xt7xwd3q0344 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7xwd3q0344/data/mets.xml Historical Records Survey (N. H.) United States. Works Progress Administration. Division of Women's and Professional Projects New Hampshire Historical Records Survey (N. H.) United States. Works Progress Administration. Division of Women's and Professional Projects 1939 160 p.: maps, diagrs. 27 cm. UK holds archival copy for ASERL Collaborative Federal Depository Program libraries. Call Number: Y 3.W 89/2:43/N 42h/no.2 books  English Manchester, N.H.: the Survey  This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed in accordance with U. S. copyright laws. New Hampshire Works Progress Administration Publications Archives -- New Hampshire -- Carroll County -- Catalogs Carroll County (N.H.) -- History -- Sources Carroll County (N.H.) -- Genealogy Inventory of the County Archives of New Hampshire. No. 2, Carroll County (Ossipee), 1939 text Inventory of the County Archives of New Hampshire. No. 2, Carroll County (Ossipee), 1939 1939 1939 2021 true xt7xwd3q0344 section xt7xwd3q0344  

 

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INVENTORY OF THE COUNTY ARCHIVES

OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

Prepared by
The Historical Records Survey

Division of Women's and Professional Projects
Works Progress Administration

No. 2. CARROLL COUNTY (OSSIPEE)

#***¥

Manchester, New Hampshire
The Historical Records Survey
February 1939

 

    
   
  
   
  
     

The Historical Records Survey

Luther H. Evans, National Director
Richard G. Wood, State Director

Division of Women's and Professional Projects

Florence Kerr, Assistant Administrator
hhry H. Head, State Director

WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION

F. C. Harrington, Administrator
William P. Fahey, State Administrator

 P R E F A C E

The Historical Records Survey was initiated in January 1936 as a
nationvwide undertaking of the Works Progress Administration, but did
not begin operations in New Hampshire until April 7. The Survey was
a part of the Federal Writers' Project until November 20 when it was
set up as a separate unit. The purpose of the Survey is to make ac-
cessible to lawyers, historians, and students of government the rec-
ords of state, county, municipal, and town offices. In conjunction
with this listing of public records, the church records (including those
of defunct organizations) will be inventoried so that the ground work
may be laid for research in this neglected field of social history.

This volume is one of a series of publications by the Historical
Records Survey concerning the local archives of New Hampshire. A
volume on church records has already appeared, and volumes on town rec—
ords will be published by county units. The Historical Records Sur-
vey made the first listing of the Carroll County records in the summer
of 1937; the recheck was in the autumn of that year. The list of
records was brought up to date in August 1938.

"The Inventory of County Archives in New Hampshire will, when com-
pleted, consist of a separate numbered volume for each county in the
state. The units of the series are numbered according to the position
of the county in an alphabetical list of all counties of the state.
Thus, the inventory herewith presented for Carroll County is No. 2.
The various units of the inventory will be issued in mimeographed form
for free distribution to state and local officials in New Hampshire

and to a number of libraries and governmental agencies outside the
state."

The Survey wishes to express its appreciation for the cooperation
received from Carroll County officials, and especially to ur. Preston
Smart, who has at all time evinced a lively interest in this work.

The Survey is further indebted to the Secretary of State and the At-
torney-General for information received. The Works Progress Adminis-
tration of New Hampshire has frequently come to the aid of the Survey.

Requests for information concerning publications should be ad-
dressed to the state director, Hoyt Administration Building, Manches—
ter, New Hampshire.

Richard G. Wood
State Director
February TS, 1939 The Historical Records Survey

 

 F O R E W O R D

The Inventory of the County Archives of New Hampshire is one of a
number of bibliographies of historical materials prepared throughout
the United States by workers on the Historical Records Survey of the
Works Progress Administration. The publication herewith presented, an
inventory of the archives of Carroll County,is number 2 of the New
Hampshire series.

The Historical Records Survey was undertaken in the winter of
1935n36 for the purpose of providing useful employment to needy unem—
ployed historians, lawyers, teachers, and research and clerical workers.
In carrying out this objective, the project was organized to compile
inventories of historical materials, particularly the unpublished govern-
ment documents and records which are basic in the administration of lo—
cal government, and which provide invaluable data for students of po-
litical, economic, and social history. The archival guide herewith
presented is intended to meet the requirements of day-to-day adminis-
tration by the officials of the county, and also the needs of lawyers,
business men and other citizens who require facts from the public rec-
ords for the proper conduct of their affairs. The volume is so de-
signed that it can be used by the historian in his research in un-
printed sources in the same way he uses the library card catalog for
printed sources.

The inventories produced by the Historical Records Survey attempt
to do more than give merely a list of records— -they attempt further to
sketch in the historical background of the county or other unit of
government, and to describe precisely and in detail the organization
and functions of the government agencies whose records they list. The
county, town, and other local inventories for the entire country will,
when completed, constitute an encyclopedia of local government as well
as a bibliography of local archives.

The successful conclusion of the work of the Historical Records
Survey, even in a single county, would not be possible without the sup-
port of public officials, historical and legal specialists, and many
other groups in the community. Their cooperation is gratefully acknow-
lodged.

The Survey was organized and has been directed by Luther H. Evans,
and operates as a nation-wide project in the Division of Women's and
Professional Projects, of which Mrs. Florence Kerr, Assistant Adminis-
trator, is in charge.

F. C. HARRINGTON
Administrator

 

       

II.

III.

IV.

VI.

VII.
VIII.

 

O N T E N T S

 

T A B L E O F C

A. Carroll County and its Records System

Historical Sketch.
Settlement Map of Carroll County ,m, I-..
Original Counties of New Hampshire 1771
(After Belknap) .
Boundary Changes of Carroll County
Governmental Organization and Records System ----------
Chart of Carroll County Offices in 1842
Chart of Carroll County Offices 1938-

Housing, Care, and Accessibility of the Records www..~~wmww“

Recommendations .
Abbreviations, Symbols, and Explanatory Notes

B. County Offices and their Records

County Convention

County Commissioners
Minutes and Reports. Velfare. Direct Relief;
Old Age Assistance—Blind Aid; Paupers; Bills and
Orders; Miscellaneous. Financial. Miscellane-
ous.

Clerk of the Superior Court - , v
Court Dockets. Judgments. Court Documents.
Venires. Executions. Littimus. Writs and
Warrants. Naturalization. Petitions and Orders.
Wills. Court Proceedings. .ttachmcnt of Proper—
t.. Elections, “.ptointments, Oaths . r‘inancial.
Adiustrent of Tiiles aid Accounts. Car
and Lice nscs.

Justices of the Peace {Trial Justices)

Register 01‘ Deeds u. , v -
Deeds. Trits of attach.ont. Maps and Plans.
Sales of Real Estate. Petitions and Reports.
Miscellaneous.

R;gister of Probate
Probate Court , V ,. ..
chiste r of Probatc- , a, ...m
Probate Dockets. Probe to Documents l"ills.
Inventories. Homestead. Assignment of Real
Estate. Real Estate Transfer. Accounts.
Petitions and Licenses: Administration; Adoption
and Change of Name; Real Estate Sale. Probate
Bonds. Miscellaneous.

..-:H J,
ClIlCiCES

Sheriff ..................................................................... , ............................................................... . .................
Medical Referee (Coroner) .. . H ”m
Solicitor ............................................. . .......................... w. ......................................................

lO

----- 108
~119
...... 124

    
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
   
 
  
  
    
  
     
  
  
  
  
   
   
    
  
   
    
 
 

Page

0.7

12
‘13
14
15

17
20

33

74

90

97

  

 Table of Contents

X. Treasursrl , . .,. ,, H ”,.N , H

Authorization to Borrow Money. Receipts

and Payments. Notes and BondBcPayrolls,

Chocks, Bank Statements. Miscellaneous.
Auditors,WMWMHmmemWUW.MMmmm.thmm.mum.mmmummmmmnmmmnmm.”mimm
Superintendent of the County Farm

Mittimusos and Writs. Prisoners, Inmates,

Children, Paupers. Finger Prints. Petitions.

Inventories. Financial. Miscellaneous.

Scalar of Weights and Measures

Chronological Index to Records .u mww.h,u V.“,H‘ .mnmmm,mm
Subject Index to Inventorymnv thmwum wwmwmmwwmwmwmwwmuwnmm

 

 (First entry, p. 20)

A. CARROLL COUNTY AND ITS RECORDS SYSTEM
1. HISTORICAL SKETCH

In 1642 Darby Field “Went to the top of the white hill"l(ascended
Mount washington). In his journey to this lofty peak of the White
Mountains, Field traversed the territory now known as Carroll County.
Later in the same year "Mr. Gorge and Mr. Vines"2 paddled up the Saco
River in birch canoes, and, in their wanderings, Visited the Carroll
County region.

The principal Indian tribes of this locality were the Sokokis,
the Pequawkets, and the Ossipees, all of which were branches of the
Abnaki. Early settlement was prohibited by Indian activity. One of
the fiercest Indian battles in colonial history was the Lovewell Fight
(1725) which occurred in Maine near the present Carroll County line.
Captain John Lovewell lead a small band of soldiers northward to at—
tack the chief village of the Pequawkets in what is new Fryeburg,
Maine. While advancing from a fort which they had hastily construc—
ted on the shore of Ossipee Lake, Lovewell and his men encountered
the Indians. Although neither side was entirely victorious in the re-
sulting battle, it was the cause of a withdrawal from that general
vicinity of many of the Indians, and settlement of the region became
less dangerous. Once begun, the work of settlement advanced rapidly.
Sandwich, Moultonborough, Conway, and other places were colonized at
about the same time in 1763, 1764, and 1765.

Yet this rapidity of settlement did not mean that all obstacles
had been removed or that no difficulties remained. The early settlers
of the Carroll region underwent the same hardships which pioneers en-
dured elsewhere. Benjamin Copp, a pioneer of Jackson, is reputed to
have gone "ten miles to mill, with a bushel of corn on his shoulders,
and never [taken7 it off from the time he started from his door till
he put it down in the mill."4

Of these early settlers of the region which became Carroll County,
it has been written:

"Many times, when by their industry and hard work the settlers
had accumulated provisions for the future, the bears would come down
upon them and steal their pigs or anything else they could take.

Meal and water and dried fish without salt Was often their diet for
days, when game was shy, or storms prevented hunting * * *

"As soon as possible * * * they [Eadg7 arrangements for the
preaching of the gospel and the education of their children. A primi—
tive structure of rough logs was rolled up for a schoolhouse. This
was lighted by an occasional pane of glass; and here their religious
services were often held * * *.

 

1. Hosmer, J. K. (editor), Winthro '8 Journal, (N. Y., 1908L 2:62—63.

2. Thomas Gorges, Deputy Governor, and Richard Vines, Councilor, of
the Province of Maine.

3. Hosmer, J. K., op. cit., 2:85-86.

4. Willey, B. 0., Incidents in White Mountains, (Boston, 1856), 168.

 

 - 4 -
Historical Sketch (First entry, p.20)

"The dress of these pioneers was * * * of their own manufac-
ture. The women were obliged to work very industriously, so many
duties devolved upon them. Many of them would work from eighteen to
twenty hours a day. They would card and spin the wool from their
sheep, weave and color it * * * then cut and make their plain
garments. * * * Before they raised sheep, the men were garments of
mooseskin, and towcloth was also used largely for both men and
women * * *."S

This region was first included within the boundaries of Strafford
County, but in 1840 Carroll and Belknap Counties were set off from
Strafford and incorporated by legislative act.6

The name of Carroll was chosen in commemoration of Charles
Carroll of Carrollton,7 the distinguished Maryland aristocrat and
signer of the Declaration of Independence. Although educated in
Europe and a man of wealth, he championed the cause of the patriots
before and during the American Revolution. At various times he served
as a member of the committees of correspondence and observation, the
provincial convention, the constitutional convention, the maryland
Senate, the Continental Congress, and the United States Senate.

The towns comprising Carroll County (1840) consisted of Albany,
Brookfield, Chatham, Conway, Eaton, Effingham, Freedom, Moulton—
borough, Ossipee, Sandwich, Tamworth, Tuftonboro, Wakefield, and Wolfe-
bore.

In 1841 an act adjusted the boundary line between the new counties
of Carroll and Belknap. By this act, all lands and waters lying north
of a certain line and between that line and the towns of Moultonv
borough, Tuftonboro, and Wolfeboro were to belong to Carroll County;
the line thus referred to "beginning at the easterly termination of
the line dividing the towns of Meredith and Moultonborough; thence
running easterly to the southerly point of Long Island in Winnipi—
sseogee lake; thence easterly to the southerly point of Parker‘s
island; thence easterly to the westerl termination of the line divid-
ing the towns of Wblfeboro and Alton." The tOWn of Eaton was divided
in 1852, and from its western section a new town was incorporated and
named Madison in honor of President Madison.lo In January 1853, ll
Bartlett, Jackson, and Harts Location were annexed from Coos County;
and later in that same year Hales Location was also annexed from Coos
County.12 A further adjustment of the line between Carroll and Belknap
Counties Was made in 1897, when certain islands in Lake Winnipesaukee
were assigned to towns of Carroll County and certain ones to towns of
Belknap County.13

 

5. Merrill, Georgia Drew, History of Carroll County, (Boston, 1889),
53-54.

6. New Hampshire Laws of 1840, ch. DXXXIX.

7. Merrill, Georgia Drew, 22' cit., 2.

8. New Hampshire Laws of 1840, ch. DXXXIX.

9. New Hampshire Lawa of 1841, ch. DXXI.

10. New Hampshire Laws of 1852, ch. 1287.

11. Ibid., ch. 1290.

12. New Hampshire Laws of 1853, ch. 1425.

13. New Hampshire Laws of 1897, ch. 199.

 

 Historical Sketch (First entry, p.20)

Mountains, lakes, and streams diversify the scenery of Carroll
County. Its two principal mountain ranges are the Ossipee and the
Sandwich Ranges, the latter featured by Mount Israel, Sandwich Dome,
Whiteface, Passaconaway, Paugus, and rugged Chocorua.

The best known lake within the interior of Carroll County is
Chocorua, at the base of the mountain peak of that same name. Winni—
pesaukee lies at its southern boundary. The history of navigation on
this ”inland sea” is an interesting one14 and dates from the early
eighteen-hfindreds. Previous to that time the greatest difficulty was
experienced in transporting goods to the Carroll County region from
the seaports of Dover and Portsmouth. At last, however, a road was
built from Dover to Alton Bay, from which supplies Were to be distri-
buted in boats. A huge flat-bottomed craft known as the old "Gunda-
low" boat was built to carry goods and passengers across the lake to
their various points of destination. This boat was propelled by
sail with the advantage of favorable winds, otherwise by large oars;
it was wrecked on Great Boat Ledge after a few years.

During 1830-33 a stock company built a steamboat, the Belkna ,
about a hundred feet long. "The engine was in no way in proportion
to the size of the boat, in headwinds hardly able to hold its own, and
making a noise that could be heard for miles."15 In 1841 this boat was
wrecked on Steamboat Island. At least twenty-five boats have plied
the waters of the Winnipesaukee. The Mount washington, built in 1872,
still does its annual service on the lake each summer.

Among the rivers that add picturesqueness to the Carroll County
landscape are the Saco which falls "in the green lap of Conway‘s
intervales," on its way to Maine and the Atlantic; and the Bearcamp
which traces its course by rapids and broad meadows from Bearcamp Pond
in Sandwich to Ossipee Lake. To the sylvan scenes of the valley of
the Bearcamp came John Greenleaf Whittier in those calm later years,
when the storm and stress of the anti-slavery agitation had become a
memory of the past, and the conscience of the Quaker poet could allow
him to write poetry for the sake of creating something of beauty, rather
than for the sake of furthering a cause. The land of the "Bearcamp
Water" furnished the inspiration for "Among the Hills." Other poems
of Whittier with a Carroll County setting were “Sunset on the Bear-
camp," "Voyage of the Jettie," "The Hill-Top," and “Mary Garvin."

The interest in handicrafts, which with the coming of the machine
age, lapsed in Carroll County as elsewhere, had a decided revival in
the last ten or twelve years. In 1926 an exhibition was held of some
handw0ven rugs in Sandwich. This exhibition was widely attended, and
it was so successful that the Sandwich Historical Society decided to
start a sort of clearing house for home products. A salesroom was
opened where people brought hand-made products which the Sandwich Home
Industries, as this new enterprise was called, sold at a small com-
mission in order to meet necessary expenses. This idea spread to

 

14. Merrill, Georgia Drew, op. cit., 69-72.
15. Ibid., 69.

 

 \. ~

- 5 -
Historical Sketch (First entry, p.20)

other communities, and resulted in the formation of the New Hampshire
League of Arts and Crafts which won an annual appropriation from the
legislature. Headquarters Were established at Concord. 6 One result
of the activities of the New Hampshire League of Arts and Crafts was
a renewed interest in sheep-raising, since it was discovered that
there was a demand for hand—made woolen products. The League of Arts
and Crafts is new active throughout the state, but the impetus for
the enterprise came from Carroll County.

There are no cities in Carroll County; the town of Ossipee is the
county seat. Carroll County is bounded on the north by Coos County;
on the east by the Maine counties of York and Oxford; on the south by
Belknap and Strafford Counties and Lake Winnipesaukoe; and on the West
by Coos and Grafton Counties. According to the 1930 census, the pop-
ulation was 14,277. Carroll is the smallest of New Hampshire's
counties in population. Each of the last three censuses has shown a

decrease. The largest tOWn is Conway which had a population of 3,217
in 1930.17

 

16. Hillyer, Laurie, "Sheep Keep the Wolf Away," in Yankee, November,
1935., 47-48.

17. New Hampshire manual for the General Court 1937, 56.

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CARROLL COUNTY

g 1764—1775

SETTLEMENT MAP OF

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 ORIGINAL COUNTIES OF NEW HAMPSHIRE 1771
J. BELKNAP, HISTORY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 BOUNDARY CHANGES OF
CARROLL COUNTY

E22223 CARROLL COUNTY AS

ESTABLISHED IN 1840

Egééég ANNEXATIONS FROM
COOS COUNTY 1853

TUUN OF WATERVILLE
TAKEN FROM STRAFFORD
AND CONSTITUTED AS
PART OF GRAFTON COUNTY
IN 1829

 

 

 .w _..- .w..-

- 10 _
(First entry, p.20)

2. GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION AND RECORDS SYSTEM

When Carroll County was incorporated (1840), there were few of-
fices which are now archaic, since experimentation in county govern—
ment belongs largely to the periods preceding 1840. The deviations
from that time to the present have been relatively minor, and con-
cerned mostly with details rather than general principles.

The removal of all jurisdiction from the parent county of Straf’
ford to the newly created county of Carroll was not immediate, since
the act of incorporation stated that the probate court in Strafford
should settle all unfinished business, that taxes for 1840 should be
collected by Strafford and that prisoners should continue to be jailed
in Strafford until the new county should build a jail. The act of in-
corporation provided, however, that the new county should have a judge
of probate, register of probate, sheriff, register of deeds, and
treasurer, chosen as in the other counties. Furthermore, the act
authorized the Carroll County Convention, and the holding, within the
confines of this county, of a superior court of judicature and a court
of common pleas. The courts were to appoint their clerks.

By 1842, in addition to the above named officers, this county had
a solicitor, sealer, three road commissioners, eleven deputy sheriffs,
and eleven coroners. There were also justices of the peace, the number
varying from three in Albany to twenty-four in Wolfeboro.

A few changes have occurred since that time. Road commissioners
have given way to county commissioners. The latter were authorized by
legislative act in 1855 to be elected in 1856.20 ,Coroners were re—
placed by a medical referee in 1903.21 The office of sealer of weights
and measures (county sealer) was abolished by law as a county office
in 1919.22 The office of justice of the peace (trial justice) has dimin—
ished in importance. Only seven towns in the entire state are of-
ficially listed as having this office. Only one of these towns is in
Carroll County (Sandwich),23 and even in this town, a vacancy exists
at the present time.24 This is a county office only in the sense that
the law contains a provision for the records to be filed with the clerk
of the superior court—~in the event of the justice removing from his
county.25

County auditors, appointed by the convention, were provided for
by state law in the 1870'8526 and Carroll County had this office as
early, at least, as 1875.27 The official in charge of the county farm
was termed "superintendent" by 1876.

 

18. New Hampshire Laws of 1840, ch. DXXXIX.

19. New Hampshire Register 1842, 31—55.

20. New Hampshire Laws of 1855, ch. l659, secs. 37, 38.

21. New Hampshire Laws of 1903, ch. 134; New Hampshire Register 1903,
288, 290.

22. New Hampshire Laws of 1919, ch. 149, sec. 3.

23. New Hampshire manual for the General Court 1937, 427.

24. Statement of Deputy Secretary of State, November 7, 1938.

25. Public Laws of New Hampshire, ch. 322.

26. New Hampshire Laws of 1872, ch. 43.

27. Carroll County Report 1878, 14-15.

28. Ibid., 3.

 

 - 11 -
Governmental Organization (First entry, p.20)
and Records System

The present Carroll County officers consist of auditors; clerk of
the superior court; county commissioners; register of deeds; judge of
probate; register of probate; sheriff; deputy sheriffs; solicitor;
superintendent of the county farm, house of correction, and jail;
treasurer; and medical referee. The sheriff, solicitor, treasurer,
register of deeds, register of probate, and commissioners are elected
biennially.29 The judge of probate is appointed b the Governor and
Council;30 the medical referee, by the Governor.3 The superintendent
of the county farm owes his appointment to the county commissioners.32
Two auditors, one from each of the two leading political parties, are
appointed by the sugcrior court,33 which also appoints the clerk of
the superior court. 4 Deputy sheriffs receive their appointment from
the sheriff.35
Records. The manner in which volumes are bound is excellent in the
office of the register of probate. Although there are some old index
volumes that might be rebound, this is not to be recommended, since
these volumes have been copied and it would only be an unnecessary
expense for the county to have the originals rebound. All records in
the probate office are easily accessible to the researcher. The
present unbound dockets system facilitates consultation. The efficient
conduct of this office and its fine equipment are particularly worthy
of notice.

The care with which the plan books in the register of deeds'
office are brought up to date is only one illustration of the effective-
ness of the record-keeping system of the register.

Certain file drawers in the office of the clerk of court might
well be indexed; otherwise, the record-keeping system of this office
is excellent.

While the manner of filing records in the county commissioners'
office may not seem perfectly systematic to persons unfamiliar with
that office, yet it appears to be entirely adequate, so far as the
actual needs of the commissioners are concerned. The increase of re-
lief cases during the past decade has increased disproportionately, for
that time, the volume of the commissioners‘ records.

In summation, it may be said that the Carroll County records, as
a whole, are wall kept.

 

29. New Hampshire Manual for the General Court 1937, 430—431.
30. Ibid., 420.

31. New Hampshire Laws of 1903, ch. 134.

32. Public Laws of New Hampshire, ch. 38.

33. l§l§-’ ch. 35.

34. New Hampshire Manual for the General Court 1937, 421.

35. Public Lawe of New Hampshire, ch. 324.

 

 .w. _. -l..-

 

 

SUPERIOR COURT OF
JUDICATURE AND COURT

OF COMMON PLEAS

 

 

 

CLERK OF SUPERIOR COURT

OF JUDICATURE AND COURT
OF COMMON PLEAS

 

 

 

SOLICITOR

 

 

GOVERNOR

AND

COUNCIL

 

SEALER

 

 

SHERIFF

 

 

CORONERS

 

 

JUDGE OF PROBATE

 

 

 

AN NU AL

MARCH

ELECTION

REGISTER OF PROBATE

 

 

 

TREASURER

 

 

 

 

REGISTER OF DEEDS

 

 

 

 

 

 

ROAD COMMISSIONERS

 

 

 

 

 

COUNTY CONVENTION
(Composed of members of
the lower house of the
legislature)

 

 

 

ll DEPUTY SHERIFFS

 

 

Zfi8I NI SEOIJJO AENROO TIOHHVD JO LHVHO

Elected
Appointed ———————————

-ZI—

 

  

GOVERNOR AND
5 COUNCIL MEMBERS

 

 

 

l CLERK OF THE
JUSTICES OF SUPERIOR

COURT (Terms until (Indefinite)
70 years of age)

 

 

COUNTY CONVENTION
2 years

(Composed of 15 mem- _ A l MEDICAL REFEREE*

bers of the lower 5 years

house of the legis-
lature)

 

 

2 AUDITORS
1 year

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUDGE or PROBATE
1 REGISTER OF DEEDS (Term until 70
2 years years of age)

 

 

 

 

 

NOVEMBER
1 REGISTER OF PROBATE

BIENNIAL 2 years

 

ELECTION

 

1 SOLICITOR
2 years

 

 

 

 

 

l TREASURER
2 years

 

 

886T SEOIEJO ALNOOO TTOHHVO d0 EHVHO

 

DEPUTY SHERIFFS
2 years
(Number Varies)

1 SHERIFF
2 years

 

 

 

 

l SUPERINTENDENT OF
THE COUNTY FARM,
HOUSE OF CORRECTION,
AND JAIL
(Indefinite)

3 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
2 years

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elected
Appointed _________

* Appointed by Governor
only

 

 - 14 _
(First entry, p. 20)

3. HOUSING, CARE, AND ACCESSIBILITY OF THE RECORDS

In 1839, the Strafford County delegation decided to build a court-
house in the northern section of that county. Quick action by Asa
Beacham, the representative from Ossipee, secured the new courthouse
for that town. The new building was available for use in 1840, the
year Carroll County was organized; thus, the new county began with a
courthouse already provided. This was a two story building surmounted
by a belfry.36 A fire destroyed this courthouse in 1915; but records
were kept in brick vaults and were not destroyed.

In that same year, the county delegation voted for the building
of a new courthouse on the old courthouse lot, and on parcels of ad-
jacent land deeded to the county for that purpose by citizens of
Ossipee, who also guaranteed installation of an ample water system for
the courthouse and for fire needs.37 This courthouse was completed in
1916. The section of the building where most of the records are kept
is regarded as fireproof. A colonial perch adds to the attractiveness
of the structure. The dimensions of the building are approximately
140,000 cubic feet.

Located on the first floor are the offices of the clerk of court
(23' x 17' x 10‘) and the register of deeds (23' x 17‘ x 10') on the
second floor, the offices of the register of probate (22' x 16' x 9')
and the county commissioners (22' x 16' x 9‘).

In the offices of the clerk of court, the register of deeds, and
register of probate, the records are kept mainly on metal adjustable
shelving; in the office of the county commissioners, records are kept
on metal shelving and in metal and Wooden files. All of these offices
are electrically lighted and well ventilated. The regular office
equipment is available to users.

Since excellent modern conditions prevail in the above offices,
it is fortunate that most of their records are kept there. A few of
the older records, however, are stored in the attic; some of the
superior court printed dockets are found in the courthouse library.

The second major county depository is the county farm. In 1869,
the county commissioners bought two farms about a mile from the
Ossipee station, located on a height of land, with an excellent View.
The citizens of Ossipee contributed approximately $1,000 of the
$5,500 purchase money. The house was built in 1870. A barn was con-
structed in 1874; burned in 1884, but replaced in 1885. In the mean-
while (1871), a jail had been built as an annex to the county farm
hOUSGoBB In 1903, the county delegation voted to erect a new building,
including a jail, at the county farm.39_The county farm buildings, ex—
cept the brick jail, are constructed of wood, and a sprinkler system
has been installed to guard against fire hazards. The dimensions of
the main building are approximately 70,000 cubic feet.

 

36. khrrill, Georgia Drew, 0 . cit., 240—241.

37. MS. Carroll County (Delegation Records), 1:101—108.
38. Merrill, Georgia Drew, op. cit., 241.

39. MS. Carroll County (Delegation Records), 1:60.

 

 _ 15 _
Abbreviations, Symbols, and (First entry, p. 20)
Explanatory Notes

Records are kept in metal files in the superintendent's private
office (16' x 13‘ X 9‘) first floor, and in a closet in the first wait-
ing room, first floor. Typical modern conditions prevail in the super-
intendent's office, and the working equipment is available to users.
Records not found at the county farm are located in the county com-
missioners' office, and the attic, at the courthouse.

Records of the treasurer are located in the office of the county
commissioners and the attic of the courthouse. The sheriff‘s records
are deposited with those of the clerk of court at the Courthouse.
Recommendations. The county officials deserve praise for their use of
excellent modern equipment, including metal adjustable shelving. A few
minor additions, however, are to be recommended. The clerk of court
needs some additional filing space; more space for probate papers will
soon be required by the register of probate; the county treasurer
should have a metal filing cabinet for such records as he keeps in his
private office. Additional filing cabinets are needed by the super—
intendent of the county farm to do away with the necessity of keeping
some of the records in a closet. If the practice of keeping reacrds
in the courthouse attic is to be continued, filing cabinets should be
installed there.

4. ABBREVIATIONS, SYMBOLS, AND EXPLANATORY NOTES

alph. ................................alphabetical(ly)

approx. ..................... ...... ...approximate(ly)
arr. ........ ..... ........... ..... ....arranged (arrangement)
aver. ................................average

bsmt. ................................basement

ch(s). ...............................chapter(s)

chron. ....... ........ ................chronological(ly)

comm. .................... ..... .......commissioners (county)

hdw. .................................handwritten (in ink)

ibid. ................................ibidem (in the same
place)

id. ..................................idem (the same; the
same as above)

L. ...................................Library

MS(S). ...............................hanuscript(s)

N.H.H.S. .... .