Cockerill House
a.k.a. Judge Stephenson House
115 E. Main St., West Union, OHThe Cockerill Home was constructed in 1850 by Joseph Randolph Cockerill (1818-1875). Cockerill served in the Ohio House of Representatives in 1852-53 and 1868-72. He was commissioned by Ohio Governor Todd in 1861 as Colonel of the 70th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment. He displayed gallantry during the Battle of Shiloh and was recommended by Generals Grant and Sherman for promotion to Brigadier General. He was not given this promotion by Congress until after his resignation from the service, Cockerill's second son, Joseph Daniel Albert Cockeriu (1845-1896) was better known as John A. Cockerill and lived in this home from 1850 to 1868.
After serving as a drummer in the Civil War in 1862, John started a career in journalism setting type for the West Union newspaper, Scion. In 1863 he became part-owner and editor of The Democratic Union also in West Union. He served as Journal Clerk in the Ohio Legislature from 1868 to 1871 and was Colonel on the staff of Governor William Allen in 1872. John then edited newspapers in Hamilton and Dayton, Ohio before accepting a reportorial position at the Cincinnati Enquirer. He later became editor of the Enquirer as well as co-founder/editor of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, co-founder/editor of the Washington Post and editor of the Baltimore Gazette, New York World, New York Morning Advertiser, and the New York Commercial Advertiser. He was a special war correspondent for the New York Herold at the time of his death, John A. Cockerill is known as the "Father of the New Journalism and was a pioneer in the use of photographs in daily newspapers. Cockerill is also credited as being one of the first syndicated newspaper columnists and originated the Sunday "magazine" section of daily newspapers. He was elected president of the New York Press Club for four successive terms and was presented "The Order of the Sacred Treasure" by the Emperor of Japan for having undertaken a mission of detente between that nation and Korea.
The Cockerill Home was later occupied by Will P. Stephenson, Judge of the Common Pleas Court of Adams County from 1915 to 1932. Stephenson was appointed to the Ohio Supreme Court in 1932 by Governor George A. White.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.