HISTORY OF MT. MORRIS GOVERNMENT
From the time when the first settlers built their primitive dwellings within the present limits of Mt. Morris, late in the 1830's until 1848, Mt. Morris was simply a precinct of Ogle County. The first step toward incorporation was made December 28, 1847 when copies of the following notice were posted about the town:
"A meeting of the inhabitants of the town of Mt. Morris will be held at the chapel of said town on Saturday, the 8th day of January (1848), at 2 o’clock for the purpose of determining whether to incorporate said town. (Signed) Many Citizens, Mount Morris, Dec 28, 1847."
In conformity to the notice, a meeting of the white male inhabitants, of lawful age, who had been residents of the Village six months preceding this date, was held. On motion, Daniel Drayton was called to the chair and F.G. Petrie appointed clerk. A vote to decide whether the Village should be incorporated was then taken. Nineteen votes were cast in favor of the measure and none against. The following notice was also posted by Daniel Drayton on the 28th day of December, 1847:
"Notice - A meeting of the inhabitants of Mt. Morris will be held in the chapel of the Rock River Seminary on the 15th day of January, 1848 at 2 o’clock P.M. for the purpose of electing, viva voce, five (residents and freeholders of said town) trustees of the same. Mount Morris, Jan 8, 1848, F.G. Petrie, Clerk."
This meeting was duly held, and the following trustees were chosen: Aaron Marston, Andrew Newcomer, James J. Beatty, Jonathan Knodle, Sr., and William McCune. On the 22nd day of January, 1848, this board, with A.C. Marston as clerk, formulated and passed eight ordinances which form the groundwork of the present Village ordinances. They are quite interesting because they are the first laws passed by the first Board of Trustees. Acting in accordance with the powers vested in Chapter 25, Section 12 of the revised statutes of the State of Illinois, the following ordinances were passed:
1. The boundaries of said corporation shall be as follows: Commencing at a stake set at the south west corner of the land owned by the Rock River Seminary, thence on a line due north one mile, thence west one mile to the place of beginning.
2. The licensing of groceries for the purpose of retailing spiritous or malt liquor within the jurisdiction of the corporation is strictly injurious to the good and well being of the citizens of said corporation.
3. The sale or vending of spiritous or malt liquor is strictly prohibited. Any person found violating said ordinance shall pay a fine not exceeding five dollars for each offense.
4. A permit may be granted from time to time for the sale of spiritous liquor for medical and mechanical purposes, and for none other.
5. All gambling and drunkenness will be declared a nuisance and will be subject to paying a fine not exceeding twenty-five dollars for each offense.
6. All circuses, shows, theaters, or exhibitions shall have a license.
7. All riotous behavior, such as quarreling, fighting, or in any way disturbing the quiet and peace of the citizens of said town, is strictly forbidden.
8. Horseracing is strictly forbidden and prohibited within the limits of this corporation.
Six more ordinances were passed on April 5, 1848. The first prohibited carcasses of animals to remain unburied. The second prohibited the indecent exhibition of animals in the Village. The third provided that all male residents, age 21 or over, should labor three days on the roads, streets or alleys as directed by the supervisor. The fourth provided a penalty and method of prosecution of persons who should idle away their time or refuse to obey the supervisor when working on the streets. The fifth specified the duties of the supervisor. The sixth provided penalties for the malicious destruction of property within the corporation. A resolution was also passed that all trials would be before the president of the board and conducted in the same manner as before a Justice of the Peace. These two meetings appear to have been the only ones that were held.
There are no records of corporation officers being appointed until January 1, 1856, when an election notice was posted to elect five trustees. Three election judges were appointed to handle the election at the home of William S. Blair on the 18th day of January, 1856. Thirty-six votes were cast. The newly-elected all male board met on January 19, 1856. A tax of fifty cents on one hundred dollars of all real estate was passed for the purpose of making sidewalks and improvements of roads, streets and alleys. Sixteen blocks of three feet wide, two inch plank sidewalks were to be built. The trustees met on a regular basis with an annual election held to elect or re-elect five male trustees.
In 1875 it was discovered that there was no record of the original plat for the incorporation of Mt. Morris on file. At the request and by the authority of the Board of Trustees of the corporation of Mt. Morris, A.Q. Allen, county surveyor of Ogle County made a re-survey of the original town of Mt. Morris. He discovered the chain used in the original survey was 8/10 of a foot too long. He made the new survey to correspond with said measurement and to correspond as near as practicable with the original survey, marking on the plat the exact size of lots, blocks, streets and alleys in feet and tenths of a foot. With lots and streets marked 66.8 feet wide. The survey and plat are dated February 22, 1875, filed on November 22, 1875 and is recorded in book A of plats, page 172.
On March 27, 1875 an election was held to vote for or against village organization under the general law, enacted by the General Assembly of Illinois. Thirty-five votes were cast for the village organization to one against. On April 20, 1875 an election was called to elect six trustees, a village clerk and police magistrate as required by the new village organization. On June 16, 1875 a certificate of incorporation for the Village of Mt. Morris was issued by the Secretary of State.
On February 4, 1895 a petition signed by 172 citizens was submitted for consideration. The petition asked the trustees to submit the question of waterworks to the voters at the spring election. Ninety-six votes were cast in favor of the waterworks and 69 in opposition. $8,000 in bonds was issued by the Village for the construction. On April 6, 1896 an ordinance was passed that all sidewalks on principal streets be laid of tar-concrete, stone, brick or artificial stone.
In 1921 the Village Hall was built on the northeast corner of McKendrie Ave. and Center Street. The building housed the fire department, village jail, pumping station, and meeting place for the Board of Trustees. The building remained the Village Hall until August, 1995 when the Board of Trustees voted to move the Village Hall into the former Elementary School building at 105 E. Lincoln Street. The building houses all Village Offices, the Police Department, and the Mt Morris Township Office. It is the designated meeting place for the Village Board, the Park and Recreation Board, the Planning Commission, and the Let Freedom Ring Committee. It is also the home of the Mt. Morris Historical Museum and is used for local voting. The building at McKendrie and Center was razed, and the land was given to the library for their expansion project. The well and pumping station remain at the site.
The Board of Trustees remained an all male board until 1985 when Joyce Carr was elected to a four year term and Genie Fleming was appointed to an unexpired two-year term. Elections are held every two years in April to elect a Village President for a four-year term and three trustees for two-year terms. The Village Clerk was elected until 2004 when the Village Board of Trustees passed an ordinance changing it to an appointed position. The Village Treasurer is appointed by the Village President with the advice and consent of the Village Board of Trustees.
Each Trustee is appointed to serve as Chairman of one of seven standing committees:
1. Streets, Alleys, Sidewalks and Storm Sewers
2. Finance
3. Water and Sanitary Sewers
4. Ordinances
5. Law Enforcement and Communications
6. Recreation Board
7. Public property
Regular meetings of the Board of Trustees are held the first and fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:00 P.M. at the Village Hall. All meetings are open to the public. Other boards and committees appointed by the Village President and Board of Trustees include the Park and Recreation Board, the Board of Police Commissioners, the Coordinator of the Emergency Services and Disaster Agency, the Planning Commission, the Coliseum Board, and the Mt Morris Historical Committee.