T-L File Photo Judge Eric Costine, left, posed with his father, John O. Costine, as their family law firm marked 100 years in 2020. The elder Costine died Thursday at age 100.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — John O. Costine, Ohio’s longest continuously practicing attorney, died Thursday evening at age 100.

Costine celebrated his 100th birthday on Oct. 16 and spent more than 70 years not only as a practicing lawyer but also as a staple of the St. Clairsville community.

“I’ve always told people that if I can have half of the respect that he’s been able to garner from people throughout the years, then I think I’ll be doing great,” his son Eric Costine earlier said upon marking his father’s century of life.

He added that people in the city came to expect to see his father walking to the Belmont County Courthouse with a fedora on his head and papers in his hands.

Born Oct. 16, 1924, John Costine studied at Bethany College before joining the U.S. Navy during World War II in the Pacific Theater. He graduated from Ohio Northern University in 1950 with a law degree, then began working with his father John E. Costine, founder of the Costine Law Firm in St. Clairsville, in 1952. Around the same time, he married his beloved Phyllis, who died in 2021. The couple raised three children, Eric, J. Mark and Melanie.

The fondness he developed while at sea fostered a lifetime love of sailboats and sailing. He taught his wife of 69 years the love of sailing even though she did not swim and had a fear of water.

Eric and Mark followed in their father’s footsteps and with that, the Costine family has provided 104 years of legal services to the St. Clairsville community. Eric is the judge of Belmont County’s Western Division Court, and Mark retired as the county’s juvenile and probate judge.

In light of John Costine’s impact on the community, several local residents who knew him reflected on the man and his legacy Friday.

Kirke’s Ice Cream owner/operator and fellow St. Clairsville Rotary Club member Kirke Porterfield said he knew John for over 50 years because he and Eric went to school together.

“Every Tuesday, he was at Rotary, and he always had stories about being in the Navy during World War II and it was always interesting. He talked about being on different islands and navigating the ship, and just lots of stories,” Porterfield said. “If you wanted to know anything about St. Clairsville, he could go down to Main Street and tell you every business that was there in 1940 or ’50 or whatever, it was really interesting.”

He added that everybody liked Costine, not only as a friend but also as an attorney because he was always fair.

“He was just a great guy to be a friend with and to deal with,” Porterfield said.

Belmont County Commissioner J.P. Dutton said he didn’t know Costine until he became a commissioner and only knew him in a social setting rather than in a professional capacity.

“I didn’t have any actual work interactions but was able to meet both him and his wife, and they were really just a pleasure to be around. He was just a very kind individual. I never left a conversation with him without feeling better about life. He just had that kind of effect on people, I think, at least on me,” Dutton said. “Honestly, he’s one of the most decent individuals I’ve ever met, just a pleasure, a pleasure to be around. He was an example for so many people.”

Rotary Club of St. Clairsville President Anne Haning said Costine joined Rotary 1954, which makes him the club’s longest-serving member.

“It’s sad because I didn’t know him as well as the other members, but he always was such a kind person and a pillar of the club and community,” she said. “There’s a table at our meeting place that everyone refers to as the Costine table because he’s been the head of that table for so long.”

She added that in addition to his longtime commitment to the club, he also received the Paul Harris Fellow Award five times, which is a Rotary International honor given to people who contribute to The Rotary Foundation or demonstrate outstanding community service.

In addition to being a longtime Rotary Club member and lawyer, he also served as treasurer of the Belmont County Fair Board, a past member of St. Clairsville-Richland City Board of Education and as a board member of the Bridgeport Savings and Loan.

John O. Costine is survived by his three children and their spouses, brother Tom and his wife, and numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

Visitation and services in memory of Costine are scheduled for Monday and Tuesday at Toothman Funeral Home in St. Clairsville. He will be buried in the city’s Union Cemetery.