This is a petition signed by Sparta’s residents to (re)incorporate The Town of Sparta, in June of 1924. It includes both, “a majority of the resident free holders, and a majority of the resident qualified electors.”
Evidently, in 1924 “resident free holders” would be owners of land that was unencumbered by any financial obligation. And “resident qualified electors” would have been any other registered voters.
Sparta was originally incorporated in 1879, but in 1924 North Carolina changed its rules, so that the process for municipalities was handled through the Secretary of State’s office.
So Sparta, like many other NC towns had to go through the motions again. The paperwork submitted to the state, says, “the assessed valuation of the real estate in said territory is $253,650 according to the assessment for Taxes 1923.”
We found the original document at the NC Secretary of State’s website, here:
https://www.sosnc.gov/online_serv/ices/search/by_title/_land_records
