2. Be it therefore enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That it shall not, hereafter, be lawful for any person whatsoever, to erect or build, or cause to be erected or built, in the said town, any wooden chimney; neither shall it be lawful for any person whatsoever after the expiration of three years, after the passing of this act, to make use of any wooden chimney already erected in the said town: And the owners or proprietors of all such wooden chimnies as now are in the said town, shall, before the expiration of the time aforesaid, wholly destroy and disuse the same, or cause them to be pulled down; otherwise it shall be lawful for the sheriff of the said county of Henrico, and he is hereby required to cause all such wooden chimnies to be pulled down and demolished: And in like manner it shall be lawful for the said sheriffs, and they are hereby required to cause to be pulled down and demolished, all other wooden chimnies, which shall be built and erected in the said down, in breach of this act. CHAP. III. An Act, for appointing Trustees for the towns of Richmond and Falmouth. [February, 1752, Ch. 34, 6 Stat. Larg. 281.] 1. WHEREAS the inhabitants of the town of Richmond, in the county of Henrico, have represented to this present General Assem bly, that they labour under great inconveniences, for want of trustees to lay off and regulate the streets, and to settle the bounds of the lots in the said town: 2. Be it therefore enacted, by the Lieutenant Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That from and after the passing of this act, the honourable Peter Randolph, Esq. William Byrd, Esq. William Randolph, Bowler Cocke, the younger, Richard Randolph, Thomas Atchison, Samuel Gleadowe, Samuel DuVal, and John Pleasants, Gentlemen, be constituted and appointed trustees for the said town; and they, or any five or more of them, are hereby authorised and impowered, from time to time, and at all times hereafter, to lay off and regulate the streets of the said town, and to settle and determine all disputes concerning the bounds of the lots of the said town, and to settle and establish such rules and orders, for the more regular and orderly building of the houses in the said town, as to them shall seem best and most convenient. 3. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That in case of the death, removal out of the country, or other legal disability of any one or more of the trustees before named, it shall and may be lawful for the surviving or remaining trustees, from time to time, to elect and choose so many other persons, in the room of those so dead or removed, as shall make up the number of nine, which trustees so chosen shall be, to all intents and purposes, vested with the same power as any other in this act particularly nominated and appointed. CHAP. IV. An Act, for establishing towns at Rocky Ridge, Gloucester court-house, and Layton's warehouse, and for other purposes therein mentioned. [November, 1769, Ch. 60, 8 Stat. Lar. 421.] 2. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the said piece or parcel of land, at Shoccoes aforesaid, on the north side of the falls of James river, in the county of Henrico aforesaid, be added to and made part of the said town of Richmond; and that the freeholders and inhabitants thereof shall be intitled to and enjoy all the rights and privileges granted to and enjoyed by the freeholders and inhabitants of the town of Richmond, and be subjected to the same rules and restrictions. 5. And whereas there are five tenements in the town of Manchester, and six adjoining the said town of Richmond, which are included in the surveys of the said towns; and are part of the same, which are vacant lands, and were allotted to sundry tenements known by the names of Lyle's, Buchanan's, Stuart's, Gun's, and Todd's, in the town of Manchester, and M'Pherson's, Coutt's, Ross's, James Buchanan's, M'Dowell's, and Younghusband's, adjoining to the town of Richmond, and it may be of advantage to the proprietors of the said tenements to lay off the same into half acres: Be it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That if, at any time hereafter, the proprietors of the said tenements shall lay off the said vacant tenements into lots and streets, agreeable to the other streets and lots in the said towns, in manner before directed, in that case the owner or owners of such half acre lots shall be intitled to the same privileges, and subject to the same rules and regulations, as the other freeholders of the said towns are and shall be. CHAP. V. An Act, to establish and enlarge the power of the trustees of the town of Richmond, in the county of Henrico, and for other purposes. [March, 1773, Ch. 6, 8 Stat. Lar. 655.] 1. WHEREAS it hath been represented to this present General Assembly, by the inhabitants of the town of Richmond, in the county of Henrico, that only three of the trustees appointed by act of Assembly for the said town are now living, that the legality of the election of the other trustees hath been questioned, and that it is necessary to establish and enlarge the power of the trustees of the said town: Be it enacted, by the Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That from and after the passing of this act, the honourable William Byrd, Esquire, Richard Randolph, Samuel Du-Val, Richard Adams, Robert Brown, George Donald, Turner Southall, Patrick Coutts, Archibald Bryce, William Randolph, and James Buchanan, Gentlemen, be and they and every of them are hereby constituted directors and trustees for building, carrying on, and maintaining said town; and they, or any six of them, shall have power to meet as often as they shall think necessary for appointing a public quay, and such places upon the river for public landings as they shall think most convenient, and if the same shall be necessary, shall direct the making of wharfs and cranes at such public landings for the public use. 2. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the said directors shall have full power and authority to establish such rules and orders for the more regular placing the said houses as to them shall seem fit from time to time; and if the inhabitants of the said town shall fail to obey and pursue the rules and orders of the said directors in repairing and amending the streets, landings, and wharfs, they shall be liable to the same penalties as are inflicted for not repairing the highways is this colony. 3. And for continuing the succession of the said trustees and directors, Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That in case of the death of any of the said directors, or their removal, or refusal to act, the surviving or other directors, or the major part of them, shall assemble, and are hereby impowered, from time to time, by instrument in writing, under their respective hands and seals, to nominate some other person or persons, being a freeholder of the said tɔwn, in the place of him or them so dying, removing, or refusing, which new director or directors, so nominated and appointed, shall, from thenceforth, have the like power and authority in all things relating to the matters herein contained, as if he or they had been expressly named and appointed in and by this act; and every such instrument and nomination shall, from time to time, be entered and registered in the books of the said directors. 4. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, hat it shall not be lawful for any person whatsoever to erect or build, or cause to be erected or built, in the said town, any wooden chimney; and if any person shall presume to erect or build any wooden chimney, contrary to the directions of this act, it shall and may be lawful for the sheriff of the said county, and he is hereby required to cause such chimney to be pulled down and demolished. 5. And whereas it is represented to this Assembly that great numbers of hogs and goats are raised and suffered to go at large in the said town of Richmond, to the great prejudice of the inhabitants thercof: Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the twentieth day of January next, it shall not be lawful for any person or persons, inhabiting within the said town, to raise or keep any swine or goats within the limits thereof, and suffer the same to go at large therein; and if any swine or goats so raised or kept shall be found going or running at large within the said town, it shall and may be lawful for any person to kill and destroy the same. Provided always, that such person shall not convert any such swine or goat to his or her own use, but shall leave the same in the place where it shall be killed, and give immediate notice to the owner thereof, if known, and if not, then such person shall immediately inform the next Justice of the Peace thereof, who may order the same to the use of any poor person or persons, he shall think fit. 6. And whereas so much of the act of Assembly, made in the fifteenth year of the reign of his late majesty king George the second, intituled, An act for establishing the town of Richmond, in the county of Henrico, and allowing fairs to be kept therein, as relates to holding fairs, is long since expired, and the same, if revived, may be a means of increasing the trade of the said town: Be it therefore further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That so much of the said recited act as relates to the holding fairs in the said town of Richmond, shall be and is hereby revived, and shall continue and be in force, from and after the passing of this act, for and during the term of seven years, and from thence to the end of the next session of Assembly. CHAP. VI. An Act, for the removal of the Seat of Government. 1. WHEREAS great numbers of the inhabitants of this Commonwealth must frequently and of necessity resort to the seat of government where general assemblies are convened, superior courts are held, and the Governour and Council usually transact the executive business of government; and the equal rights of all the said. inhabitants require that such seat of government should be as nearly central to all as may be, having regard only to navigation, the benefits of which are necessary for promoting the growth of a town sufficient for the accommodation of those who resort thereto, and able to aid the operations of government: And it has been also found inconvenient in the course of the present war, where scats of government have been so situated as to be exposed to the insults and injuries of the publick enemy, which dangers may be avoided and equal justice done to all the citizens of this Commonwealth by removing the seat of government to the town of Richmond, in the county of Henrico, which is more safe and central than any other town situated on navigable water: Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly, That six whole squares of ground surrounded each of them by four streets, and containing all the ground within such streets, situate in the said town of Richmond, and on an open and airy part thereof, shall be appropriated to the use and purpose of publick buildings: On one of the said squares shall be erected, one house for the use of the General Assembly, to be called the Capitol, which said Capitol shall contain two apartments for the use of the Senate and their clerk, two others for the use of the House of Delegates and their clerk, and others for the purposes of conferences, committees and a lobby, of such forms and dimensions as shall be adopted to their respective purposes: On one other of the said squares shall be erected, another building to be called the Halls of Justice, which shall contain two apartments for the use of the Court of Appeals and its clerk, two others for the use of the High Court of Chancery and its clerk, two others for the use of the General Court and its clerk, two others for the use of the Court of Admiralty and its clerk, and others for the uses of grand and petty juries, of such forms and dimensions as shall be adopted to their respective purposes; and on the same square last mentioned shall be built a publick jail: One other of the said squares shall be reserved for the purpose of building thereon hereafter, a house for the several executive boards and offices to be held in: Two others with the intervening street, shall be reserved for the use of the Governour of this Commonwealth for the time being, and the remaining square shall be appropriated to the use of the publick market. The said houses shall be built in a handsome manner with walls of brick or stone, and porticoes where the same may be convenient or ornamental, and with pillars and pavements of stone. There shall be appointed by joint ballot of both houses of assembly, five persons to be called the directors of the publick buildings, who, or any three of them shall have power to make choice of such squares of ground, situate as before directed, as shall be most proper and convenient for the said publick purposes, to agree on plans for the said buildings, to employ proper workmen to erect the same, to superintend them, to procure necessary materials. by themselves or by the board of trade, and to draw on the treasurer of this Commonwealth, from time to time, for such sums of money as shall be wanting; the plans and estimates of which shall be submitted to the two houses of assembly whe soever called, for by their joint vote, and shall be subjected to their controul. And that reasonable satisfaction may be paid and allowed for all such lots of ground as by virtue of this act may be taken and appropriated to the uses aforesaid, the clerk of the county of Henrico, is hereby empowered and required on requisition from the said directors, to issue a writ in nature of a writ of ad quod damnum, to be directed to the sheriff of the said county, commanding him to summon and empannel twelve able discreet freeholders of the vicinage no ways concerned in interest in the said lots of land, nor related to the owners or proprietors thereof, to meet on the said lots on a certain day to be named in the said writ, not under five nor more than ten days from the date thereof, of which notice shall be given by the sheriff to the proprietors and tenants of the said lots of land if they be to be found within the county, and if not, then to their agents therein if any they have, which freeholde taking nothing on pain of being discharged from the inquest and im |