Office of the town clerk

Welcome to the Office of the Town Clerk.  The municipal clerk is one of the oldest government professions and has been traced to the year 1272 A.D.  The early keepers of the archives were often called “remembrancers”.  The title as we know it is derived from the Middle Ages.  A “Clerk” was any member of a religious order, a “cleric” or “clergyman”.  Since, for all practical purposes, the scholarship of the Middle Ages was limited to the clergy, the name “clerk” came to be synonymous with “scholar”.

When the early colonists came to America, they set up forms of local government to which they had been accustomed; and the office of clerk was one of the first established.  The colony at Plymouth appointed a person to act as a recorder.  For centuries the municipal clerk has performed the archival functions of the governing body.  The Clerk serves as the direct link between the citizens and their government, and is the historian of the community and its people.  The entire recorded history of the Town’s actions is in the care of your Town Clerk.

As stated in the North Carolina General Statute 160A-171:  “There shall be a city clerk who shall give notice of meetings of the council, keep a journal of the proceeding of the council, be the custodian of all city records, and shall perform any other duties that may be required by law or the council.”

Spring Lake has the Council-Manager form of local government.  Ordinances and Resolutions (laws of Spring Lake), are enacted by the Board of Aldermen, who are elected by the people.  The Mayor shall preside at all meetings of the Board of Aldermen and shall cause all Ordinances of the Town to be enforced.  The Mayor is the chief executive officer of the town.  The Town Manager is the administrative officer of the town government and is responsible for administering all municipal affairs of the town government.  He directs and supervises the administration of all departments, offices and agencies of the town, subject to the general direction and control of the Board of Aldermen, except as otherwise provided by law.