State ex rel. Hiles v. Bd. of Sup'rs of Wood Co.

• Decision Date: 14 October 1884
• Citation: 61 Wis. 278,21 N.W. 55
• Parties: STATE EX REL. HILES v. BOARD OF SUP'RS OF WOOD CO.
• Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court

61 Wis. 278

21 N.W. 55

STATE EX REL. HILES

v.BOARD OF SUP'RS OF WOOD CO.

Supreme Court of Wisconsin.

Filed October 14, 1884.

Certiorari.L. P. Powers and J. M. Morrow, for plaintiff in error.

Geo. L. Williams and Geo. R. Gardner, for defendant in error.

LYON, J.

A writ of certiorari was issued out of this court to the board of supervisors of Wood county, upon the petition of George Hiles, to bring here for review the proceedings and ordinance of that board in the matter of vacating the town of Dexter, in such county. This court exercises its original jurisdiction herein, because it appears that the judge of the Seventh judicial circuit has property affected by such ordinance, and the public interests require an early and authorative adjudication of the matters involved in the case. The case has been heard on the petition of the relator, and the return of the defendant in error thereto. It appears from such petition and return that the board of supervisors of Wood county, at a legal meeting thereof, passed an ordinance, which was afterwards duly published, in which, in the first section thereof, it vacated the town of Dexter, theretofore one of the organized towns of Wood county. By each of the four sections next following, a part of the territory of the vacated town is attached to and made a part of an adjoining organized town. The whole territory formerly included in Dexter was thus disposed of. The ordinance contained other sections for disposing of the records and property of the vacated town, not material to the determination of this case. The ordinance was passed by a vote in its favor of more than a majority of all the members entitled to seats in such county board, as required by Rev. St. § 670, but none of the requirements of section 671, in respect to the division of towns, were complied with. The only question to be determined is, do the requirements of section 671 apply to the case? We are clearly of the opinion that they do not.

The powers of county boards of supervisors to set off, organize, vacate, and change the boundaries of towns are legislative in their character, and are conferred by authority of article 4, § 23, of the constitution. Those powers are limited only by the provisions of the statute. The only limitation or condition imposed by the statute on the power to vacate towns is that a town shall not be vacated unless a majority of all the members elected to seats in the county board shall so decide. Rev. St. 239, § 670. In this case such majority of the board did decide to vacate the town of Dexter. But...