Shown in the photograph taking the oath using an 1831 Bible held by Judge Cunningham are Stockton Town Board members councilman Bryan Meder, town clerk Katie Palmer, supervisor Dave Wilson, Judge Cunningham, councilman John Beichner, highway superintendent Aaron Burnett, and town historian John Sipos.

Special to the OBSERVER

STOCKTON – Plenty of history was happening earlier this month here.

The Stockton Town Board holds a meeting once a month on the second Tuesday of the month. The January meeting was the organizational meeting and the installation of elected officers.

The Town Board is entering its 199th year, having the first meeting in April 1821. The Stockton Town Board includes Supervisor Dave Wilson, councilmen Bryan Meder, John Beichner, Stan Zembryski, and treasurer Allen Chase. Katie Palmer is the town board clerk. Aaron Burnett is the highway superintendent, Mark Cunningham is the town justice, and John Sipos is the town historian.

At the time of the first Stockton Town Board meeting in April 1821, Calvin Warren was the supervisor, and John Curtis was the town clerk. The name for Stockton was after Richard Stockton, who was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. In that year, there were 12 town roads, and each one had its own supervisor, now Burnett is the highway supervisor for all the town roads.

There were 1,000 residents in the town that year, and the first post office was one mile south in the area known as Oregon.

The four corners was known as Bear Lake Corners, and most people shortened the name to “The Corners.” In 1833, the people wanted a different name, and a group of men met together in the red one-room school building and talked with the teacher Lorraine Danforth to find a new name. Delanti was suggested, which meant a place of paradise where the wildflowers bloomed with much color, and the animals ran freely.

The name Delanti was used for years, and today, the four corners is now known as Stockton.