TITLE 191. MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS. MUNICIPAL CORPORATION BILL. SUMMARY OF CONTENTS. Chapter I. Organization of municipal corporations, § 1-8. Chapter II. Municipal corporations of the first class, over 100,000, §§ 19-288. Article I. General powers, § 19. II. General provisions relating to officers, §§ 20 29. Chapter III. Municipal corporations of the second class, 30,000-100,000, §§ 300426. Article I. General powers, § 300. II. General provisions relating to officers, §§ 301-307. IV. Executive department, §§ 370-380. V. Judicial department, §§ 390-403. VI. Educational department, §§ 410-426. Chapter IV. Municipal corporations of the third class, 15,000-30,000, §§ 500-591. Article I. General powers, § 500. II. General provisions relating to officers, §§ 501-509. IV. Executive department, §§ 550-553. V. Judicial department, §§ 560-563. VII. Miscellaneous provisions, §§ 590, 591. Gen. Laws.-51 Chapter V. Municipal corporation of the fourth class, 10,000-15,000, §§ 600-719. Article I. General powers, § 600. II. General provisions relating to officers, §§ 601-611. IV. Taxation, §§ 640-666. V. Executive department, §§ 670-681. Chapter VI. Municipal corporations of the fifth class, 3,000-10,000, §§ 750-812. Article I. General powers, § 750. II. General provisions relating to officers, §§ 751-758. IV. Executive department, §§ 786-791. V. School department, §§ 795-805. VI. Judicial department, §§ 806-808. VII. Miscellaneous provisions, §§ 810-813. Chapter VII. Municipal corporations of the sixth class, 3,000, §§ 850-886. Article I. General powers, § 850. II. General provisions relating to officers, §§ 851-857. IV. Executive department, §§ 876-881. V. Judicial department, §§ 882-884. VI. Miscellaneous provisions, §§ 885, 886. An Act to provide for the organization, incorporation, and government of municipal corporations. [Approved March 13, 1883.] CHAPTER I. Organization of Municipal Corporations. Cty or town may incorporate. Section 1. Any portion of a county containing not less than five hundred inhabitants, and not incorporated as a municipal corporation, may become incorporated under the provisions of this act, and when so incorporated, shall have the powers conferred, or that may be hereafter conferred, by law, upon municipal corporations of the class to which the same may belong. Manner of proceeding in organizing a municipal corporation. Sec. 2. A petition shall first be presented to the board of supervisors of such county, signed by at least fifty of the qualified electors of the county, residents within the limits of such proposed corporation, and the affidavit of three qualified electors residing within the proposed limits, filed with the petition, shall be prima facie evidence of the requisite number of signers. The petition shall set forth and particularly describe the proposed boundaries of such corporation, and state the number of inhabitants therein, as nearly as may be, and shall pray that the same may be incorporated under the provisions of this act. Such petition shall be presented at a regular meeting of such board, and shall be published for at least two weeks be fore the time at which the same is to be presented, in some newspaper printed and published in such county, together with a notice stating the time of the meeting at which the same will be presented. When such petition is presented, the board of supervisors shall hear the same, and may adjourn such hearing from time to time, not exceeding two months in all, and on the final hearing, shall make such changes in the proposed boundaries as they may find to be proper and shall establish and define such boundaries, and shall ascertain and determine how many inhabitants reside within such boundaries; provided, that any changes made by said board of supervisors shall not include any territory outside of the boundaries described in such petition. The boundaries so established by the board of supervisors shall be the boundaries of such municipal corporation until by action, authorized by law for the annexation of additional territory to, or the taking of territory from, said municipal corporation, such boundaries shall be changed; provided, whenever it shall appear to the board of supervisors that the boundaries of any munici pal corporation have been incorrectly described, the board shall direct the county surveyor to ascertain and report a description of the boundaries. The board of supervisors shall, at their first regular meeting after the filing of the report of the county surveyor, cause notice to be published in some newspaper published in the county, that the report will be acted upon at the next regular meeting of the board, and at said meeting the board shall ratify the report of the county surveyor, with such modifications as they shall deem necessary, and the boundaries so established shall be the legal boundaries of said municipal corporation. They shall then give notice of an election to be held in such proposed corporation for the purpose of determining whether the same shall become incorporated. Such notice shall particularly describe the boundaries so established, and shall state the name of such proposed corporation, and the number of inhabitants so ascertained to reside therein, and the same shall be published for at least two weeks prior to such election, in a newspaper printed and published within such boundaries, or posted for the same period in at least four public places therein. Such notice shall re quire the voters to cast ballots, which shall con tain the words "For incorporation," or "Against incorporation," or words equivalent thereto, and also the names of persons voted for to fill the va rious elective municipal offices prescribed by law for municipal corporations of the class to which such proposed corporation will belong. [Amend ment, approved March 19, 1889; Stats. 1889, p. 371. In effect immediately.] Election, how conducted. Sec. 3. Such elections shall be conducted in ac cordance with the general election laws of the state, and no person shall be entitled to vote thereat unless he shall be a qualified elector of the county, enrolled upon the great register thereof, and shall have resided within the limits of such proposed corporation for at least sixty days next preceding such election. The board of supervisors shall meet on the Monday next succeeding such election, and proceed to canvass the votes cast thereat; and if, upon such canvass, it appears that the majority of the votes cast are for the incorporation, the board shall, by an order entered upon their minutes, declare such territory duly incorporated as a municipal incorporation of the class to which the same shall belong, under the name and style of the city (or town, as the case may be) of (naming it), and shall declare the person receiving, respectively, the highest number of votes for such several offices to be duly elected to such offices. Said board shall cause a copy of such order, duly certified, to be filed in the office of Secretary of State, and from and after the date of such filing, such incorporation shall be deemed complete, and such officers shall be entitled to enter immediately upon the duties of their respective offices, upon qualifying in accordance with law, and shall hold such offices respectively only until the next general municipal election to be held in such city or town, and until their successors are elected and qualified; and it shall not be necessary in any action, civil or criminal to plead and prove the organization or existence of such corporation, and the courts shall take judicial cognizance thereof without proof. [Amendment approved March 19, 1889; Stats. 1889, p. 371. In effect immediately.] How incorporated city or town may incorporate under this law. Sec. 4. The common council, board of trustees, or other legislative body of any city and county, city, or town, organized or incorporated prior to the first day of January, eighteen hundred and |