In 1834, the General Assembly authorized the incorporation of the Shepherdsville and Elizabethtown Turnpike Road Company, and gave the company five years to complete its road.
This was one of several such projects approved by the General Assembly over the years. Not all projects were successfully completed.
A transcription of the Act is given below. If you can share any additional information about this corporation and/or the road itself, please use our "Contact Us" link at the top of this page and write to us.
From Acts of the General Assembly for the Commonwealth of Kentucky
for 1834, pages 615-617
CHAP. 446. - AN ACT to incorporate the Shepherdsville and Elizabethtown
Turnpike Road Company.
Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the The Commonwealth of Kentucky, That a company shall be, and the same is hereby established and incorporated with a capital of eighty thousand dollars, to be divided into eight hundred shares of one hundred dollars each, to construct a turnpike road on the McAdams' plan, from Shepherdsville in Bullitt county, to Elizabethtown in Hardin county, under the name and style of the Shepherdsville and Elizabethtown Turnpike Company, and as such shall be a body politic and corporate forever; and by that name and style shall be competent to contract and be contracted with, to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, answer and be answered, defend and be defended, in all courts and places, and in all matters whatever, the same as natural persons; with full power and authority to acquire, hold, possess, use, occupy and enjoy, and the same to sell, convey and dispose of, all such real and personal estate as may be necessary and convenient, for the site or route of said road, and for piers and abutments for all and every bridge that may be necessary on said road, and lots for toll houses and the residence of gate keepers, the necessary stone quaries for the construction and repair of said road, and such teams and implements as may be necessary and proper for the construction of said road; may have and use a common seal, and alter, change and renew the same at pleasure; and may make, ordain and establish, and put in execution such by-laws and ordinances as may be necessary and proper for the construction and formation of said road, and the management and direction of the prudential concerns of said company, not contrary to the constitution and laws of this, or the United States.
Sec. 2. Be it further enacted, That the width of said road shall not be less than forty feet, where the situation of the ground will permit it, nor more than fifty feet, and the artificial McAdamized part thereof, shall be not less than twelve feet, and made on one side, and said road shall be graded to at least three degrees in descending and ascending the elevations on the route of said road; that bridges shall be erected on said road across Salt river, Long lick creek and the Rolling fork, if found to be necessary, and at such other places as may be necessary; the bridges across Salt river and the Rolling fork, shall be built on abutments on the shores of said streams, without any piers in the channel, and shall be sufficiently high to permit the passage of flat boats in the highest stages of the water.
Sec. 3. Be it further enacted, That the President and managers of the Shepherdsville and Elizabethtown turnpike company, shall be vested with all the power and authority, immunities, tolls, privileges and advantages in all and every respect that are now vested by law in the Louisville turnpike road company, subject to the like limitations and restrictions, as if they were herein embodied and repeated.
Sec. 4. Be it further enacted, That Abraham Field, Noah C. Summers, John H. Baker, Henry Wise, John Brewer and H. G. Wintersmith, be, and they are appointed commissioners, to open books at such time and such places as they may deem expedient, for the subscription of stock, in the company hereby created; and whenever four hundred shares shall have been subscribed, the said commissioners may call a meeting of the stockholders, at such time and place as they may deem most convenient; first advertising the time and place in the newspaper printed in Elizabethtown. And the stockholders shall choose a President and six managers, in whom shall be vested all the powers of this corporation, for the construction of said road, and the management and direction of its prudential concerns; each share to the number of twenty, shall entitle the holder to one vote for every share held by him; and every five shares above twenty, shall entitle the holder to one additional vote; and after the first election of a President and managers, there shall be an annual election of a President and managers on the third Monday in April in each year, and the President and managers shall hold their offices until their successors shall be elected; and no person shall be elected a President or manager, who is not a stockholder, and he shall vacate his office on ceasing to be a stockholder; and the President and managers for the time being, shall have power to fill any vacancy, which shall happen in their own body from any cause, between the annual elections; and if from any cause no election shall be held on the third Monday in April in each year, the President and Managers may advertise day different and cause an election to be held on some other convenient day.
Sec. 5. Be it further enacted, That the county courts of Bullitt and Hardin counties, are hereby authorised to subscribe one hundred shares of slock in said company, for and on behalf of their respective counties, and be entitled to the same privileges of voting for President and Managers as the other stockholders of said company.
Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That the President and Managers of this company may sell the residue of stock not originally subscribed, at such time and in such manner as they may deem most advisable: Provided, They shall not sell any stock for less than par.
Sec. 7. And be it further enacted, That said company shall have two years after its organization to commence the construction of said road, and five years after its commencement to complete the same.
(Approved February 22, 1834.)
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The Bullitt County History Museum, a service of the Bullitt County Genealogical Society, is located in the county courthouse at 300 South Buckman Street (Highway 61) in Shepherdsville, Kentucky. The museum, along with its research room, is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Saturday appointments are available by calling 502-921-0161 during our regular weekday hours. Admission is free. The museum, as part of the Bullitt County Genealogical Society, is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization and is classified as a 509(a)2 public charity. Contributions and bequests are deductible under section 2055, 2106, or 2522 of the Internal Revenue Code. Page last modified: 12 Jan 2024 . Page URL: bullittcountyhistory.org/bchistory/shepetownroad.html
