Just over 100 years ago, on January 10th, 1919, Montana House Bill 9 was introduced in the Montana House of Representatives, courtesy of Representative Frank T. Kelsey, a rancher from Moorhead, and Representative for Custer County.
The bill, written by Albert W. Heidel, laid out a plan for the formation of Powder River County, which would break off from Custer County.
Over the next two months, debate would ensue in the legislature regarding the bill, until it would eventually become law on March 7, 1919, forming what we now know as Powder River County, MT.
In our continuing coverage of the county’s formation, we’ve printed the bill in its entirety here. This was made possible through the tireless help of the Montana Historical Society.
House Bill 9
“An Act to Create the County of Powder River, Designate Its Boundaries and Provide for Its Organization and Government, and to Change the Boundaries of Custer County to Conform Thereto.”
Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Montana:
Section 1. That all that portion of the State of Montana embraced within the following boundaries shall be known as, and shall be, Powder River County in the State of Montana, to-wit:
Beginning at the intersection of the Montana Base Line with the Range line between Ranges Fifty-four (54) and Fifty-five (55); thence due South along the Range line between Ranges Fifty-four (54) and Fifty-five (55) to its intersection with the Montana-Wyoming State boundary line; thence due West along the Montana-Wyoming State boundary line to its inter-section with the Range line between Ranges Forty-four (44) and Forty-five (45); thence due North along the Range line between Ranges Forty-four (44) and Forty-five (45) to the point of intersection with the Montana Base Line; thence due East along the Montana Base Line to the point of beginning.
Section 2. That for judicial purposes the said County of Powder River shall be attached to, and become a part of, the Sixteenth Judicial District of the State of Montana.
Section 3. That the temporary county seat of said County of Powder River shall be selected and designated in the manner provided by the provisions of Chapter 135 of the Acts of the Twelfth Legislative Assembly of the State of Montana, approved March 9th, 1911.
Section 4. All laws of a general nature applicable to the several counites of the State of Montana, and all offices thereof shall be made applicable to the said county of Powder River, and the officers who may hereafter be elected or appointed therein, except as otherwise provided in this Act.
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Section 5. It shall be duty of the person herein-after appointed to the office of County Commissioners of said County of Powder River by this Act, to meet at the town of Olive in said County of Powder River within fifteen (15) days after the passage and approval of this Act, and then and there organize as a Board of County Commissioners, by electing one of their number as Chairman.
Section 6. That all indebtedness of Custer County, as the same shall exist on the first day of April, 1919, shall be apportioned between the County of Custer and the County of Powder River by first deducting from said indebtedness the amount of all moneys on hand and the amount of all moneys belonging to said Custer County and also deducting the value of all real and personal property within or belonging to said Custer County on the first day of April, 1919, and the remainder of said indebtedness shall be apportioned between the respective counties in proportion to the amount of taxable property in Custer County, the taxable property in Powder River County and heretofore within the boundaries of Custer County; said amount of taxable property to be ascertained and said apportionment and valuation of the county property to be made by a commission consisting of the Board of County Commissioners of Custer County and Powder River County and the Judge of the Sixteenth Judicial District of the State of Montana, which said commission shall meet at the Court House in Miles City on the first Monday in April, 1919, and shall take as a standard for said apportionment of indebtedness the assessment of the year 1918, as determined by the Board of Equalization of said Custer County.
Section 7. That the Treasurers of said counties of Custer and Powder River shall at the time of the adjustment, as provided in this Act, make out and transmit to the County Commissioners of Powder River County a list of all delinquent taxes and amounts of uncollected taxes within the limits of Powder River County as above defined; provided that no delinquent taxes due the County of Custer shall be considered in the adjustment of the debt as hereinbefore provided; but it shall be the duties of the treasurers of Custer and Powder River Counties to collect such delinquent taxes as shall be due said county, and to turn over, within thirty days after making such collection, to the treasurer of Powder River County a pro rata share of such taxes as he may be able to collect.
It is further provided that should there be a surplus of funds in the hands of the treasurer of Custer County after the adjustment hereinbefore provided, said surplus shall be divided between the counties of Custer and Powder River, in the same manner as herein provided for dividing the indebtedness.
Section 8. That upon the adjustment of said indebtedness is shall be the duty of the County Commissioners of Powder River County to cause to be made out, issued and delivered to the County Commissioners of Custer County warrants for any amounts found due said county, which warrants upon presentation shall be endorsed by the treasurer of Custer County, “Not paid for want of funds,” and shall thereafter draw interest as other county warrants.
Section 9. The County Commissioners of the County of Powder River, for the purpose of paying any of the indebtedness which may be incurred, by reason of assuming any of the indebtedness of the County of Custer are hereby authorized and empowered to cause to be issued and to sell at not less than par the bonds of the said County of Powder River in an amount to said indebtedness so incurred, in the manner provided by law for the issuing sale of county bonds.
Section 10. It is hereby made the duty of the County Treasurer of Custer County to transfer and pay over on or before the first day of August, 1919, all moneys in said County of Custer to the credit of school districts embraced within the limits of said County of Powder River as may have been hereby taken from the said County of Custer, which said moneys so transferred shall be held by the said County of Powder River to the credit and for the use of the same school districts as they formerly existed.
Section 11. The Board of County Commissioners of Powder River County are hereby empowered and it shall be their duty to provide suitable books and to contract with the lowest responsible bidder for transcribing and indexing the records of the old county or counties all such parts thereof as relate to or affect property or the title thereof, situated the new county , and said records, when so transcribed and certified, as herein provided shall have the same force and effect as such original record; the said County Commissioners shall have full power and authority to contract for transcribing of records as now provided by Law; providing that all chattel mortgages, renewals of chattel mortgages, articles of incorporation, contract notes, sheriff certificates of sale, liens and original affidavits of registration which may affect or relate to property or persons situate within the new county, shall be by the County Clerk of the old county delivered to the County Clerk of the new county and be preserved by said County Clerk of the new county as permanent files of such new county.
The County Clerk of the County of Powder River shall receive for the services in comparing and certifying to the correctness of the copy of said records, Five Dollars ($5.00) per day while engaged in said labor, which amount shall be paid by the County of Powder River upon the completion of said labor.
Section 12. All actions pending in the District Court of the old county for the recovery of the possession of, quieting the title to, or for the enforcement of liens upon, or any other actions affecting real estate lying in the County of Powder River shall, on motion of any party thereto, be transferred to the District Court to which the County of Powder River is attached for judicial purposes, and thereafter shall be subject to the same laws as if said action had been originally brought in the District Court of the County of Powder River. All other actions or special proceedings pending in the District Court of said old county, on motion of any party interest therein, shall be transferred to the District Court of said County of Powder River, and thereafter shall be subject to the same laws as if said action had been originally brought in the District Court of the said County of Powder River.
Section 13. The following named persons are herby appointed to fill the offices as set opposite their names:
County Commissioner… Charles Decker
County Commissioner… J.H. Morris
County Commissioner… W.H. Peays
Sheriff… W.E. Sutter
County Treasurer… A.J. Haley
County Assessor… Charles Lewis
Clerk of the District Court… Herbert Straiton
Clerk and Recorder… F.T. West
County Attorney… N.A. Burkey
County Superintendent of Schools… Winona Lewis
County Surveyor… Frank L. Funkenbusch
Public Administrator… John Rainor
Coroner… W.F. Wilson
All of said officers shall have power and perform the same duties and be entitled to the same privileges as by law conferred on like officers in other counties and shall hold their respective offices until after the next general election, or until their successors are duly elected and qualified; the said officers, however, before entering upon their duties shall severally give bonds and take the oath as required of the county officers of other counties in other counties of this state; and said bonds shall be filed as by law required and approved by the State Auditor.
Section 14. The said County of Powder River shall be designated as a county of the seventh class, and the officers appointed as mentioned herein in Section 13, shall each be allowed to receive as annual compensation as such officers, such salary, compensation and emoluments as are provided by law for officers of counties of the seventh class.
Section 15. That at their first meeting the said Commissioners of Powder River County are empowered to subdivide said county into municipal townships and establish road districts, and they are hereby authorized to appoint two justices of the peace and two constables for each municipal township, and road supervisor for each road district, when required, as provided by the Revised Codes of 1917, of the State of Montana, who shall hold their offices until their successors are elected or appointed and qualified.
All township and precinct officers, road supervisors, officers of school districts and other officers, within and for the County of Powder River, whose election or appointment is not provided for, shall and may continue to hold office and exercise the duties pertaining thereto until the expiration of the term for which said officers were elected or appointed.
Section 16. No court house shall be constructed by the said County of Powder River until the permanent county seat is, as hereinbefore provided, determined.
Section 17. The county boundaries of the County of Custer are hereby altered so as to conform to the boundaries of Powder River County as established by this Act.
Section 18. This Act shall take effect from and after the first day of April, 1919.
This Bill having remained with the Governor five days (Sunday excepted) and the Legislative Assembly being in session, it has become a law without the Governor’s signature, this seventh day of March, A.D. 1919.
C.T. STEWART,
Secretary of State.
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