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Thayer, Joshua

Elected judge in Echo Springs,[1] Utah Territory[2] in 1870.[1] (December 30, 1805 – February 3, 1885)[2]

Earlier in his life, Joshua Thayer had practiced law and had become a judge on the Western frontier.[2] He had a reputation for being honest in his practice and unprejudiced in his decisions. Unscrupulous politicians and businessmen would sometimes attempt to bribe him to rule on cases in their favor, but Thayer was incorruptible.[1] Due to personal threats and other pressures of his office, he turned to drink.[2] Although never succumbing to bribery or coercion, he eventually fell to ruin through alcohol.[1]

As the Utah Territory was opening up, Thayer found himself settling into a humble, but tolerable, life in the growing mining camp of Echo Springs. He attempted, but was unable, to operate a small law practice in the community,[2] but the years and the alcohol had taken their toll. His books and papers, as well as his practice, had fallen well out of date. Although unable to earn a dependable living in Echo Springs, he was generally well-liked in town.[1]

Most people in Echo Springs knew him to be a good and decent man, but with personal demons. Many of his friends had sympathy for him, which he often mistook for pity. He came to think of himself as a lost cause, but would still make feint attempts at displaying a dignity he did not believe he any longer had.[1]

Thayer made the acquaintance of Bret Maverick one night in 1870. Although Thayer was drunk at the time, Bret immediately recognized the humanity in the man. Some time later, Bret organized Thayer’s friends, one by one, to show their faith in Thayer by voting for him in a local election, even though his name wasn’t even on the ballot. To everyone’s surprise, Thayer won in a landslide.[1]

The responsibility of his new office revitalized Thayer. He felt grateful and accountable to his friends, forced himself to stop drinking, and take on his new responsibilities with the same integrity as he had in the past. The faith the town showed in him allowed him to regain his former dignity, and he held a new and respectable status in Echo Springs.[1]

Thayer's first case after his election was to preside over the case of the Silver Lady Mine vs. the New Hope Mining Company. Representing New Hope, Bret invoked the Apex Law, which gave miners the right to follow their claim wherever it may lead, even if it's under the holdings of an adjacent claim. Based on this outmoded but unrepealed law, Thayer judged in favor of New Hope.

Upon appeal at the territorial seat in Salt Lake City, Thayer's judgement was overturned, but not before Bret had convinced Phineas King to merge his Silver Lady Mine with the New Hope Mining Company.

See: War of the Silver Kings