milliken's office which lists the names of all the Columbiana County auditors from the beginning to the present day. Plans call for the plaque to be mounted on the wall outside the Clerk of Courts Office on the third floor, just below the original courthouse door sign saved from the Clerk of Courts office when it was on the second floor.
"I think it turned out very well," he said.
The plaque was completed by Zeigler's Trophies in Salem. Lisbon resident Mary Davis completed some of the research to track down names of former clerks and their years of service, with some information gleaned from newspaper articles and found at the Lisbon Lepper Library. The plaque includes several empty metal plates, leaving room for future clerks.
Mumpire found some of the recent history interesting, noting that Carl's father, who was also named Carl, was the first member of that family to serve as Clerk of Courts, from 1936 to 1940. He was followed by John Coleman, whose service of 17 years will be passed up by Dattilio this year. He served from 1941 to 1958 before dying in office. His chief deputy, Jack Peterson, was appointed to fill the seat, then Carl won a special election to take the seat in 1958.
Previously, clerks were appointed by the Common Pleas Court judges, then in 1851, the position became an elected position with three-year terms, with the term extended to four years in 1936, according to a brochure from the Ohio Clerk of Courts Association.
The first clerk appointed when the state and the county were formed was Reasin Beall, who served from 1803 to 1813.
Dattilio said they wanted to show the history of the clerks throughout the years, but it also serves as tribute to Carl. He was hoping the plaque would be finished before he passed on. Dattilio served as chief deputy before following in Carl's footsteps.
Dattilio's son, Doug, said his grandfather taught him how to treat people. He recalled him as someone who treated everybody the same, with integrity and honesty, no matter their amount of money or their lot in life.
He spent a lot of time with him over the years fishing in Canada, but he didn't just teach him how to clean a fish - he taught him about life.
"He was just a great human being," Doug said.
Mary Ann Greier can be reached at mgreier@salemnews.net
