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Cecil County Election Districts.
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by Michael L. Dixon
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T
he Society often receives questions on how to locate an election district (ED) or hundred, Cecil's minor political subdivisions. For example, someone recently inquired by e-mail: "Where was the 4th election district in 1820?" You might think Fair Hill, but that is not the case! The County then only had four election districts (EDs) so it was western Cecil along the Susquehanna River. Another question: "Where was South Milford Hundred?" Answer: Land between Elkton and North East.
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In this article, we will offer guidance on locating and using the minor political subdivisions in your research. The political ideas which early colonists brought to Maryland were those they were familiar with in England, and government by counties was the system existing there. In England the county was subdivided into units called hundreds so Maryland counties were also subdivided into hundreds. The name arose from the fact that in early times in England the hundred was an area which was expected to furnish 100 men for military service.
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As for the development of hundreds in Cecil, Johnston's History of Cecil County (1881) says the County was first divided into five hundreds — South Sassafras, North Sassafras, Worten Creek, Bohemia and Elk. In the course of time, when more of the land was taken up and the population had increased it became necessary to subdivide these hundreds for the convenience of inhabitants.
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Johnston further states that in 1770 there were thirteen hundreds in the county. These were North Sassafras, West Sassafras, Bohemia, Middle Neck, Bohemia Manor, Back Creek, North Milford, South Milford, North Susquehanna, South Susquehanna, Elk, Charlestown, and Octorara.
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Perhaps the best official list of hundreds as they exited in the last decade of the eighteenth century is found in the report of the first census taken in 1790. In this census, the inhabitants were listed in fifteen hundreds -- all the old names were retained except Elk. Three new names were added, so that the fifteen hundreds were now: East Nottingham, West Nottingham, Back Creek, Bohemia, Bohemia Manor, Charlestown, East Nottingham, Middle Neck, North Milford, North Sassafras, North Susquehanna, Octoraro, South Milford, South Susquehanna, and West Sassafras (Decennial Census, 1790).
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But, with the counting of the first federal census the days of the hundred as a political unit in the County were numbered. During this period, in order to vote, one had to go to the county seat. With Maryland's interior developing, it was becoming impossible for voters throughout the state to meet in one place in each county on days of election. So in 1798 the General Assembly enacted a law requiring the division of the then nineteen counties of Maryland into EDs in place of hundreds. The act noted the inconvenience of holding elections in only once place in a county, depriving many of their right of suffrage and declared that: "for the purpose of holding all future elections for delegates, electors of the senate and sheriffs . . . the counties shall be divided into separate districts." (Laws of Maryland, 1798) Cecil County was divided into four districts in 1800.
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EDs did not have any particular powers or functions of government except to serve as local polling places and localities for tabulation of votes. The first district was the southern part of Cecil County, south of Back Creek. The second district included that part of the county north of Back Creek and east of a line between North East and Elkton (see map). Western Cecil County along the Susquehanna River made up the fourth district and the third district was the central part of the County (History of Cecil County, 1881) Cecil got along nicely with four election districts during the early part of the nineteenth century, but by the 1830s a demand arose for more districts. Accordingly, in 1835, the legislature appointed a commission of seven citizens to divide the county into seven districts. The commissioners were Joseph Bryan, Henry C. Chamberlain, George Kidd, Patrick Ewing, William Mackey, Thomas S. Thomas and Edward Wilson. In 1836 the commissioners first met and, since Patrick Ewing did not wish to serve, the remaining commissioners appointed Thomas Richards in his place.
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On June 21, 1837, their work was completed and the county was divided into seven districts, Cecilton, Chesapeake City, Elkton, Fair Hill, Charlestown, Port Deposit, and Rising Sun (History of Cecil County, 1881). The First District (Cecilton), the Second (Chesapeake City), and Third (Elkton) have remained exacty as they were. (History of Cecil County, 1881), Voters in the northwest corner of the county petitioned the legislature for a new election district "on account of their distance from Port Deposit and Rising Sun," in 1852 so the eighth district (Conowingo area) was born (Laws of Maryland, 1852). Parts of districts six (Rising Sun) and seven (Port Deposit) were apportioned to a new district, the 8th. In 1856, the subject of new EDs came up for the last time, ac-cording to the records we have been able to locate. Voters in the Calvert area petitioned for a district and accordingly the Legislature authorized the 9th district. It was taken from parts of the fourth (Fair Hill), fifth (North East) and sixth districts (Rising Sun) (Laws of Maryland, 1856).
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The nine EDs of Cecil County are the minor political subdivisions of the County. Their evolution from the original four districts created in 1800 to the present nine was legislated as follows:
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• 1800 — Four Election Districts established
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• 1835 — Seven election districts laid out
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• 1852 — An eighth district, Conowingo, created
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• 1857 — A ninth district (Calvert), the last district, created.
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For some 140 years now, the nine districts have remained unchanged. With this data as a reference, it is possible to locate the general area where a person lived if the hundred or election district is known. One word of caution, though - there is sometimes a lag of a few years between the official designation of the districts and implementation by the official scribes.
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Go to larger images of the minor political subdivisions
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