Year: 1879




seat OF New Castle County, from Ne,
Castle to Wilmington, the effort has a
last been crowned with success. Thi
is sufficient excuse for the jubilatio
of our citizens when the good new
reached us last night. There was NOR
real, genuine, hearty, hand-shakin
over the event by the people, than eve
there was over any victory Of the Uuio
army during the war. The first effor
made to remove the county seat was i


1888, bill having passed the Lagisla
ture favorabl for removal, but bein
handicapped with rider, providing
that 1t must receive majority Of tn
voters in the county in favor of /
whether they voted or not, il failed t,
receive that majority, and for number
Of years afterward the question wal
allowed to rest. In lS47 another un
successful spurt was made but New
Castle held the reins and brC ught tn.
movement to q stand-still. The ques.
tion was then more or less agitated uu.
til the Legislative session of 1871 when
DR.. A. v. Lesley of New Castle was
Speaker Of the Senate. A bill had been
introduced in the House and by shrewd
management and persistent effort i.
passed that body, but was killed in the
Senate by the casting vote of DR.. Les
ley. Since that time the agitation has
been kept up and involved with It a
division Of the county to a certain ex.
tent. The movement at this time was
unexpected when the Legislature met
and was only prscipitated by the Levy
Court which was inimical to removal,
asking the Legislature to grant them
the privilege of erecting a new Court
House in New Castle at a cost no, TX,
ceeding 800, 900. This was the touch
which sprang themainspring and thepeo-
pie Of Wilmington plainly saw that now
was the time to act and act promptly,
to get the new Court House in Will
mington instead OF New Castle. For
once all partizansnip was thrown aside
and but one common purpose moved
the masses. In this they wer. joined
by large delegations Of influential citi-
Gems from the rural districts. The con
t.s. has been short, sharp and decisive,
and though Wilmington has always
been the great metropolis OF the State,
and ranking in tho third class of the
cities in the Union in population, man.
utacturss and enterprise, this is the
first time in its history that it has been
called county town. There are but
few oities in the Union the size of Viii.
mingtou that is not a county town and
have spacious Court Houses.


Though tho question Of removal has
been definitely fixed there are many
preliminaries yet before it can be erect
cd and made ready for the holding Of
the Courts, amongst which will be the
selection Of site acceptable to the
Levy Court, and which must be given
gratituously by the City Council o:
Wilmington. The Levy Court will
also have to make arrangements
for selling bonds Of the County to the
amount of $50, 900 at least to commence
the buildings with, leaving in reserve
$50, 900, the debt to be funded at five
per cent. This will all take time, es-
pecially 'th- City Council acts in con-
junction with ths Levy Court, to have
the city Offices in the came building.
There seems to be but two places owned
by the city at the present time availa-
bic and suitable for the county build
ings, the old basin lot at Tenth and
Market streets, and the City Hall lo:,
upon which the City Hall is situated.
While there are some of our citizens
who favor having the new New Court
House buildings on the old City Hall
lot, the great majority of them
agree that it should be built on the old
basin lot at Tenth and Market streets.
1t is not likely that much headway will
be made in the building until after the
hot months of summer, and if comple-
ted in the fall Of 1850, good progress
will have been made.