Wicomico County MDGenWeb Petition to the Maryland Assembly Hall of Records, Letter No. 28 Requesting an Act to promote the advantages of the new town of Salisbury

Below is a petition transcribed from the Hall of Records, Letter No. 28 by Mike Hitch. It was also presented in the Archives of Maryland - Volume LVIII, Proceedings and Acts of the Assemble 1762-1763 (27), Published by Authority of the State under the Direction of the Maryland Histroical Society, J. Hall Pleasants, Editor; Baltimore, 1941. It concerns the then-new Somerset County town of Salisbury, which today is Wicomico's County Seat. Many thanks to Mike Hitch for providing this transcription!

PETITION FOR AN ACT TO PROMOTE THE ADVANTAGES OF THE TOWN OF SALISBURY, SOMERSET COUNTY, 1763

[THIS PETITION WHICH WAS PRESENTED IN THE LOWER HOUSE OCTOBER 22, 1763, AND THERE REJECTED, PRAYED THAT THE ACT OF ASSEMBLY PASSED IN 1732 FOR ERECTING A TOWN AT THE HEAD OF WICOMICO RIVER, SOMERSET COUNTY, AT HANDY'S OR CARR'S LANDING, ON FIFTEEN ACRES OF LAND LAID OUT IN TWENTY LOTS, CALLED SALISBURY, BE REPEALED AND A NEW ACT PASSED TO BE FRAMED BY THE PETITIONERS FOR THE PURPOSE OF BETTER PROMOTING THE ADVANTAGES OF THE TOWN. THIS MATTER WILL BE FOUND DISCUSSED ON PAGE XXXIV.]

To The Hon.ble Lower House of Assembly
The Humble Petition of many Inhabitants of Somerset County, Sheweth

That on or about the Year 1732 an Act of Assembly of this province passed Entituled An Act for the Erecting a Town at the Head of Wiccomoco River in Somerset for laying into Lots fifteen Acres of Land in the Fork thereof and at the Landing commonly now called Handy's or Carr's Landing by which Twenty Lots were laid out & a Town was erected & called Salisbury. That although the said Town is very comodiously situated for Trade and Navigation very few Lots were taken up under the said Law it being thought insufficient through the Omission of several Clauses which are now deemed essentially necessary for many persons inclinable to purchase Lots in the said Town.

That your Petitioners humbly conceive it would be of great Utility to all the Inhabitants in or near the said Town and to all persons trading to and from thence to have an Act passed by the Legislature to repeal the aforesaid Law and to have Leave given to your Petitioners to frame a new Bill particularly adapted for the Uses and purposes of the encreasing and promoting of the Advantages of the said Town.

Your Petitioners therefore humbly pray that your Honours will give Leave to bring in a Bill for the purposes aforesaid

And your Petitioners in Duty bound will pray,

Joseph Hitch              Benjamin Hitch          David Gray ?
Charles Shockby           John Richardson         Levin Huffington
Peter Gordy               Wm. Parsons             George Collier ?
Eze:ll Humphriss          Wm. Mills               Rogger fillips
Smith Hath                W. M. Driskell          George Wilson
William Hath              John Perdue Sr          John Anderson
Henry White               Daniel Phillips         George Wails
John Jinkins              Edward Elliss           Abraham Taber (?)
Joseph Jinkins            George Dashiell         William Stephens
Mathias Christopher       Leaven Tayler           Arnal elsey
Thomas Cox                Joseph Elliss Jr.       George Stephen
Elisha Parker             Stephen Elliss          Jesse Byard
Ezekiel James             Joshua Hitch            Lawrence Rickcord
Isaac Crouch              Geor: Green             William Taber
George Handy              Solomon Russall         Wm. Adams
Isaac Handy               John godard                _______ Dashiell
John Crouch               John Martin             John Wales
Stephen Roach             Jonathan Venson         Robt Handy
Jonathan Dasons           Henry Spear             W- M.cWilliams
Archabald Smith           Isaac Handy             Joseph Forman
James Cathall             Levin Callaway          James Benson
John Christopher          William Roach           William hath
Joshua Nelms              Wm. Madux               Wm. Venables
Joshua Hitch              Geo: Dasons             Mitchell Realph
Richard Mills             Geo: Dasons Jun.r       Jesse Pasmore
Isaac Moor                James Hall              Robert Dashiell
John Hitch                Waltar Taylor           Zadoch Turner
Nathaniel Thrift          Nehemiah Morris         Joshua Sturgis
John Nelms                Wm. Twilly
Jonathan Beech            George Todvine          James Houston
Charles Vaughan           Elijah Hearn            Joshua Venables
Joseph Leonard            Thos. Relph             Atextio Russell
Tho.s Nobb                Thomas Langford         Price Russell
george smith              Tho.s Moor ,            Nath Collier
Dannil Dikes              George Vance            John Hearn
George Short (?)          George Low              Risdon Dixon
George Dish . . .         Thos. Fletcher          Constant Disharoon
Joseph Scrogin            Joseph Ellis            Isaac Dashiell
Matt Piper                John Gusston            Jonathan P. Shackley'
Jacob Giles               Wm. Bennett             Elijah Shockley
Benj.n Venablies          Thos Dishroon           John talbt (?)
Matt                      George Parker           Ebennezer Waller
James fookes              Dant Dukaney            William Waller
Thomas Handy              John Adams              John Shockley
John Low                  Thos. Gilliss           David Magee
Aff-radazi Johnson        Chri. Piper
Isaac Tolevine (?)        James Collins

Sunday, 13-Aug-2023 21:40:55 EDT