Omaha daily bee., 1894-01-14
RISE OF NEBRASKA CITIES
Development of Municipal Government Since
Territorial Times.
FROM VILLAGE TO METROPOLITAN LIFE
A Paper on Municipal Government in Ne
brasks Read by DIR. Victor Iiosewater
Before the State Historical So
ciety at Lincoln.

Paper read before the State Historical So
ciety at Lincoln, January 0, by Victor Rose
water, Phi. D.;
deem it proper at The outset to define
briefly the scope of this paper. OF simple
historical narration but little will enter into
my exposition of this subject. Instead of
going into the incidents and controversies,
the fractional fights andjcalousies which have
existed in Nebraska cities from the very be-
ginning of their careers, propose TO init all
ailusion to social development or political
domination and TO coniine myself solely to Il
sketch tracing the growth of that govern
mental organization to which has been given
the administrator of local affairs. My
paper, then, so far as it constitutes history at
all, is Il history of legislation-an attempt to
trace the evolution of our city governments
from the comparatively simple machinery of
the early days to the complex AMI compli-
Gated system which prevails in cities of the
metropolitan class today.
a word, too, may be necessary as to the
method which | have pursued. Tho
materials have been sought in the
constitutions, laws and statutes of
this state. My purpose being
however, rs | have just explained, to trace
the development of our system of municipal
~ NHN a hAAAtAto-
sary to analy2e each and every city charter
and the many amendments mUdo thereto ne
cause in very many cases the changes are
immatcrial for my purposes. IL is enough to
examine the simplest and earliest city char
ters ana TO follow up tho changes relating
always TO the cities OF the highest class.
This shows the highest development of
municipal government in Nebraska mt each
successive period Of time, although at the
Same time the smaller cities may have been
administered under statutes belonging, in
character AZ least, to an earlier period.
. Power of Creating municipalities.
Municipal government being the creation
of a higher or more central government
could not exist in Nebraska until after the
territorial organization. The kansas-Ne-
braska law in 1854 vested all legislative
powers conferred by il in the governor and
legislative assembly of the territory. This,
according TO legal construction, included the
power to grant charters of Incorporation TO
local communities, But, although the first
election proclamation Of Governor Cunning
mentions Omaha City and Brownyille among
the list OF election precincts and although
n later proclamation fixing the judi
cial districts for the territory named Omaha
CITY, Bellevue, Nebraska City and Florence
us the places where court should be held,
yet no true municipal government existed
until the legislature at its first session
passed an net approved March ., 1855, lncor-
perating Nebraska City, Omaha City, the
territorial capital, remaining unincorporated
until two years later.
From the territorial legislature the power
TO incorporate municipalities passed natur-
ally TO the state legislature as its successor.
One slgr ihCant innovation was brought out
Dy tue adoption OF tho constitution of 1866,
IN that IL did away, once and for all time,
with the pernieious system Of granting