In English law . Originally, a vill or tithing; but now a generic term, which comprehends under it the several species of cities, boroughs, and common towns. I Bl. Comm. 114. In American law . A civil and political division of a state, varying in extent and im- portance, but usually one of the divisions of a county. In the New England states, the town is the political unit, and is a municipal corporation . In some other states, where the county is the unit, the town is merely one of its subdivisions, but possesses some powers of local self-government. In still other states, such subdivisions of a county are called “townships,” aud “town” is the name of a village, borough, or smaller city. See Herrman v. Guttenberg, 62 N. J. Law, 605, 43 Atl. 703; Van Riper v. Parsons, 40 N. J. Law, 1; State v. Denny, 118 Ind. 449, 21 N. E 274, 4 L. R. A. 65; Sessions v. State, 115 Ga. 18, 41 S. E. 259; Milford v. Godfrey, 1 Pick. (Mass.) 97; Enfield v. Jordan, 119 U. S. 6S0, 7 Sup. Ct. 35S, 30 L. Ed. 523; Rogers v. Galloway Female College, 64 Ark. 027, 44 S. W. 454, 39 L. R. A. 030; Railway Co. v. Oconto, 50 Wis. 189, 0 N. W. 007, 30 Am. Rep. 840; Lovejoy v. Foxcroft, 91 Me. 307, 40 Atl. 141; Bloomfield v. Charter Oak Bank, 121 U. S. 121, 7 Sup. Ct. 805, 30 L. Ed. 923; Lynch v. Rutland, 66 Vt 570, 29 Atl. 1015.
Black’s Law Online Dictionary
