History

May 27, 1893

In Volume 7 of the records of the proceedings of the Manitowoc County Board, on page 593 and under date of May 24, 1893, is found the following entry:  "Mr. Pautz of the Town of Manitowoc appeared before the Board and requested the Board to vacate or alter the boundaries of the Town of Manitowoc, claiming that it was not a legal town."

 Supervisor Danforth moved that the chair appoint a committee of five to investigate this matter."  Motion prevailed.

Written on a sheet of foolsoap paper and attached to Page 597 of the volume seven we find the following report of special committee.

To the Honorable the chairman and board of supervisors. Gentlemen: Your committee that was appointed to investigate the legality of the Town of Manitowoc as a town, would respectfully report, that we have investigated the matter, and find that the Town is illegal as it is at present on account of the territory comprising said town not being contiguous or joining as required by Section six hundred seventy of the revised statutes.

Your committee would therefore recommend that all the territory of said present Town of Manitowoc, lying south of the City of Manitowoc be annexed to the Town of Newton; and that all the territory of said present Town of Manitowoc lying north of the City of Manitowoc constitute the Town of Manitowoc.

After the recommendations of the committee were presented and accepted, an ordinance was prepared which reads as follows:

Whereas, important public interests, justice and general good of the County demand the boundaries of certain towns as hereinafter described be changed; Now therefore, the County Board of Supervisors of the County of Manitowoc, do ordain as follows:

All that part or parts of which bounds the city on the south and is outside of the limits of the said City of Manitowoc, Manitowoc County  be and the same is hereby set off and detached from the said Town of Manitowoc and the aforesaid territory so set off and detached be and the same is hereby attached and annexed to and made a part of the Town of Newton in Manitowoc County for all purposes whatever.

Immediately after the passage of this ordinance the clerk of this board shall cause a plat and record of the changes in town boundaries herein made, to be made and filed in his office; and he shall cause this ordinance to be published and copies filed as provided by law; he shall also file a certified copy of this ordinance with the clerks of the Towns of Newton and Manitowoc respectively. 

At about the time the ordinance attaching a portion of the Town of Manitowoc to the Town of Newton was passed a special committee was appointed to investigate further the legality of the adoption of the ordinance and on May 26, 1894 this committee appeared before the board and stated it is unable in so short a time to make a thorough investigation of the matter and to so advise the board in regard to it.  Therefore be it hereby resolved that said matter be laid over until the next annual session of this board.

The request was granted and on November 27, 1894 the special committee reported to the board as follows:

To the Honorable Chairman and the members of the county Board of Manitowoc County.  Gentlemen:  Your committee, to whom was referred the matter of the ordinance wherein the southern part of the Town of Manitowoc was attached to the Town of Newton, hereby begs to report that it is the opinion of this committee to let the matter rest; and begs to be discharged from further service in regard to this matter.

The action of the County Board of Supervisors in ordaining that a portion of the Town of Manitowoc be detached from the town and attached to the Town of Newton was questioned by some of the residents of the town.  It appears that they felt that the action of the Board of Supervisors was illegal because the residents of the Town of Manitowoc were not consulted and that the action of the Board of Supervisors was not taken as a result of their desire through petition.

The Town of Manitowoc through its attorneys appeared before the Circuit Court in Manitowoc and asked that a Writ of Certiorari be granted setting aside the action of the County Board of Supervisors.  This was issued February 28, 1895.

In view of the above action, it would seem that the ordinance passed by the County Board on May 27, 1893 attaching that part of the territory south of the City of Manitowoc in the Town of Manitowoc to the Town of Newton would be in effect and that that territory legally belongs in the Town of Newton.  However, since about 1896 this territory has been considered a part of the Town of Manitowoc. There has been no action by a court or the County Board of Supervisors of Manitowoc County which sets aside the ordinance passed in May 1893.