USA > Indiana > St Joseph County > A history of St. Joseph County, Indiana, Volume 1 > Part 30
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Portage township, as laid out by the board of justices, extended east from the former German township to within three miles of the present eastern boundary of the county. The three mile strip now on the east side of St. Joseph county was then a part of Elkhart county. Lakeville, Woodland, Wyatt, Mish- awaka, Notre Dame and South Bend are within the limits of our old Portage township. Bremen, Marshall county, is within the same limits. Osceola was in what is now Elkhart county.
It is to be noted that the names of German and Portage townships, with parts of their respective territories, have been retained by this county. No part of Michigan township however, was at any time within the present limits of the county ; and only a small part of Deschemin township. These last names have
gone from us with the territory to which they were attached. Michigan township, in La Porte county, is a part of the original Michi- gan township of St. Joseph county; and has retained the name from the time when it was first given by our board of justices. The city of Michigan City is within the same township.
V. THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS.
Sec. 1 .- ACT OF ORGANIZATION .- There is no record of any action taken by our first and only board of justices after their fourth meeting, held November 25, 1830. By an act approved January 19, 1831,ª the general as- sembly changed the law regulating the trans- action of county business, substituting a board of commissioners for the board of justices and introducing many other important provi- sions. The act is undoubtedly one of the wis- est ever passed by our legislature, and consti- tutes a most comprehensive and simple code of government for the counties of the state. The law then passed has been modified in several particulars since its first enactment ; but the main principles, and even much of the language, remains unchanged. The act also illustrates the early history of county govern- ment in our state ; and while many of its pro- visions have since been revised or amended, yet it merits a place in this work as a histori- cal document of the highest interest. It is therefore here given in full :
"An act to regulate the mode of doing County Business in the several Counties in this State.
"Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Indiana, That there shall be and hereby is organized in each county in this state, a board of commissioners for transacting county business, to consist of three qualified electors, any two of whom shall be competent to do business, to be elected by the qualified electors of the several counties respectively, on the first Monday in August next, as general elections are conducted. Pro- vided, however, In voting for commissioners,
a. Revised Statutes, 1831, p. 129. .
a. See map: "Territory of Michigan, by John Farmer, 1835."
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
the ticket shall always show which is voted for, for first, second or third district, and should there be two or more candidates in any one distriet, the person having the highest number of votes, shall be elected for such dis- trict.
"Sec. 2. At the first election in pursuance of this act, the person having the highest number of votes shall serve three years; the person having the next highest number of votes shall serve two years, and the person having the next highest number of votes shall serve one year; and thereafter annually, one commissioner shall be elected who shall serve three years, and each commissioner elected according to the provisions of this act, shall continue in office until his successor is elected and qualified; but if two or more persons shall have an equal number of votes as above, their grade shall be determined by lot by the clerk, in the presence and under the direction of the returning officers.
"Sec. 3. Each person eleeted as a com- missioner, shall, on receiving a certificate of his election, take the oath or affirmation re- quired by the constitution of this state, before some person legally authorized to administer the same; which oath or affirmation, being certified on the back of such certificate, under the hand and seal of the person administering the same, shall be sufficient authority for such commissioner to take his seat with, and act as a member of the board, during the time for which he was elected.
"Sec. 4. The commissioners thus elected and qualified, shall be considered a body cor- porate and politic, by and under the name and style of the board of commissioners of the county of ., and as such by and under such name and style, may sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, defend and be defended, answer and be answered unto, in any court either of law or equity, and do and transact all business on behalf of their respective counties, that may be assigned them from time to time by law: and in all cases where their respective counties may
have been injured, or may hereafter be in- jured, in their goods, chattels, lands, tene- ment, rights, credits, effects or contracts; such commissioners shall and may, by and under their corporate name and style, with- out setting out their individual names, bring any suit or suits, action or actions, either in law or equity, which may be best calculated to obtain redress for any such injury, in the same way or manner that private individuals might or could do, and may in like way and manner, by and under their corporate name and style, be sued, by any person or persons having any manner of claims against such county.
"Sec. 5. The board of commissioners shall meet at the court house, in each and every county, for the purpose aforesaid, or at the usual place of holding the circuit court in such county, on the first Mondays in January, March, May, September, and November, in each and every year, and may sit three days at each term, if the business of the county shall require it: Provided, however, if the circuit court shall meet on any of the before mentioned days, the commissioners shall meet on the Monday preceding.
"Sec. 6. The clerk of the circuit court shall, by virtue of his office, attend the meet- ing of the board of commissioners, and keep a record of their proceedings, and do such other business as he shall be required by law to do ; and the sheriff of the county shall also, by himself or deputy, attend said board and exe- cute their orders.ª
a. The duties of the sheriff as fixed by this sec- tion remain substantially unchanged; he con- tinues to be the executive officer of the board, and executes its orders as he does those of the Circuit Court.
The duties here assigned to the clerk of the Circuit Court have, however, since the year 1841. been performed by the County Auditor. By an act approved February 12, 1841, the office of County Auditor was created. By section eight of that act it was provided that the auditor, by vir- tue of his office, should be "clerk to the board of County Commissioners." By section fifty-three the clerk was required to turn over to the auditor all books, papers, etc., relative to county busi- ness; and by section fifty-four all the duties of clerks in relation to county affairs were required to be performed by the auditor. The auditor is, in effect, the County Clerk; while the clerk of the Circuit Court performs the duties of a court of- ficer only. See Acts 1841, pp. 10-24, R. S. 1843, p. 189.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
"Where money has been advanced by any clerk, or other county officer, for the use and benefit of his county, pursuant to the requisi- tions of law. the board doing county business shall order such money, so advanced, to be first paid; and where there is any judgment or judgments against any county in this state, the board may in their discretion order when and in what manner such judgment or judg- ments, shall be discharged, not inconsistent with the constitution of this state or of the United States. any law to the contrary not- withstanding. And when any county shall owe the commissioners for locating any seat of justice therein, such claims shall be preferred to any other against said county : and the col- lector shall receive the said orders for com- missioners' wages, and shall pay the same out of the first monies that shall come to his hands. after such orders shall be presented to him, and the said orders accepted shall be a sufficient voucher in the hands of such col- lector for any claims the county may have against him, to their full amount.
"Sec. 8. When two only of the members shall be present at the meeting of the board. and a division shall take place on any ques- tion, it shall be continued until the next meet- ing. before it shall be finally determined. When any vacancy shall happen in the office of commissioner. the circuit court of the county, or the two associate justices in vaca- tion, shall appoint a suitable person or per- sons to fill such vacancy until the next annual election of commissioners. when such vacancy shall be filled by an election by the electors of the county.
"Sec. 9. It shall be the duty of the board of commissioners at their May session, in each year, to receive and inspect the listers' books, and levy a county tax according to law, and cause their clerk to make out a duplicate for collection accordingly.
"Sec. 10. The commissioners of each county respectively, shall have and use a com- mon seal, for the purpose of sealing their pro- ceedings : and copies of the same, when signed
and sealed by the said commissioners, and attested by their clerk, shall be good evidence of such proceedings, on the trial of any cause, in any of the courts of this state. The com- missioners aforesaid, at their session in November, or when the circuit term prevents their meeting in November, then at their first meeting thereafter, in every year, shall make a fair and accurate statement of the receipts and expenditures of the preceding year, and have the same set up at the court house door, and at two other public places in their county respectively, and published in some news- paper in their county. if there be any : and if the said commissioners, or either of them, after accepting their appointment. shall neglect or refuse to do his or their duty, in office. he or they so offending, shall, on con- viction by indictment before the circuit court of the proper county, be fined in any sum not exceeding one hundred dollars.
"Sec. 11. And it is hereby made the duty of the present boards doing the business of the several counties, to meet on the first Mon- day of May, eighteen hundred and thirty-one, and lay their respective counties off into three equal commissioner's districts, numbered in numerical order, one, two, and three; and one commissioner shall be elected in each of said districts, by a vote of the whole county; and said districts when so laid off, may be altered once in every three years thereafter, if justice require it, and not oftener: Provided, how- ever, that nothing in this act shall be so con- strued as to affect the term of office of any commissioner heretofore elected. But when a vacancy shall occur in any board of commis- sioners. now in existence, the same shall be supplied by a person to be elected from one of such districts, in numerical order.
"Sec. 12. That all the duties heretofore required of the boards doing county business, in the several counties in this state, and not included or otherwise directed in this act, be and the same is hereby made the duty of said commissioners, to do and perform, in the same manner as though it were named in this act.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
"Sec. 13. The commissioners so elected and qualified, shall each receive two dollars per day, for each and every day that they may necessarily be employed in transacting the county business; and said board of com- missioners, when organized, shall possess the powers and authority heretofore given to the county board of justices.
"Sec. 14. All suits, pleas, plaints, prosecu- tions, and proceedings, which may be pending in any court, to be tried for or against any board of justices, previous to the taking effect of this aet, shall be prosecuted to final judgment and execution, in the same name and manner, as the same might have been done, had this law not been passed; and all contracts either written or verbal, made by such board of justices, previous to the taking effect of this act, shall remain valid in law and equity, and suit may be thereupon brought, in the same way and manner as the same might have been, had this act not have been passed, with this difference, that the cor- porate name of the board of commissioners shall be used, instead of the name of the board of justices.
"Sec. 15. It shall be the duty of the clerks of the several boards doing county business, to keep fair books, wherein shall be kept the accounts of the county, to attest all orders issued by the board for the payment of money, and enter the same in numerical order, in a book to be kept for that purpose; and shall copy into their said books the reports of the treasurer of the receipts and disburse- ments of their respective counties, and when- ever the duplicate shall be put into the hands of the collector, it shall be the duty of said clerks to send a statement of the sum where- with such collector stands charged, to the county treasurer.
"Sec. 16. When any person has an attested county order in his name, of a larger amount than his county tax. and is desirons to appro- priate a part of such order to the payment of such tax, he is hereby authorized to apply to the clerk of the board doing county business,
whose duty it shall be to give to the holder of such order, and in exchange therefor, two or more attested county orders, making together the same amount with the original order, which shall thereupon be cancelled ; and such clerk shall insert in every such order, that the same with others, were so given in exchange to for such original order, together with the number and amount of such original order; one of which orders shall be for the amount of his tax, and shall appear on its face to be intended for the payment thereof.
"Sec. 17. Whenever any person shall ex- hibit any claim against any county, for serv- ices rendered, for which the fund arising from the sale of lots, or otherwise, at the county seat, is specially appropriated, and those funds have been fully expended, it shall be the duty of the board doing county busi- ness, to give such claimant an order on the county treasury, for such sum as may be due to such claimant, to be paid out of any monies not otherwise appropriated.
"Sec. 18. Every collector of county taxes is hereby required to receive any regularly attested county order, made by the board doing county business, when the same may be tendered to him by any person in payment of such person's taxes, due such county.
"Sec. 19. No collector, or other person doing county business, shall. either directly or indirectly, purchase or receive in payment, exchange, or in any way whatever, any de- mand against his county, or any county order for a claim allowed by the board doing county business, at any time during the period for which he may be elected, for a less amount than that expressed on the face of such order or demand against the county : and every per- son elected, or appointed to do county busi- ness, shall, before entering on the duties of his office, take an oath not to violate the pro- visions of this section: and any collector or other person doing county business, offending against the provisions of this section, on con- viction thereof upon indictment or present-
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
ment, shall be fined for every sueh offense, in any sum not exceeding five hundred dollars. "Sec. 20. That the qualified voters resid- ing within the several townships of the sev- eral counties of this state, shall meet together at the usual places of holding general town- ship elections, on the first Monday in April next: and annually on the first Monday in April thereafter, for the purpose of electing as many constables in each township as there are justices of the peace within the same, and shall at the same time elect one inspector of elections for each township, two fence view- ers, two overseers of the poor, and as many supervisors of highways as there are now or may hereafter be allotted to the respective townships by the proper board of commission- ers; and in all eases of failure on the part of the qualified voters, to elect any such town- ship officers, it shall be the duty of the board of commissioners, at the next session after the time such election should have been held, to appoint such officers, to remain in office until the time for the next election. Nothing in this act shall be so construed as to affect or repeal the laws now in foree, regulating the manner of doing business, in the counties of Dearborn and Switzerland, except as to the election of township supervisor.
"See. 21. The above named township officers shall possess the same qualifieations, and perform the same duties, as are required of such officers by the laws now in foree; the said township elections to be held and con- dueted in the same manner that general and township elections are now held and con- ducted, and the constables shall give such bond and security, for the performance of their duty. as is now required by law.
"See. 22. That the board of commissioners shall, so soon as may be after the first election held under the provisions of this act, divide the several townships within their respeetive counties, into as many highway districts as they may deem necessary; which districts shall be designated and numbered in numeri- cal order, and recorded by the clerk of the
board of commissioners. Where any vacancy shall happen in any of the township officers, the said board of commissioners shall, at their next session, appoint a suitable person or per- sons to fill such vacancy until the next annual election for township officers, when such vacancy shall be filled by an election of the electors of the township.
"See. 23. It shall be the duty of the said inspectors of elections in each township, within three days after such election, to make out and deliver to the clerk of the circuit eourt, a list of the several township officers, whose duty it shall be to make out certificates of the election of the person or persons elected. and the sheriff of said county shall deliver the same to the township officers so eleeted.
"See. 24. The circuit courts in counties where court houses shall not have been erected, shall be holden for the time being, at the place designated by law or selected by the court; and the boards of commissioners in such counties, shall with all convenient speed, proceed to the completion of a court house, jail and other public buildings for the same, and keep the same in repair.
"Sec. 25. The board of commissioners, in their respective counties, at their first meeting after the passage of this act, or some subse- quent meetings, shall appoint some fit person, as trustee of the public seminary of their respective counties, who, on acceptance of such appointment, shall take an oath of office, faithfully to discharge the duties of his said office according to law, and also give bond, payable to the state of Indiana, with two sufficient securities, in the penal sum of double the amount as near as may be, of the funds of the county seminary, conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties of his office, and for paying over all monies, and de- livering over all books, bonds, and papers, that may be in his hands as trustee, to his sueees- sor in office, when his term of service shall have expired agreeably to law; which bond shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
proper county, and shall not be void on one recovery, but may be put in suit from time to time, as often as occasion may require: Pro- vided, however, That this act shall in no way be construed, so as to interfere with or repeal any existing laws, respecting the county semi- nary of Switzerland county, or any other ' county, for which special laws relative to county seminaries have heretofore been en- acted.
"Sec. 26. The board of commissioners, shall annually allow the clerk and sheriff of their county, such compensation for their extra services, rendered the board of commis- sioners, the circuit court of such county, and the county, in any manner whatever.
"Sec. 27. The board of county commis- sioners in each and every county, shall cause a pound to be erected at or near the several court houses, with a good and sufficient fence, gate, loek and key, where estray horses, mules and asses may be kept, on the first day of the terms of the circuit courts; and the said board shall also appoint some fit person, who shall take charge of said pound, and keep the same in repair, and whose duty it shall also be to attend at the said pound, on the several court days. during the time such estrays are directed to continue there, with the keep of the same; and the said board shall make such reasonable allowance for the ereeting and keeping such pound as to them shall seem proper, to be paid out of the county treasury ; and any person being appointed and under- taking the charge of said pound, and failing to discharge his duties agreeably to the direc- tions herein expressed, shall forfeit and pay to the person injured, the sum of eight dol- lars for every such offense, with costs, recov- erable before any justice of the peace of the county where such offense shall have been committed.
"Sec. 28. From all decisions of the several boards of commissioners, there shall be allowed an appeal to the circuit court, by any person or persons aggrieved ; and the person or persons appealing, shall take the same
within thirty days after such decision, by giving bond with security, to the acceptance of the clerk of such board, conditioned for the faithful prosecution of such appeal and the payment of costs already accrued. and which may thereafter accrue, if the same shall be adjudged by the said court, to be paid by such appellant; and the clerk shall doeket such appeal, with the cases pending in the circuit court, within twenty days after the taking of such appeal."
Sec. 2 .- OUR FIRST COMMISSIONERS .- The first commissioners of St. Joseph county, elected on the first Monday in Angust, 1831, in pursuance of the provisions of seetion one of the foregoing act, were Aaron Stanton, David Miller and Joseph Rohrer. As appears from section eleven of said act, it was made the duty of the board of justices in each county to hold a meeting on the first Monday in May, 1831, "and lay their respective counties off into three equal commissioner's distriets, numbered in numerical order, one, two and three"; and it was further provided in the same section that "one commissioner shall be elected in each of said districts, by a vote of the whole county." It seems, however, that no meeting of the board of justices, such as provided for in the aet, was held; and the county was therefore not divided into com- missioner's districts as contemplated by the legislature. Our first commissioners were consequently not chosen by districts, as re- quired by the act ; and some doubt arose as to the legality of their election. To remedy this irregularity, the legislature passed the follow- ing legalizing statute, approved January 31. 1832:@
"An act legalizing the proceedings of the board of commissioners of St. Joseph county. "WHEREAS, It has been represented to this General Assembly, that there were three jus- tices of the peace elected in the county of St. Joseph, to transact county business, two of whom shortly afterwards removed from said county, and thereby said board became a. Acts 1831, p. 105.
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY.
vacant ; and that agreeably to an act, ap- proved January 19th, 1831, regulating the mode of doing county business in the several counties in this state, there were three com- missioners elected without regard to district- ing, who have since laid the same off in com- missioner districts ; Therefore,
"Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana, That the election of said commissioners, and all proceedings relat- ing thereto in St. Joseph county, and the pro- ceedings of said board, so far as relates to lay- ing off the same in districts, be, and the same are hereby legalized."
VI. EARLY COUNTY RECORDS.
Sec. 1 .- ORGANIZATION OF THE BOARD .- The story of the development of our county during its formative period, the changes in the county boundaries, the location of the county seat, the erection of county buildings, the formation of the different townships, and many other matters connected with the organi- zation of the new county, can be found nowhere so fully and satisfactorily detailed as in the records of the county board during the early years of our history. The chief part of the records of the board of justices has already been given. The first records of the board of county commissioners are of equal historical interest. These records open as fol- lows :
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