Town Clerk's Office

Town Clerk's Office

 

What does the Town Clerk's Office do?

The position of Town Clerk has been around since the very first day the Town of Henrietta was established in 1818 (Isaac Jackson was elected to be our very first Town Clerk). In fact, historically the position dates back to much earlier, but as far as Henrietta's concerned, the Town Clerk has been around since day one. The core responsibility of keeping Town records has remained the same and the Town Clerk continues to document the actions of the Town Board so that it can be made available to the public - the position is often described as the connection between government and the public. The job responsibilities have certainly evolved since 1818. As you can see from the menu options listed, we are now responsible for quite a large variety of Town Services. If you're ever unsure where to go for answers, you'll likely interact with the Town Clerk's Office. That's not to say that we have all the answers, but we'll certainly try to get you to the right place.

The office of Town Clerk began as an elected position. However, on May 3, 1961, the Town Board adopted resolutions making the office of Town Clerk, and also the office of Receiver of Taxes, appointed positions, effective January 1, 1962. Following that change, Vincent Haggett became the Town's first appointed Town Clerk; he also served as the Town's first appointed Receiver of Taxes.

When describing the Town Clerk, a passage from William Bennett Munro's 1934 book titled Municipal Administration is often cited, because even decades later, it's an accurate representation of the office:

"No other office in municipal service has so many contracts. It serves the [Town Supervisor], the [Town Board], the [Town] manager (when there is one), and all administrative departments without exception. All of them call upon it, almost daily, for some service or information. Its work is not spectacular, but it demands versatility, alertness, accuracy, and no end of patience. The public does not realize how many loose ends of [town] administration this office pulls together."