Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

In force 16th Jan.[January] 1836.

AN ACT to incorporate the Carmi Academy.
1

Company incorporated.

Name and style of incorporation.

Trustees.

Sec.[Section] 1. Be it enacted by the people of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly, That Frederick Wilmans, Thomas Shannor, William Wilson, E. B. Webb, John M. Robinson, Josiah Stewart, Daniel Hay, and James Ratcliff, and their successors, be, and they are hereby created a body politic and corporate, to be styled and known by the name of “The Trustees of the Carmi Academy,” and by that style and name to remain and have perpetual succession. The said academy shall be, and remain at, or near Carmi in the county of White, and state of Illinois. The number of trustees shall not exceed twelve, one of

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whom shall be president of the board, to be chosen by the trustees. For the present, the above named individuals shall constitute the board of trustees, who shall fill the remaining vacancies at their discretion.

Sec. 2. The object of said corporation shall be the promotion of the general interests of education.

Powers of said corporation.

Sue and be sued.

Confer degrees.

Sec. 3. The corporate powers hereby bestowed shall be such only as are essential or useful in the attainment of said object, and such as are usually conferred on similar bodies corporate, to wit: to have a perpetual succession, to make contracts, to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, to grant and receive by its corporate name, and to do all other acts as natural persons may, to accept, acquire, purchase or sell property, real, personal, or mixed, in all lawful ways; to use, employ, manage and dispose of all such property and all money belonging to said corporation, in such manner as shall seem to the trustees best adapted to promote the objects before mentioned; to have a common seal, and to alter or change the same; to make such bye-laws for its regulation as are not inconsistent with the constitution and laws of the United State or of this state, and to confer on such persons as may be considered worthy, such academical or honorary degrees, as are usually conferred by similar institutions.

Course of studies.

Books.

Sec. 4. The trustees of said corporation, shall have authority from time to time, to prescribe and regulate the course of studies to be pursued in said academy, to fix the rate of tuition, and other academical expenses; to appoint instructors, and such other officers and agents, as may be necessary in managing the concerns of the institution; to define their duties, to fix their compensation, and to displace or remove them; to erect necessary buildings; to purchase books, chemical and philosophical apparatus, and other suitable means of instruction; to make rules for the general management of the affairs of the institution, and for the regulation of the conduct of the students.

Vacancies.

Sec. 5. The trustees for the time being, in order to have perpetual succession, shall have power to fill any vacancy which may occur in the board from death, removal, resignation, or any other cause; a majority of the trustees for the time being, shall be a quorum to do business.

Trustess.

Sec. 6. It shall be the duty of said trustees, to appoint one of their number treasurer to the board, who shall be required to give bond with sufficient security, in such penal sum as the board may prescribe, conditioned for the performance of such duties as the bye-laws may require of him.

Sec. 7. The said institution shall be open to all denom-

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inations of christians, and the profession of any particular religious faith, shall not be required of those who become students; all persons however, may be suspended or expelled from said institution, by the trustees thereof, whose habits are idle or vicious, or whose moral character is bad.

Concerning corporation.

Proviso.

Sec. 8. The lands, tenements, and hereditaments, to be held in perpetuity by virtue of this act, by said corporation, shall not exceed six hundred and forty acres; Provided however, That if any donations, grants, or devises in land, shall from time to time be made to said corporation, over and above the said six hundred and forty acres, which may be held in perpetuity as aforesaid, the same may be received and held by said corporation for the period of five years from the date of any such donation, grant or devise; at the end of which time, if the said lands shall not have been sold by the said corporation, then, and in that case, the said lands so donated, granted, or devised, shall revert to the donor, grantor, or the heirs of the devisor of the same.

Approved, Jan. 16, 1836.

1William H. Davidson introduced SB 89 in the Senate on January 2, 1836. On January 9, the Senate referred the bill to a select committee, which reported back the bill with an amendment on January 11. The Senate approved the amendment and on January 12, they passed the bill as amended. The House of Representatives passed the bill unamended on January 14. On January 16, the Council of Revision approved the bill and the act became law.
Illinois House Journal. 1835. 9th G. A., 2nd sess., 301, 310, 330, 346, 358; Illinois Senate Journal. 1835. 9th G. A., 2nd sess., 156, 200, 203, 222, 247, 268, 280.