The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1885-04-24


would seem to settle the disputed orthogra
ply of our county town. The compound
word is French, meaning beautiful air."
The word "air," however, being of masculine
gender, the prefix is properly spelled "Bel,"
and the present form of the name of the
county seat of Hartford, "Be Air" is therefore
correct.
THE TOWN OF HAvRE DE GRACE.
AT the November session of the Legisla-
ture, in 1885, William Smallwood being Gov
ernor Samuel Hughes, Benedict Edward
Hall, William Smith (bay side,) Josiah Car
vii Hall and Gabriel Christie were appoint
ed to lay out a town at the mouth of the
Susquehanna river, it being represented to
the Legislature that Robert Young Stoakes,
late of Hartford county, deceased, did, in his
lifetime, survey and lay out into lots par
Gel OF ground at the mouth of the Susque-
hanna river, for town, and called the same
by the name of Havre de Grace"
Considerable Improvements had already
been made and 1t was thought that it would
greatly conduce to the prosperity and advan-
tage of said town and secure the titles of
purchasers to lots in the same, if the town
were regularly laid out into streets, lanes
and alleys, and the boundaries of the lots def
initely ascertained Clement Brooke execu-
tor of Robert Young Stoakes, was also author
lied to convey to the commissioners aforesaid
and their successors forever, certain lots set
apart by the said Robert Young Stoakes, in
his lifetime, for public purposes.
In 1875 the Legislature authorized lot
terry in Havre de Grace for the purpose of
raising So, 900 with which to build two public
wharves in that town.
RIVALRY BETWEEN HAvRE DE GRACE AND
BEL AIR.
The growing town of Havre de Grace soon
became ambitious, and petition was sent 10
the General Assembly, "by many of the in
habitants of Hartford county, praying that the
public buildings Of the said county may be
erected at place called Havrc de Grace, at
the mouth OF the Susquehanna river, in the
said county"
Havre de Grace politicians seem to have
been as influential in those days as they are
now, for the Legislature enacted that the
erection of the public buildings in Hartford
county shall be suspended until the end of
the next session of Assembly"
The matter was pressed by the citizens OF
Havro de Grace, in the next Legislature
(17S6) and an act was passed "to determine
by election whether the courthouse and
prison of Hartford county shall be erected at
Bel Air or at Havre de Grace"
DECIDING THE COUNTY SEAT BY BALLOT.
John Archer, Benedict E Hall, VIM.
Smith, John Taylor and Jesse Jarrett were
appointed commissioners tor holding the said
election at Bel Air, on the first Monday in
April 1857; the election to continue from
day TO day "till the same be finished, so that
it be concluded in six days"
The friends of Havre de Grace were out
voted at this election and Bel Air being per-
manently established as the county seat, the
work of erecting the public buildings went
on.
THE sUsoUEHANNA CANAL RELEASED FROM
TAXATION.
AT the session of 1881 an act was passed re.
leasing the Susquehanna Canal from taxation
for ever and fixing the rate Of tolls to be
charged The first three articles in the list
are wine, rum and tobacco, which, probably,
were regarded rs prime necessaries of lite.
DRAINING CRANBERRY SWAMP.
In 1884 an act was passed to authorize
Josias VIM. Dalam, Philip Henderson, Will
liam Smith, James White Hall, Samuel Grit
fifth, Luke Griffith, Richard Dallam and John
Hall to reclaim and drain Cranberry Swamp,
in Hartford county.
STAGE LINE MONOPOLY.
In 1885, also, the Legislature granted to
Gabriel Peterson Vanhorn ian exclusive right
to keep stage carriages on the public road
from the river Susquehanna to the river Pa
public road over which Vanhorn's stages ran
is what is now known in Hartford county as
the post,road. 1t begins at Havre de Grace,
runs through Aberdeen Bush and Abingdon
to Baltimore city. No person but Vanhorn
or his agents was allowed to transport pas
sengers for pay over any part of this road,
under penalty of five pounds for every per-
son conveyed contrary to the act.
Vanhorn, on his part, was obliged to keep
sufficient number of stage coaches and
postchaises and good, stout, strong and
able horses" to convey passengers over the
road, and TO make three through trips week
from April to November, and two trips a
week the rest of the year. The rate Of fare
was not 10 exceed sixpence per mile in the
stage coaches and ninepeDce per mile in the
post-chaises.
HOW LAND WAS ASSESSED.
The same Legislature, being satisfied of the
inequality in the valuation of land in the
State, determined, by law, the average value
by the acre of land in the several counties of
the State, as follows:
In Rent county, 33 shillings and pence
in Prince Georges county, 81 shillings and
pence in Baltimore county, 90 shillings and
3 pence; in Frederick, Charles, Hartford,
Anne Arundel, Queen Anne's, Talbot and
Cecil counties, 81 shillings; in Montgomery,
st. Mary's Calvert Dorchester and Somerset
counties, "a shilings and pence; in Wash
ington county, % shllings and pence in
Worcester county, 20 shillings and pence,
and in Caroline county, Is shillngs and 8
pence.
Baltimore-town and its precincts, in Balli
more county was assessed seDarately from