HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1986-07-16, Page 40Page) a0
Local government of township dates to 1836
E. STANLEY SNYDER.
The local government of Colborne
Township' might be (4: vided into two
distinct eras. The first was from 183 to
1850, when the governing body consisted of
two Commissioners, the only record of
which is found in Belden's Atlas of 1879,
where we learn that at a meeting held in
the Crown and Anchor Hotel on the 4th of
January, 183G, with Daniel Ligars as chair -
Man, James McLean was elected Clerk,
and out of a list of six nominees Mr.
Michael Fisher was elected Commissioner
for the ,Eastern Division while Mr. Henry
Wildman: was elected for. the Western'
Division: , David Clark was elected
assessor and John Paterson. tax -collector.
Anongresolutions. adopted at, this meeting
was one `to the effect that all stray dogs
shall be liable to be impounded and shall
be treated as stray, cattle,.
This , system of ,government continued
until 1850, when the Municipal Act came.
into force, But from 1842 and act of Parlia-
ment for the purpose,, of better internal
government decreed that County Govern-
ment should be set up to replace the Board.
of Magistrates who had ruled previously...
These were called District Represen-
tatives and Mr. John Galt was the. first
District Councillor.
FIRST TOWNSHIP COUNCIL
At 1850` ►e pass into the second era, as
with the enactment of the Minicipal Act
Towhship . councils. were • required, con-
sisting of reeve, deputy reeve, and three
councillors, except where the population of
the municipality did not warrant a deputy
reeve, al which case four councillors were
.Council 1986 - Grant MacPhee, Doug Stoll, Ross Painnabecker,, Ken Grigg and
John Wain. The front row includes - Bill Vanstone, Russ Kernighan and clerk,
Hudson Milburn.
to be elected. Some townships and some
towns had two deputy reeves, The first
Council, elected in 1850 after a nomination
held in'the school on .Lot 5, Concession 8,
consisted' of Benjamin Miller., John An..
a
nand, Michael 'Fisher, John Morris and
William Young. The Council selected John
Annand'as Reeve, It' was some time later
that, the reeve was elected by pdpular•vote
of the ratepayers,
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William Young, who followed Mr. An-
nand in 1858 and was the first reeve to.
represent the Township at the meetings of
the County Council, was reeve for twenty-
five years in all. Be also presented a bell to
each school section formed during his
term of office, and gave prises at the com-
petitive examinations held yearly for the
school children of the whole Township.
In 1897 a return was made to the system
of District Representatives, with two men
elected for three municipalities for a two-
year term. This was continued for ten
years, and not proving an improvement a
return to the old system Mowed. During
this term councils were elected as before,
but their duties were confined to local ad-
ministration. In 1908 County Councils
whose members were the Reeves and
Deputy Reeves, of Townships were again
established and from the time to the pre-
sent Colborne, no longer eligible for a
Deputy Reeve; has been, governed by a
Reeve . and four .Councillors, with • the
Reeve being a member of the County
Council. •
STATUTE LABOR
In the early life of the Township as well
as at present the maintenance of roads
formed the greater part of the responsibili-
ty of the Council Board, though the type of
road required and the method of care have
changed greatly. .From the Township
records we learn that as far back as 1871
statute labor, with pathmasters appointed
by Council as supervisors of the work
done, was the method in effect for the care •
of roads. By this system, a ratepayer was
Turn to page 21
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Colborne Township and its:
people are 'truly blue ribbon
winners„ Hard work and fine
people have made the Township
of Colborne first.n its class.
for the last 150 years. Here's to many..
more, to come. •
M1
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DelmarSproul and 1'Wlike Miller
Insurance Brokergfora
West Wawanosh Mutual Insurance
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Rid. 3 Auburn
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