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History

1845-1847United States Marshall Joe Meek became the first official Law Enforcement Officer in Lewis County. The northern county boundary was reset at the 49th parallel, the present United States/Canadian Border, in 1846.
1847-1848John R. Jackson became the 1st elected Sheriff of Lewis County, which had a population of 275 in the first census. The first taxes in Lewis County were also collected, including a poll tax of fifty cents on each male under the age of sixty.
1848-1849Antonio B. Rabbeson became the 2nd elected Sheriff of Lewis County and Block House was built at Cowlitz Landing for protection from the Indians.
1849-1851Andrew J. Simmons became the 3rd elected Sheriff of Lewis County. The population of Lewis County was 457 in 1850. The first Legislative Session and the first Federal Circuit Court was held in 1951.
1851-1853A.B. Dillenbaugh became the 4th elected Sheriff of Lewis County and Saunders Bottom (Chehalis) was founded. Land was lost to Pacific County in 1851 and to Thurston County in 1852.
1853Joseph P. Manning became the 5th elected Sheriff of Lewis County and the Oregon Territorial Legislature made further border adjustments.
1853-1854J.L. Mitchell became the 6th elected Sheriff of Lewis County. In 1854 the New Washington Territorial Legislature established Skamania, Cowlitz and Wahkiakum Counties, further altering the size of Lewis County. Packwood was also founded in 1854. In 1855 Block House was built for Indian wars near Borst Landing.
1859-1861M.D. Roundtree became the 7th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1861-1863Javan Hall became the 8th elected Sheriff of Lewis County and the county boundaries were further adjusted.
1863-1865John Tullis became the 9th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1865-1869Javen Hall became the 10th Sheriff of Lewis County. The Pacific County Border was adjusted in 1869.
1869-1870Andrew J. Simmons became the 11th elected Sheriff of Lewis County and coal was discovered in the Packwood area in 1869.
1870-1873L.L. Dubeau became the 12th elected Sheriff of Lewis County. In 1872 the county seat was moved from Claquato to Chehalis, Centerville (Centralia) was founded and the railroad came through Columbia River to Puget Sound.
1873-1875John L. Newland became the 13th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1875-1877A.F. Tullis became the 14th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1877-1881H.C. Shorey became the 15th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1881-1883J.T. Shelton became the 16th elected Sheriff of Lewis County and in 1883 Chehalis was incorporated.
1883-1885George Gregg became the 17th elected Sheriff of Lewis County. Centerville was renamed to Centralia.
1885-1889S.H. Claughton became the 18th elected Sheriff of Lewis County. In 1888 a land adjustment was made with Grays Harbor County and Washington became a state in 1889.
1889-1891F.A. Degler became the 19th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1891-1894J.W. Barnett became the 20th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1894-1899Ed F. Carpenter became the 21st elected Sheriff of Lewis County after being a Deputy Sheriff from 1890-1894.
1899-1905Ed Deggler became the 22nd elected Sheriff of Lewis County and the Lewis County Jail was established in 1900.
1905-1912Henry Urquhart became the 23rd elected Sheriff of Lewis County and 210 prisoners had been booked into the jail in 1909.
1913-1916Thomas Foster became the 24th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1917-1920John F. Berry became the 25th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1921-1927R.M. Roberts became the 26th elected Sheriff of Lewis County. In 1926 the jail was built in Chehalis.
1927-1930Ed Deggler became the 27th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1931-1938John A. Blankenship became the 28th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1939-1942James D. Compton became the 29th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1943-1946John A. Blankenship became the 30th elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1947-1954Frank H. Thayer became the 31st elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1955-1958A. Earl Hilton became the 32nd elected Sheriff of Lewis County.
1959-1966O.R. Amondson became the 33rd elected Sheriff of Lewis County. Radar, Breathalyzer and 3-way radio introduced in the early 1960's.
1966-1967W.L. Murry served as interim appointed Sheriff from December 1966 to January 1967.
1967-1986William H. Wiester became the 34th elected Sheriff of Lewis County. New rules of investigation and court reflect changes in law enforcement. Civil Rights was now a National Issue. A new Sheriff's Office was constructed in 1977. A new Jail was constructed in 1985 with a staff of twenty-four and four thousand prisoners housed a year.
1987-1994William A. Logan became the 35th elected Sheriff of Lewis County after being a Lewis County Deputy Sheriff from 1963-1986.
1995-2005John P. McCroskey became the 36th elected Sheriff of Lewis County after being a Lewis County Deputy Sheriff since 1976. A new Sheriff's Office was constructed in 2001.
2005-PresentSteve Mansfield joined the Sheriff’s Office in 1984 as a Deputy and worked his way through the ranks on merit and promotion to Lieutenant. In February 2005, Sheriff Mansfield was appointed by the Board of County Commissioners to fill a vacated term for Sheriff. Sheriff Mansfield’s leadership, vision, and emphasis on building community partnerships were the reasons he was selected. He then ran unopposed and was elected the 37th Sheriff of Lewis County in November 2005.

Sheriff Mansfield has brought experience and leadership to the Sheriff’s Office that includes a set of ethical values, a community vision, mission and strategic plan. His mission is to ensure that each member of the Sheriff’s Office makes a positive difference to members of the community by seeking and finding ways to affirmatively promote, preserve and deliver a feeling of safety, security and quality service. His philosophy includes providing each member of the Sheriff’s Office with a “place to stand,” a “place to go,” and a “way to get to where we need to be.”

He has a tough, no-nonsense approach to delivering a professional law enforcement service to the community that is guided by honesty and fairness. His vision incorporates a strong emphasis to make Lewis County a very uncomfortable place for people who break the law. One of the guiding values in his administration is that the Sheriff’s Office “will treat people right because of who we are, not because of who they are.”

Sheriff Mansfield is committed to providing the necessary leadership and vision to ensure the Sheriff’s Office is a progressive leader and trusted community partner in helping to make Lewis County a safe and secure place to live, work and go to school.