MILEAGE OF CLINTON

PASSED 1840.

Resolved by this Assembly, That the mileage from the town of Clinton in Middlesex county, be, to New Haven, twenty-five miles.

INCORPORATING THE TOWN OF CROMWELL.

PASSED 1851.

Upon the petition of Elisha Treat and others, inhabitants of Middletown, in the county of Middlesex, praying for reasons therein set forth, that said town of Middletown be divided, and a new town be incorporated therefrom, as per petition on file will more fully appear:

Resolved by this Assembly, That all that part of the town of Middletown lying northerly and easterly of a line beginning at high-water mark on the east bank of the Connecticut river, at a point due east of the Sebethe or Little river, where said river empties into the Connecticut river, thence directly to the middle of said Sebethe or Little river, at its mouth, and thence following the middle of said river to the point where said river forms the boundary between the towns of Berlin and Middletown, with all the inhabitants residing in that part of Middletown lying northerly and easterly of said line, be and the same is hereby incorporated into a separate town, to be known and called by the name of CROMWELL.

And the inhabitants aforesaid, and their successors forever, residing or belonging within said limits, shall have, retain and enjoy all the rights, powers, privileges and immunities enjoyed by, belonging to or incident to any other town in this state, except only that said town of Cromwell shall have the right of sending one representative only to the general assembly of this state.

The expense of constructing, maintaining and repairing all the bridges crossing said Sebethe or Little river, between said towns of Cromwell and Middletown, including dry bridges and causeys wherever necessary, on either side of said bridges, or either of them, for convenient access thereto, shall be equally borne by said towns of Cromwell and Middletown; and if the Middletown and Berlin turnpike shall ever be discontinued, and the maintenance of the same, with the bridges now belonging to said turnpike, shall devolve on said towns, or either of them, the expense of maintaining the bridge on said turnpike across the said Sebethe or Little river, including necessary dry bridges and causeys on either side thereof, for convenient access thereto, shall be borne equally by the said towns of Cromwell and Middletown.

Said new town shall pay its proportion (according to the grand list of

1850) of all debts, suits and claims now due and accrued against the town of Middletown, or for which said town may hereafter be made liable by force of any claim now existing.

The poor of said town of Middletown who were born within the limits hereby incorporated, and who have not by residence or otherwise gained a settlement elsewhere in this state than within said limits, shall be deemed inhabitants of said town of Cromwell, and shall be maintained accordingly.

And said town of Cromwell shall be liable to maintain all such poor of the town of Middletown as are or may be absent therefrom. Provided, such persons at the time of departure had a legal settlement in that part of the town of Middletown hereby incorporated.

All the property of whatever nature or description, now owned by, due, or belonging to the town of Middletown, or which may hereafter accrue to said town by virtue of any claim, right or title now existing, shall belong to said town of Middletown and said new town of Cromwell, in proportion to their respective lists, according to the grand list of 1850; saving and excepting the public records and other property appertaining to the town clerk's office, which shall be and remain the property of the town of Middletown; and the town deposit fund shall belong to and be divided between said towns of Middletown and Cromwell, in proportion to the number of their respective inhabitants, according to the census of 1850.

Always provided, that if, after the organization of said town of Cromwell, the selectmen of the aforesaid towns do not agree in the division of the paupers or funds and property belonging to said towns on or before the 15th day of October, A. D. 1851, the selectmen of either town may apply to John Markham, Jr. Esq., of Chatham, Romanta Wells, Esq., of Wethersfield, and Norman Porter, Esq., of Berlin; who, or either two of whom, are hereby authorized and empowered to divide said paupers and funds and property, in manner and form aforesaid; which division shall be final and conclusive-the selectmen of both towns aforesaid being first duly notified of the time and place, when and where said division shall be made.

The collectors of the state, town and other taxes in the town of Middletown, are hereby authorized to collect their respective taxes already laid, due, and in their respective rate-books contained, together with such county tax as may hereafter, and before the 31st day of July, A. D. 1851, be laid on the grand list of 1850, in the same manner as though this resolve had not been passed.

Said new town of Cromwell shall belong to, and constitute a part of, the 18th Senatorial district.

The first town meeting of said town of Cromwell shall be holden in the Congregational meeting-house in said town, on the third Wednesday in June, A. D. 1851, at 9 o'clock A. M.; and Elisha Treat, Esq., or, in case of his failure, Dr. Richard Warner, shall be moderator thereof. And said meeting shall be warned by Buckley Edwards, Esq., or, in case of his failure, by Andrew F. Warner, Esq., by setting up a notification of the same on the public sign-post within the limits of said new town, and at such other place or places as either of said persons may deem proper, at least five days before said meeting; and said town of Cromwell shall have

all the powers at said first meeting incident to other towns in this state, and full right to act accordingly; and the officers elected at such first meeting shall hold their offices until others are chosen and sworn in their stead; and this act shall take effect from and after the day of its passage,

WHEREAS, by the resolve passed at the present session of the general assembly, incorporating the town of Cromwell, it was provided that the first town meeting of said town should be held on the third Wednesday of June, 1851, and in consequence of said resolve not having been acted upon by this legislature in time for the approval of His Excellency the Governor, in sufficient season to enable the notice required by said resolve to be given of said town meeting; therefore,

Resolved by this Assembly, That the first town meeting of said town of Cromwell shall be holden at the place specified in said resolve, on the third Wednesday in July, A. D. 1851, at 9 o'clock A. M. And all the provisions contained in said resolve relating to the first town meeting of said town to be held on the third Wednesday in June, 1851, are hereby made applicable to the said town meeting to be held on the third Wednesday in July, 1851.

MILEAGE OF CROMWELL.

PASSED 1852.

Resolved by this Assembly, That the mileage from Cromwell be as follows, viz thirteen miles from Hartford, and twenty-seven miles from New Haven.

ANNEXING A PART OF RIDGEFIELD TO DANBURY.

PASSED 1846.

Upon the petition of Joseph C. Sears and others, showing to this assembly that they occupy a strip of land lying in the town of Ridgefield, in Fairfield county, of triangular shape, commencing in the parish of Ridgebury, in said town of Ridgefield, near the dwelling house of David R. Ferguson, and running northerly to the boundary line between the town of New Fairfield and said town of Ridgefield, of about one and one-quarter miles in width, in the southern or lower part of said strip, and about eighty rods in width, in the northern part thereof, where the same meets said New Fairfield boundary line; that the average distance at which the petitioners reside from the village of Ridge

field, where the business of said town of Ridgefield is principally transacted, and from the town house of said Ridgefield, is about ten miles, and that none of the petitioners reside nearer to said village and town house than eight miles; that the greatest distance of any of the petitioners from the borough of Danbury, where the business of the town of Danbury is transacted, and to the town house of said Danbury, is but about five miles, and that a majority of the petitioners reside within a distance of four miles from said borough, and from said town house of Danbury; that the business of the petitioners lies and is transacted principally with the citizens of said Danbury; and that the relation and connection between the petitioners and said borough of Danbury aforesaid, in which said town house last mentioned is located, are much more intimate than between the petitioners and said village of Ridgefield; that they have little or no business intercourse with said village of Ridgefield; that the facilities for communication with said town of Danbury are very great, owing to good and convenient roads extending from all parts of the district aforesaid in which the petitioners reside, to said borough of Danbury, and that the roads extending to said village of Ridgefield are exceedingly rough and hilly and incapable of improvement except at enormous expense; that they are separated from said village of Ridgefield by a high mountain, which it is necessary for them to ascend and descend in their passage to and from said village of Ridgefield; that some of the petitioners are now in the habit of receiving their letters at the post-office in said borough of Danbury, and that none of the petitioners receive their letters at the postoffice in said village of Ridgefield; that the larger portion of the territory of said town of Ridgefield lies far south of the residence of all the petitioners; and praying to be set off and separated from said town of Ridgefield, and to be annexed to and made part of said town of Danbury. Whereupon, it is

Resolved by this Assembly, That the following described tract of land, to wit, commencing at said Ridgebury parish, in the town of Ridgefield, in the curve of the road running to Dingle Ridge, on the line which separates the state of Connecticut from the state of New York, at a heap of stones on Nehemiah Keeler's land, westerly of Aaron Turner's dwelling house, running thence south 88° east 582 rods, to a heap of stones in the division line between the towns of Danbury and Ridgefield, thence in said line northerly to the south boundary line of New Fairfield, thence westerly in said line to the line of the state of New York, thence southerly in said line to the place of beginning: that is to say,-all the territory of said town of Ridgefield lying north of said line and east of the line of the state of New York, between said south line above particularly described, and said town of New Fairfield; together with all the inhabitants now residing, or which may hereafter reside thereon, be and the same is hereby set off and separated from said town of Ridgefield, and is annexed to and made part of the town of Danbury; and shall have and enjoy all the privileges and immunities of said town of Danbury, in common with the other inhabitants of said Danbury.

The inhabitants so annexed to said town of Danbury, shall pay their proportion (according to the list of 1845) of all claims and debts due and

existing from the town of Ridgefield at the passage of this act. And the poor of the town of Ridgefield, who were born within the territory above described, who have not gained a settlement elsewhere in this state than in said town of Ridgefield, or who have gained a settlement in said town of Ridgefield, within the limits of said annexed territory, by residence or otherwise, shall be deemed inhabitants of said town of Danbury, and shall be maintained accordingly. And said town of Danbury shall be entitled to receive such proportion of the town deposit fund (so called) of said town of Ridgefield, as the number of inhabitants on that portion of territory so annexed to Danbury bears to the population of said town of Ridgefield; said proportion of the population to be fixed and ascertained by the selectmen of said towns of Ridgefield and Danbury, if they can agree thereon, on or before the 1st day of August next. And if they do not agree thereon on or before the 1st day of August next, then Jacob Beers of Newtown, Amzi Rogers of New Fairfield, and Charles Marvin of Wilton, all in said county, shall be and are hereby appointed a committee, to ascertain, fix and establish said proportion of population, and the sum or proportion of said town deposit fund of said town of Ridgefield, which shall be paid over to said town of Danbury by said town of Ridgefield, according to said proportions of population, in the manner herein before directed; and said town of Danbury shall be liable to refund the same, in the same manner that the town of Ridgefield is now liable therefor. The town house in said town of Ridgefield shall belong to the inhabitants of said town of Ridgefield, remaining and residing in said town, after the separation and annexation aforesaid; and the old pound of said Ridgefield, (so called,) in the society of Ridgefield, shall be and remain exclusively the property and estate of said inhabitants of Ridgefield; and the new pound, so called, situated within the territory herein before annexed to said town of Danbury, shall be and remain the property and estate, and shall belong to said town of Danbury.

And said territory so annexed to said town of Danbury, shall be and is hereby made part of and annexed to the Probate District of Danbury.

ANNEXING JOHN SMITH AND OTHERS, OF DERBY, TO THE TOWN OF OXFORD.

PASSED 1844.

Upon the petition of John Smith and others, inhabitants of Derby, in the county of New Haven, praying to be annexed to the town of Oxford, in said county, as per petition on file, dated April, 1843, more fully

appears:

Resolved by this Assembly, That all that part of the said town of Derby, lying within the following described limits, viz: beginning at a heap of stones at the Housatonic river, thence running southerly of the late dwelling house of Timothy Russell, deceased, in a straight line to the center of