Private Acts of 1819 Chapter 127

SECTION 1. That Josephus Irvine, Henry Phenix, Enoch Tucker, David Crockett and M. H. Buchanon be and they are hereby appointed commissioners who, or a majority of them, shall as soon as may be, fix on a place for the permanent seat of justice of Lawrence County as near the centre of said county as an eligible site can be procured, and after agreeing on the place, the said commissioners shall proceed to purchase or otherwise procure not less than fifty acres of land for which they shall cause a deed or deeds to be made to themselves and their successors in office by general warranty, on which they shall cause a town to be laid off with necessary streets and alleys, reserving two acres, as near the centre as may be, on which the court house, prison and stocks shall be erected, which town shall be known by the name of Lawrenceburg, in honor and to perpetuate the memory of Captain James Lawrence deceased, late of the navy of the United States.

SECTION 2. That when the town shall be thus laid off, the aforesaid commissioners are further required, to advertise for sale, to the highest bidder in some newspaper printed in Columbia and three of the most public places in said county, on a credit of twelve months, giving sixty days previous notice, and shall take bonds to themselves and successors in office, and shall make titles to the purchasers in fee simple.

SECTION 3. That it shall be the further duty of the said commissioners to contract with suitable workmen to build a court-house, prison and stocks, and the monies arising from the sale of said lots after paying for the land so purchased, shall be applied to pay for said court-house, prison and stocks.

SECTION 4. And whereas it has been represented to this General Assembly, that it would tend much to the advancement of the said town of Lawrenceburg hereby established, and to the amelioration of the citizens of said county of Lawrence, to authorize and empower the commissioners aforesaid to locate six hundred and forty acres of ground for the use and benefit of said town; therefore,

BE IT ENACTED, That the aforesaid commissioners are hereby authorized and empowered to locate, enter and have granted to them six hundred and forty acres of land, by virtue of good and valid warrant, for the use and entire benefit of said town, the proceeds of the sales of which shall be applied to defray the expense of building the court house, prison, and stocks for the said town of Lawrenceburg; provided always that the said entry and location shall be made upon unappropriated land, and in the neighborhood of the centre of the said county of Lawrence; and provided also that if the said commissioners should locate and enter and have granted to them six hundred and forty acres of land as aforesaid, or a less quantity, upon a good and valid warrant they shall be, and are hereby authorized to fix the seat of Justice aforesaid upon such tract of land thus located and entered.

SECTION 5. That before the said commissioners enter upon the duties of their appointment they shall enter into bond with sufficient security payable to the Governor for the time being and his successors in office in the sum of four thousand dollars, for the faithful discharge of their duties as herein expressed; which bonds shall be attested by, and lodged in the office of the county court clerk of the county of Lawrence.

SECTION 6. That so soon as the public buildings shall be completed the aforesaid commissioners shall lay before the court of Lawrence county a just and fair statement of all the monies by them received as well as those by them expended, by virtue of their appointment with sufficient vouchers for the same, and the said court shall make them a reasonable compensation for their services, provides a majority of the acting Justices of said county shall be present when such allowance is made; and provided also that said commissioners shall make out a fair statement of their accounts at any time when called upon by the county court of Lawrence; but such call shall not be oftener than once in each year.

SECTION 7. That so soon as the court house hereby authorized to be built shall be in a situation that the Courts of Lawrence county can be held therein; the said commissioners shall certify the same to the county court of said county, whereupon it shall be the duty of the several courts of Lawrence county to adjourn from the present place of holding courts in said county to the town of Lawrenceburg without delay, and all writs subpoenas and other process made returnable to the present place of holding the courts of said county, shall be returnable to the court house in the town of Lawrenceburg and shall be as good and available in law as if they had been originally made returnable to the court house in the said town of Lawrenceburg.

SECTION 8. That the said commissioners before entering on the duties enjoined on them by this act; shall before some acting Justice of the Peace for Lawrence County take an oath well and truly, faithfully and impartially, to perform all the duties required of them to do and perform by the provisions of this Act.

Passed: November 23, 1819.