When towns grow large the town meeting becomes unwieldy and the system
of administration by numerous boards fails to work smoothly. For this
reason some New England towns have recently adopted a “limited town
meeting” system, by which the voters of the town elect delegates to
represent them in the town meeting. A few towns have also abolished the
various administrative boards and have placed town administration in
charge of a town manager appointed by the selectmen.[64]
=The Township.=—In the great group of Central and Middle Western states,
ranging from New York and Pennsylvania to Nebraska and the Dakotas, the
principal area of community government is the township, although it is
sometimes called the town. In the older states these townships (or
towns) are of irregular shape; in several of the newer states the
so-called “congressional” townships were laid out in uniform blocks, six
miles square. In some of the states, both old and new, the towns or
townships have town meetings, as in New England, but nowhere outside of
New England have these meetings attained any great importance. Their
chief function in the Central and Middle Western states is to elect the
town or township officers. The work of township (or town) administration
is carried on either by a board of trustees or by a single official
commonly known as a supervisor. There are also various subordinate
officials, all of whom are usually elected by the voters.
=The County Districts.=—In most states of the South and Far West there
are no townships. The county remains the principal area of local
government, but for the management of various community affairs the
county is divided into districts. There are school districts, road
districts, and election districts, for example. Each district has its
own elective officers who are in charge of the function for which the
district was established.
[Sidenote: Incorporated towns, boroughs, and villages.]
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