The Palatka news and advertiser., 1915-05-28
TAKE ME BACK TO
OLD PALATKA"
A Bit of Official History Does
the Trick-Many Recol-
lect.

lect.
George W. Lansing has been EN-
ployed by the council committee Of
ordinances to codify the ordinances o
the city-to get them in shape S,
that reference can easily be made a
any time, and the status of any or
dinance can be determined. Mr.
Lansing is at work in vacant room
in the Law Exchange building. Tn,
other day he ran across an order pro
claiming the city under marshal law
This order was issued by Col. Johr
T. Sprague, Commander of the Dis
trict of Florida, with headquarters a
st. Augustine. 1t will be found il
the Records of the Town Council Of
Palatka, May Sth, 1867, page 10, anc
reads as follows:
Headquarters District of Florida
st. Augustine, Florida, April 20
1867"
Especial Orders:
No. 81.
"The election for Mayor and Com
mon Council of the city of Palatka,
Fla, declared bv law to take place on
the third Monday in April 1867, is
hereby postponed until further orders.
The present Council will continue to
act in their official positions until
further instructed.
"By command of Col. John I.
Sprague,
E. c. Woodruff, Brvt., Major U S.
A. and A. A. A. G."
At the time of this order Calvin
Gillis was mayor, and the councilmen
were James Burt, Nath. Moragne, Pc
ter Petermann and Hubbard L. Hart.
The latter also acted as clerk.
What bothers Mr.. Lansing is the
fact that he can find no record coun-
termanding the marshal law order in
the proceedings of the council through
the balance of that year, through
1868, and up to Feb. 23, 1869, when
the following record looking to a
change in the municipal government,
is recorded as a part of the council
proceedings
Meeting of Council.
"Palatka, Fla, February %, 1869.
"Present:
Calvin Gillis, Mayor
"James Burt.
"Nath. Moragne.
"Peter Peterman, Councilmen.
Hubbard l.. Hart.
minutes of last meeting read and
approved.
"Resolved-That the Town cf Pa
latka do re-organize its municipal
government under the provisions of
an act amendatory to an act to pro-
vide for the creation of corporations
and to prescribe their general powers
and liabilities, and that the said Town
does hereby volutarily surrender its
charter and privileges by an organi-
zation under said law, and that the
Mayor of Palatka order an election
on Monday the 29th of March next.
for the following officers viz: one
Mayor, six Aldermen, one Marshal,
one Clerk and Treasurer combined,
and that said Mayor appoint three
Inspectors of said election. The cleo
tion to be held at the Court House in
the town of Palatka, between the
hours of eight A. NJ, on the twenty
ninth day of March "A. D. 1869 and
sunset of the same day.
"Signed,
Calvin Gillis, Mayor.
81. Burt,
"H. L. Hart,
an. H. Moragne,
peter Peterman, Council.
"H. L. Hart, Clerk
Then follows the record for the es-
tablishment of the name of the town,
its corporate limits and seal, and the
election of town officers. The follow
ing is the record:
"Be 1t Remembered, that on or
about the first day of July, A. D.
1869, the community of persons, to-
wit: The male inhabitants of the town
of Palatka, in the county of Putnam,
and State of Florida. not being less
than fifty in number, but less than
three hundred, desiring to form a mu-
nicipal corporation, under the provisa
ions of an Act to provide for the in
of Cities and Towns, and
to establish a uniform system of mu-
nicipal government in this State, cap
proved February 4th. 1869" did for
period of not less than thirty days,
viz: from the 7th day of July 1869, |
to the 7th day of August 1869, both
lays inclusive, caused to be published
in the newspaper denominated and
called the Eastern Herald" an off |