Chapter 13.3 Towns, Townships and Villages

Town Government Smaller political units within counties are called towns in New England and townships in the Midwest and elsewhere. Areas within towns or townships may be incorporated into villages. In New England, town gov’ts handle most community needs while counties are mainly judicial districts. In other states, townships and counties share authority, or there may be no townships at all.

continued In the New England Colonies, colonists met regularly to discuss issues. These town meetings, a form of direct rather than representative democracy, became the local gov’t. New England states still have a town form of gov’t. Residents meet once a year to discuss what the town should be doing.

continued Town meetings occur so rarely that they are useful only for broad policymaking. For everyday gov’t, each New England town elects a group of “selectmen” and sometimes a clerk, treasurer and tax assessor. Direct democracy has become impractical. Some New England towns now use representative town meetings. Others have eliminated meetings and instead have a town council to run the gov’t.

Township Governments Townships are smaller than New England towns but have similar gov’ts. As the U.S. expanded west in the early 19 th century, Congress divided the unsettled land into six-mile squares. The settlers set up local gov’ts called civil townships. Midwestern townships today still have the original square borders.

continued Most townships elect a small township committee, board of supervisors or board of trustees to act as a legislature and administer services. Villages, the smallest local units, almost always lie within the boundaries of other local gov’ts.

continued Residents may request permission from the state to incorporate as a village, city or town if they are dissatisfied with the services of the township or county. They may want to control their own police force, library or recreational facilities.

continued Most village gov’ts consist of a small board of elected trustees. Some also elect an executive called the chief burgess, president of the board, or mayor. Large villages may hire a professional city manager.

continued The village board may collect taxes and spend the money on projects such as streets, public libraries and recreational facilities. Village residents often pay higher taxes to support the extra layer of gov’t. In return, they usually get better services.