Acts of 1851-52 Chapter 195

SECTION 1.  That a new county be, and the same is hereby established, to be composed of fractions taken from the counties of Dyer, Gibson, Madison, and Haywood, to be known and designated as the county of Crockett.

SECTION 2.  That the bounds of Crockett county shall be as follows, to wit:  Beginning at the mouth of the Little North Fork of the Forked Deer river; running thence south forty-one degrees west, so as not to run nearer than ten miles to the town of Dyersburg, in the county of Dyer, to the South Fork of the Forked Deer river; thence up said river with the various courses thereof to a point on said river, ten miles in a direct line from the town of Jackson, in Madison county; running thence in a northerly direction to the Middle Fork of the Forked Deer river, at the point where the line, established by the act of 1845, chapter 25, terminated on said river; thence down said Middle Fork, with the various courses thereof, to the beginning.  Provided, That the commissioners, hereinafter named, shall have the power to re-run the eastern and western boundary lines of said county of Crockett, in such direction as they may deem necessary and proper.  And provided further, That said lines shall not approach nearer than ten miles to the county seats of Madison or Dyer County.

SECTION 3.  That Alfred T. Fielder, Isaac A. Nunn, William Smith, James Porter, John B. Boykin, Kinchen Hathaway, Henry G. Winburn, and P. M. Neall, be, and they are hereby appointed commissioners on the part of the several fractions in which they reside, who shall before entering on the discharge of their duties, take an oath before some justice of the peace, faithfully and impartially to discharge all the duties incumbent on them in this act; and in all cases of vacancies which may occur among said commissioners previous to the organization of the county of Crockett, the same shall be filled by the other commissioners; and all vacancies occurring after the organization of the county cou (sic) shall be filled by said county court of Crockett.  The said commissioners shall enter into bond with good and sufficient security, to be approved by the county court of Crockett, in the sum of five thousand dollars, conditioned, for the faithful performance of their duties.  A majority of said commissioners shall constitute a board competent to do all things herein enjoined on them; they shall keep a regular record of all their proceedings as commissioners, which shall be returned to the county court of Crockett at its first session, and the same shall be recorded by the clerk thereof on the records of said court; and they shall make such returns, after the organization of said court, as shall be directed thereby.

SECTION 4.  That for the due administration of justice, the different courts, to be holden for said county of Crockett, shall be held at Cageville until the seat of justice of said county shall be established, and when said seat of justice shall be established, and the necessary buildings erected for the accommodation of the courts, the said courts shall, forever thereafter, be holden at the said seat of justice.  The courts for the county of Crockett shall be under the same rules, regulations and restrictions, and shall have, hold, exercise and possess the same powers and jurisdictions as prescribed by law for holding courts in other counties.  Said county of Crockett shall be attached to the tenth judicial circuit, and the circuit courts shall be held by the judge of said circuit, on the last Mondays in January, May and September, in each and every year.  And the citizens of said county may file bills in chancery in either of the chancery courts held at Trenton or Brownsville, at their option.

SECTION 5.  That all officers, civil or military, now holding offices in said county, shall continue to hold their offices, and exercise all the powers and functions thereof, until others are elected according to law; and the courts of Crockett shall, at their first regular session, elect their officers, who shall hold their office until the next regular election of officers, to be made by existing laws.

SECTION 6.  That the commissioners appointed by this act, shall appoint such person as they may think proper to open and hold the election for county officers for the said county of Crockett, and such person so appointed, shall have power to appoint deputies, clerks and judges, and by himself and deputies to administer all the necessary oaths, and do and perform all other duties, now made the duty of sheriffs or other officers holding similar elections; and it shall be the duty of such person, so appointed, together with his deputies, to open and hold an election in each civil district of said Crockett county, at such time as said person may appoint, within sixty days after this act shall be in force and take effect, for the purpose of electing the county officers of said county, and the officers so elected shall hold their offices until the next regular election for officers in the other counties of the State.

SECTION 7.  That it shall be the duty of the above mentioned commissioners as soon as convenient, after the organization of said county of Crockett, to select and procure, by purchase or otherwise, a suitable site for the seat of justice of said county of Crockett, having a due regard for the convenience and wishes of a majority of the legal voters of said county of Crockett; and the said commissioners having caused a deed to be made to them and their successors in office, with general warranty, for a sufficient quantity of land, including the site so selected, shall cause a town to be laid off thereon, with such number of streets and alleys of such width as they may deem necessary, reserving a sufficient quantity of land for a public square.  Said commissioners shall select and reserve from sale one lot on which to erect a public jail of said county of Crockett, and said town, so laid off, shall receive such name as the above mentioned commissioners may give it.  Provided, That said commissioners shall nominate not exceeding two sites for said seat of justice, which places shall in no event be further than three miles from the centre of said county of Crockett, which places shall be voted for by the legal voters of said county of Crockett, and the site receiving the greatest number of votes shall be, and is hereby declared the seat of justice of said county.

SECTION 8.  That the commissioners of said county shall sell the lots in said town on a credit of one and two years, first giving due notice thereof in one or more newspapers printed in the Western District, and take bonds with good and sufficient security from the purchaser or purchasers, payable to themselves and their successors in office, and shall make title in fee simple, as commissioners, to the respective purchasers of said lots, when the same shall be paid for.

SECTION 9.  That the proceeds of the sale of the lots in said town, shall be a fund in the hands of the said commissioners, with which to defray the necessary expenses incurred in the purchase of said tract of land on which to erect said town, as well as the necessary expenses incurred in erecting the public buildings of said town; and should there be a surplus, after defraying the above mentioned expenses, it shall be the duty of said commissioners to pay over the same to the trustee of said county, to be accounted for by him as other funds in his hands.  And it shall be the further duty of said commissioners to superintend the erection of such public buildings as the county court of said county may direct to be built, and shall let the same out, and shall take bond from the undertakers, with ample security, payable to them-selves and their successors, conditioned for the faithful performance of his or their contract.

SECTION 10.  That it shall be the duty of said commissioners to appoint five suitable and qualified individuals to divide said county into civil districts, and designate the places for holding elections in said districts, and perform all the duties relative thereunto, which by the laws of this State such commissioners are required to do.

SECTION 11.  That the county of Crockett shall form one regiment, which shall be known and designated as the 132nd regiment, and shall be attached to the 19th brigade.  The militia officer or officers highest in command, included in said county of Crockett, shall, at such time and places as he or they may designate, call all the commissioned officers together, and such of them as shall attend, are hereby authorized and empowered to lay off said county into battalions and companies, and provide for holding elections for the purpose of electing all officers in said regiment, in the manner prescribed by law.

SECTION 12.  That the said commissioners of Crockett county, be, and they are hereby authorized to exercise all the powers conferred in this act, and such further powers as may be necessary and proper for the complete organization of said county.

SECTION 13.  That an academy is hereby established at the county seat of said county of Crockett, with all the rights and emoluments of other county academies of the State, and the county court shall appoint trustees therefor, as in other counties, and shall name the same.

SECTION 14.  That this act shall take effect and be in force so soon as the proposed amendments of the constitution for the establishment of new counties shall have been adopted.

COMPILER'S NOTE:  Sections 15 and 16 of this Act do not concern Crockett County.

Passed:  February 24, 1851.