“X. And be it further ordained, That it shall not be lawful for any person to fire or set off any gun-powder, squib, rocket or fire-work, or to fire any cannon, gun or pistol in any part of the said city, within the following bounds, viz: east of the west side of Knox-street, and north, east and south by the city line; and any person offending in the premises by firingof any cannon shall forfeit and pay a sum not less than five nor more than twenty-five dollars, and for firing any gun or pistol, gun-powder, or any fire-work as aforesaid, the sum of two dollars and fifty cents: Provided, That no penalty shall be incurred for firing cannon on Robison’s and Ten Broeck’s hills, commonly so called, if such cannon shall not be of a greater calibre than a six pounder; and further that all cannon which shall be fired on Robison’s hill, shall be pointed in a northerly direction: And provided also, That no penalty shall be incurred for firing of any cannon or gun on board of any vessel in the stream of Hudson’s river, if the same be fired in a direction from the said city, or at such distance therefrom as to be free from danger.”

Full Text: 1821, NY, Albany, Ch. 25, § 10

Laws and Ordinances of the Common Council of the City of Albany, Revised, and Revived Jan. 2, 1821 to which Is Prefixed, the Charter of the City and the State Law Relative Thereto (Albany, NY: Packard & Van Benthuysen, 1821), 133-34. Chapter 25—A Law for Preventing and Extinguishing Fires, and for Preventing the Firing of Guns, &c. within Certain Limits, § 10. Passed December 28, 1820.

“ORDINANCE NO. 97 

    AN ORDINANCE PROHIBITING THE SALE, OR GIVING, OR PERMITTING TO BE SOLD OR GIVEN TO ANY PERSON UNDER THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN (18) YEARS, ANY REVOLVER, PISTOL OR TOY PISTOL, PROHIBITING THE USE OR POSSESSION OF ANY AIR-GUN OR SLING-SHOT, AND PROHIBITING THE SALE OF FIRE-WORKS, WITHIN THE TOWN OF STANWOOD, AND PROHIBITING THE FIRING OR DISCHARGING OF ANY FIRE WORKS WITHIN SAID TOWN DURING THE CONTINUANCE OF THE PRESENT WAR WITH THE IMPERIAL GERMAN GOVERNMENT AND HER ALLIES AND PROVIDING A PENALTY FOR THE VIOLATION HEREOF.
    BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF STANWOOD.

Section 1.

    That from and after the passage and publication of this ordinance it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to sell, give or permit to be sold or given to any person under the age of eighteen (18) years any revolver, pistol or toy-pistol within the town of Stanwood.

Section 2.

    That from and after the passage and publication of this ordinance it shall be unlawful for any person to use or have in their possession any air-gun. or sling-shot within the town of Stanwood.

Section 3.

    From and after the passage and publication of this ordinance it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to sell or offer for sale, or to fire or discharge within the town of Stanwood during the war with the Imperial German Government and her allies, any firecracker, cannon-cracker or any other explosive used to celebrate the Fourth of July, commonly known as fire-works.

Section 4.

    Any person found guilty of the violation of any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not exceeding One Hundred ($100.00) Dollars or thirty days in jail or both such fine and imprisonment.”

Full Text: 1918, WA, Stanwood, Ordinance No. 97

Ordinance No. 97, Stanwood Town Council, Ordinances, 1903-2007, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, http://digitalarchives.wa.gov, accessed November 16, 2023. Stanwood, Washington Town Council, Ordinance No. 97—An Ordinance Prohibiting the Sale, or Giving, or Permitting to Be Sold or Given to Any Person under the Age of Eighteen (18) Years, Any Revolver, Pistol or Toy Pistol, Prohibiting the Use or Possession of Any Air-Gun or Sling-Shot, and Prohibiting the Firing or Discharging of Any Fire Works within Said Town during the Continuance of the Present War with the Imperial German Government and Her Allies and Providing a Penalty for the Violation Hereof, §§ 1-4. Read, April 22, 1918; Passed, May 6, 1918.

“Ordinance No. 2.^*                               Introduced by (Signed) Oscar E. Lee

An ordinance prohibiting fast or dangerous riding or driving upon any of the public places or highways of the Town of Soap Lake, Washington, and prohibiting discharging of any fire arms within the incorporated limits of Soap Lake, and prohibiting the use of loud, boistrous, profane, obscene or vulgar language upon any of the public highways, in or upon any public place or places within the incorporated limits of the Town of Soap Lake, and fixing a penalty therefor.

Be it ordained by the Town Council of the Town of Soap Lake…

Sec. II.^**    That it shall be unlawful for any person to discharge any firearm or other dangerous weapon, at any place within the incorporated limits of the Town of Soap Lake.

Sec. III.^*** It shall be unlawful for any person to carry any firearm or other dangerous weapon, or to exhibit, flourish or to use the same in any manner having a tendency to put any other person in terror or fear; upon any of the public highways or other public places within the incorporated limits of the Town of Soap Lake…

…Sec. VII. Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of any of the Sections of this Ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof, shall be fined in a sum not less than One Dollar nor greater than One Hundred Dollars; or by imprisonment in the Town Jail for not less than ten days or more than Thirty days or by both fine and imprisonment.”

Full Text: 1919, WA, Soap Lake Town Council, Ordinance No. 2, §§ 2-3 & 7

* Above and to the right of the number “2,” there is a handwritten “OK.” The rest of the document is typewritten. 
** Beneath the characters “Sec. II.,” there is a handwritten “OK.”
*** Beneath the characters “Sec. III.,” there is a handwritten “OK.”

Ordinance No. 2, Soap Lake Town Council, Ordinances, 1919-2007, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, http://digitalarchives.wa.gov, accessed November 15, 2023. Soap Lake, Washington Town Council, Ordinance No. 2—An Ordinance Prohibiting Fast or Dangerous Riding or Driving upon Any of the Public Places or Highways of the Town of Soap Lake, Washington, and Prohibiting Discharging of Any Fire Arms within the Incorporated Limits of Soap Lake, and Prohibiting the Use of Loud, Boistrous, Profane, Obscene or Vulgar Language upon Any of the Public Highways, in or upon Any Public Place or Places within the Incorporated Limits of the Town of Soap Lake, and Fixing a Penalty Therefor, §§ 2-3 & 7. Introduced, Passed, and Approved, July 8, 1919.

“264^* Ordinance prohibiting the discharge of Fire Arms within certain limits.

    Be it Ordained by the Mayor and Common Council of the City of San Jose,

Sec 1^st No person shall discharge any fire arms of any description whatever in that portion of the city included within Main St & the Guadalupe river, and between Julian & William streets.

    Any person violating this Ordinance shall be fined not less than five dollars nor more than thirty dollars for each offence. And any person failing or refusing to pay such fine as may be imposed shall be imprisoned in the City prison not exceeding ten days.
    This ordinance to take effect from & after its approval by the Mayor.

                    Passed by Common Council

                        Augt 14th 1854″

Full Text: 1854, CA, San Jose, Ordinance No. 264

* This law is handwritten and the number 264 is circled in the far left-hand margin next to the title of the law. 

Ordinances, Apr. 13, 1850 to Sept. 21, 1855, City of San Jose. Passed August 14, 1854.

    “6. FIREARMS AND MISSILES PROHIBITED—PROTECTION OF SHRUBBERY.] All persons are forbidden to carry firearms or to throw stones or other missiles within any one of the public parks. All persons are forbidden to cut, break or in any way injure or deface the trees, shrubs, plants, turf or any of the buildings, fences, bridges, or other construction or property, within or upon any of the said parks.”

Full Text: 1866, IL, Chicago, Laws and Ordinances Governing the City of Chicago, Ch. 31—Parks and Public Grounds, § 6

Murray F. Tuley, ed., Laws and Ordinances Governing the City of Chicago (Chicago, IL: The Bulletin Printing Co., 1873), 88-9. Chapter 31—Parks and Public Grounds, § 6—Firearms and Missiles Prohibited—Protection of Shrubbery. Revised Ordinance of 1866.

“CAP. LIV

An act¹ for the more effectual securing the peace of the Highlands in Scotland.

WHEREAS the custom that has two long prevailed amongst the Highlanders of Scotland, of having arms in their custody, and using and bearing them in travelling abroad in the fields, and at publick meetings, has greatly obstructed the civilizing of the people within the counties herein after named; has prevented their applying themselves to husbandry, manufactories, trade, and other virtuous and profitable employments; has been the cause of many riots, robberies, and tumults; hath and does tend to disappoint the execution of the law, to the dishonour of government, and unspeakable loss of his Majesty’s subjects; has in a peculiar manner been one of the fatal causes of the late unnatural rebellion, and may occasion the like or greater calamity in time to come, if not prevented by a proper remedy: be it therefore enacted by the King’s most excellent majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the lords spiritual and temporal, and commons, in this present parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, That from and after the first day of November in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and sixteen, it shall not be lawful for any person or persons within the shires of Dunbartain on the north side of the water of Leven, Sterling on the north side of the river of Forth, Perth, Kincardin, Aberdeen, Inverness, Nairn, Cromarty, Argyle, Forfar, Bamff, Sutherland, Caithness, Elgine, and Ross, to have in his or their cuftody, use or bear broad sword, or target, poynard, whingar, or durk, side-pistol or side-pistols, or gun, or any other warlike weapons, in the fields, or in the way, coming or going to, from, or at any church, market, fair, burials, huntings, meetings, or any other occasion whatsoever, within the bounds aforefaid, or to come into the Low-Countries armed, as aforesaid: and in case any of the said person or persons above described, shall have in his custody, use or bear arms, otherwise than in this act directed, every such person or persons so offending, being thereof lawfully convicted before one or more justices of the peace, or before any other judge competent of the place summarily, shall, for the first offence, forfeit all such arms, and be liable to a fine, not exceeding the sum of forty pounds ster-ling, and not under the sum of five pounds sterling, and to be imprisoned till payment of the said fine; which if not instantly paid after commitment, the said fine may and shall be levied out of the offender’s goods and estate, by warrant of the judge who shall pronounce any such sentence, to be applied, the one half to the use of the informer, and the other at the sight of the juftices of the peace where such offenders shall be convicted, towards repairing the publick works within the said shire; and further, liable to a month’s imprisonment: and being convicted for a second offence before the court of justiciary, or before the judges at their circuit, shall forfeit such arms and be liable to a fine, not exceeding the sum of eighty pounds sterling, and not under the sum of ten pounds sterling; and for every subfequent offence, to a fine the double of the former, to be levied and applied as above: and for want of payment of any such fine, or a sufficient distress to satisfy the payment of it, the offender shall be liable to be transported to any of his Majesty’s plantations beyond the seas, there to remain for the space of seven years.”

Full Text: 1764, UK, The Statutes at Large—An Act for the More Effectual Securing the Peace of the Highlands in Scotland, § 1, (1716).

1. The medial “s” and all ligatures (most often “ct”) have been changed to their modern equivalents. This is to avoid confusion and ensure that the text displays correctly on all browsers.  

Danby Pickering, ed.,  The Statutes at Large, from the Twelfth Year of Queen Anne, to the Fifth Year of King George I: To which Is Prefixed, a Table Containing the Titles of all the Statutes During that Period, Vol. XIII (Cambridge, UK: Joseph Bentham, 1764), 306-07. CAP. LIV—An Act for the more effectual securing the Peace of the Highlands in Scotland, Enacted November 1, 1716 (anno primo Georgii I).

“…Welshmen will dwell therein, so that none of them from henceforth be received nor accepted to no office of mayor, bailiff, chamberlain, constable, or warden of the ports of the gaol, nor to the common council of such cities, boroughs or towns, nor that he be in no wise made other occupier or officer in the fame, nor that none of the said Welshmen from henceforth bear any manner of armour within such city, borough, or merchant town, upon pain of forfeiture of the fame armour, and imprisonment till they have made fine in his behalf.”

Full Text: 1400, England, The Statutes at Large, Cap. XII—Certain Restraints Laid on Wholly Born Welshmen

Danby Pickering, ed., The Statutes at Large, from the Fifteenth Year of King Edward III to the Thirteenth Year of King Hen. IV, inclusive, vol. 2 (Cambridge, UK: Joseph Bentham, 1762), 414-15. Cap. XII—Certain Restraints Laid on Wholly Born Welshmen. Passed 1400 (anno secundo Henrici IV).

    “(38.) SEC. XXXIX. If any person, or persons, shall fire any cannon, gun, or other firearms, within the bounds of the building lots, or cemetery ground in this city, or within one hundred yards of any public road, within this corporation, except by permission of council, and except in proper situations for firing salutes, or by command of a military officer in the performance of military duty, every person, so offending, on conviction thereof, shall pay a fine not exceeding ten dollars, and costs.”

Full Text: 1842, OH, Dayton, Laws and General Ordinances of the City of Dayton—An Ordinance for the Punishment of Offenses, § 39

George W. Malambre, ed., Laws and General Ordinances of the City of Dayton, Containing the Laws of the State upon Municipal Government; All the General Ordinances in Force August 30th, 1855; a List of the Officers of the City under the New Act of Incorporation, Together with the Amount of Taxes Levied in Each Year for General and Special Purposes, since 1851, and the Total Amount in Each Year, of Property Subject to Taxation (Dayton, OH: Empire Steam Printing House, 1855), 214. Ordinances of the City of Dayton, Offenses, An Ordinance for the Punishment of Offenses, § 39. Passed September 16, 1842.

“CHAPTER XIII.
OF INJURIOUS PRACTICES IN STREETS AND PUBLIC PLACES…

    …SEC. 21. No person, except on his own premises, or by the consent of the owner or occupant of the premises, or in the performance of some duty required by law, shall discharge any gun, pistol or other firearm loaded with ball or shot, or with powder only, or squibs or fire-crackers, serpent, or other preparation whereof gun-powder or other explosive substance is an ingredient, or which consists wholly of the same, within the principal inhabited parts of the city, or within twenty-five rods of any dwelling house therein, nor shall make any bonfire in or upon any street, lane or public place within the city, except by permission of the city council…

…CHAPTER XXII.*
OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT…

    …SEC. 14. No person shall, within the limits of the city, keep or expose for sale, or fire or discharge, any rockets, squibs, firecrackers, grenades or other fireworks or preparation of gunpowder, except by permission of the city council in writing.
    SEC. 15. No person shall keep in any building in the city, situated within fifty rods of the buildings of any other person, any greater quantity than twenty-five pounds of gunpowder, nitroglycerine, or other like compounds, for a longer period than twenty-four hours. No person shall keep any gunpowder, nitroglycerine, or other like compounds, unless it be placed and kept in safe metal, glass or stone canisters.
No person shall by artificial light, except an electric light, weigh or sell gunpowder in bulk or in any other manner than by tight metal, glass or stone packages…

…CHAPTER XXXV.
OF SUNDRY PROHIBITIONS AND PENALTIES…

    …SEC. 7. No person shall carry within the city, any steel or brass knuckles, pistol, slung shot, stiletto or weapon of similar character, nor carry any weapon concealed on his person without permission of the mayor or chief of police in writing.”

Full Text: 1897, VT, St. Albans Daily Messenger, August 7

* This is a typo. The preceding chapter is labeled “Chapter 20,” and the following chapter is labeled “Chapter 22”; therefore, this is intended to read Chapter 21. In order to adhere to the editorial standard of copying all texts as they are printed, the title and text in the body of the law have been kept as written, viz., “CHAPTER XXII.”

“Supplement.” St. Albans Daily Messenger, August 7, 1879, pp. 1-10. Chapter 13—Of Injurious Practices in Streets and Public Places, § 21; Chapter 22*—of the Fire Department, §§ 14-15; Chapter 35—Of Sundry Prohibitions and Penalties, § 7. Published August 7, 1897. Volume 37, Number 184.

“ORDINANCE No. 523

An Ordinance relating to offenses and disorderly conduct.
And repealing Ordinances no  152, 178, & 471.

The City Council of the City of Olympia do ordain as follows…

    …Section 2. That any person who shall, within the limits of the City of Olympia, carry or wear under his clothes or concealed about his person, any pistol or pistols, dirk, dagger, slung-shot, cross-knuckles or any knuckles of lead, brass or other metal, bowie-knife, dirk-knife, razor or any other deadly or dangerous weapon, shall, upon conviction thereof before one of the police Justices of said city, be fined in any sum not to exceed twenty-five dollars, and default of the payment thereof, shall be committed to the city Jail until said fine and costs are paid, not to exceed ten days.
    Section 3. That any person who shall draw, exhibit or attempt to use any pistol, dirk, dagger, slung-shot, cross-knuckles or knuckles of brass, lead or other metal, or other deadly or dangerous weapon, upon, to or against any person or persons in said city of Olympia, shall upon conviction thereof before a police justice of said city, be fined in any sum not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, and in default of the payment thereof, shall be committed to the city Jail until such fine and costs are paid, not to exceed sixty days.
    Section 4. That any person who shall within the following limits, to-wit: Beginning at the intersection of Fifteenth and Eastside streets; thence north on line of said Eastside street to a point known as the Priest Place; thence west to a point five hundred yards west of the west shore of Budd’s Inlet; thence south to the line of said Fifteenth street, and thence east to place of beginning, fire off or discharge any gun, pistol or fire arm of any kind, shall upon conviction thereof before a police justice of said city be fined in any sum not less than five nor more than twenty five dollars, and in default of the payment thereof, shall be committed to the city jail until such fine and costs are paid, not to exceed ten days.
    Section 5. That any person who shall fire or explode any firecrackers, bombs, torpedoes, or any other explosive within the City of Olympia, without having first obtained permission from the city council, shalllupon conviction thereof before a police justice of said city, be fined in any sum not less than five nor more than twenty five dollars, and in default of the payment thereof, shall be committed to the city jail until such fine and costs are paid, not to exceed ten days…”

Full Text: 1891, WA, Olympia City Council Ordinance No. 523

Ordinance no. 523, Olympia City Council, Ordinances, 1859-2018, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, http://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov, accessed October 24, 2023. Olympia, Washington City Council, Ordinance no. 523—An Ordinance Relating to Offenses and Disorderly Conduct and Repealing Ordinances no. 152, 178, & 471, §§ 2-5 (1891). Approved May 7, 1891.

“An Ordinance Relating to Offenses and Disorderly Conduct

No 152¹       Approved         188²

Be it ordained by the City of Olympia…

…Sec 2 That any persons who shall draw exhibit or attempt to use any deadly weapon within the corporate limits of the City of Olympia, upon, to or against another person, shall be liable to a fine of not more than fifty nor less than twenty-five dollars.

Sec 3 Any [per]son who shall, in the usual walks³ of life, within the limits of the City of Olympia carry any deadly weapon concealed about his person, shall be liable to a fine of not more than ten or less than five dollars

Sec 4 Any person, who shall within the following… [seems to contain a detailed description of local landmarks outlining a specific area]⁴…fire off or discharge any gun pistol or fire arm of any kind, shall be liable to a fine of not less than five or more than twenty dollars or by imprisonment for not less than five nor more than ten days or by both-such fine or imprisonment.

Sec 5 That any person or persons who shall fire or explode any fire crackers boom⁵ torpedoes, or any other explosives within the City of Olympia without first obtaining Permission from the City Council shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than five nor more than twenty-five dollars of or  by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than ten days, or by both such fine and imprisonment Provided that this section shall not apply to using fire works on⁵ the public squares, The [???]⁶ and Marshville Bridges and all boats or crafts upon the waters of the sound within the corporate limits of the City…”

Full Text (Handwritten): 1882, WA, Olympia, An Ordinance Relating to Offenses and Disorderly Conduct, Olympia City Council, no. 152

1. This could also be interpreted to read “132.” See the original MS above.
2. It is not clear what the 188 is referencing. It is possible that the original read “1882” and the “2” was lost in the process of copying the MS. The bottom of the MS explains that the law was “Passed March 25th, 1882,” and that is where the referenced date of this law comes from.
3. Though this is an unusual wording, it seems to be the only logical reading of the text. Users should double-check this reading by examining the MS (provided in the link above) themselves.
4. This section is especially difficult to read; however, the parts that are legible and the context of the section leave little doubt that the MS is describing a geographic area. Users are encouraged to review the relevant parts in the MS themselves.
5. The transcription is a best guess. It could be “boom torpedoes” as if that is what a type of torpedo was called, or it could be “booms, torpedoes,” etc. as if a boom was itself a type of firework. It is also possible that the word is a misspelling of the word “bomb” or that it is incorrectly transcribed and represents another word altogether.  As always, users should do their own research by analyzing the original MS.
6. This word has been crossed out and written over – it could read either “on” or “in.”
7. The word seems to reference a place in the city; however, users should examine the MS themselves. 

 Ordinance No. 152, Olympia City Council, Ordinances, 1859-2018, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, http://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov, accessed October 23, 2023. Olympia, Washington City Council, Ordinance no. 152—An Ordinance Relating to Offenses and Disorderly Conduct, §§ 2-5 (1882). Passed March 25, 1882.

“FIRE-ARMS—NEGLIGENT USE OF.

CHAPTER LV.
AN ACT

DECLARING IT TO BE A MISDEMEANOR FOR ANY PERSON TO DISCHARGE, IN THE VICINITY OF AN INHABITATED DWELLING HOUSE OR IN THE STREETS OF AN INCORPORATED CITY OR UNINCORPORATED TOWN, IN A RECKLESS, CARELES OR NEGLIGENT MANNER ANY FIREARMS, OR TO EXHIBIT OR FLOURISH IN THE STREETS OF ANY SUCH CITY OR TOWN ANY DANGEROUS WEAPON IN A MANNER LIKELY TO CAUSE TERROR TO THE PEOPLE PASSING, AND TO PROVIDE A PUNISHMENT THEREFOR.

    Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Washington:
    SECTION I.    Every person who shall in a reckless, careless or negligent manner discharge, in the vicinity of an inhabitated dwelling house, or in the streets of an incorporated city, or unincorporated town, any firearm, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by fine not exceeding one hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding thirty days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
    SEC. 2. Every person who shall, in a manner likely to cause terror to the people passing, exhibit or flourish, in the streets of an incorporated city or unincorporated town, any dangerous weapon, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine in any sum not exceeding twenty-five dollars.
    SEC. 3. Justices of the peace shall have exclusive original jurisdiction of all offenses arising under this act.
    SEC. 4. This act shall be in force from and after its approval by the governor.
    Approved January 31, 1888.”

Full Text: 1888, Laws of Washington Territory Enacted by the Legislative Assembly, ch. 55, §§ 1-4

Laws of Washington Territory, Enacted by the Legislative Assembly, at Its Eleventh Biennial Session, 1887-8 (Olympia, WA: Thomas H. Cavanaugh, Public Printer, 1888), 100-101. Chapter 55—An Act
Declaring It to Be a Misdemeanor for Any Person to Discharge, in the Vicinity of an Inhabitated Dwelling House or in the Streets of an Incorporated City or Unincorporated Town, in a Reckless, Careles or Negligent Manner Any Firearms, or to Exhibit or Flourish in the Streets of Any Such City or Town Any Dangerous Weapon in a Manner Likely to Cause Terror to the People Passing, and to Provide a Punishment Therefor, §§ 1-4. Approved January 31, 1888.

“SHOOTING WITHIN CERTAIN LIMITS.
AN ORDINANCE to provide for the punishment of certain of­fences therein named.

[Passed October 15, 1884.]

    SECTION I.   Be it ordained by the City Council of the city of Sandusky, Ohio, That it shall be unlawful for any person or persons to fire or discharge any gun, cannon or other fire arm, within the following limits of said city, to-wit: Within all that portion of said city lying south of Sandusky bay and bounded on the north by said bay, commencing at the point where the western line of the city limits enters said bay, thence easterly along said bay line to a point where the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad crosses said bay near the ice houses. Thence south-easterly along said track to a point where Ontario street, if extended, would meet said railroad track, thence southerly along said line so extended and street to Fifth street. Thence westerly along Fifth street to Sycamore Line street. Thence in a southerly direction along Sycamore Line street to Hancock street. Thence southerly along Han­cock street to city limits. Thence westerly along the southern boundary line of said city to the western boundary line thereof. Thence northerly along the western boundary line of said city to the place of beginning.
    Provided, That this ordinance shall not apply in cases of justifiable defence of person or property, or to cases where permission has been given by the city council, or to the proper authorities in suppression of mobs or riots or to officers in the discharge of their duties.
    SEC. 2. Any person violating any of the provisions of this ordinance, on conviction thereof before the mayor of said city, shall be fined in any sum not exceed­ing fifty dollars and costs of prosecution.”

Full Text: 1884, OH, Ordinances of the City of Sandusky, Ohio, of a General and Permanent Nature, Shooting Within Certain Limits, §§ 1-2

A. W. Miller, ed., Ordinances of the City of Sandusky, Ohio, of a General and Permanent Nature, in Force November 1st, 1887 (Sandusky, Ohio: I. F. Mack & Brother, 1887), 131-32. Shooting Within Certain Limits: An Ordinance to Provide for the Punishment of Certain Of­fences therein Named, §§ 1-2. Passed October 15, 1884.

“CHAPTER XXXIV.

An Act to regulate the keeping and beariing of deadly weapons.

    Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That any person carrying on or about his person, saddle, or in his saddle bags, any pistol, dirk, dagger, slung-shot, sword-cane, spear, brass-knuckles, bowie-knife, or any other kind of knife manufactured or sold for the purposes of offense or defense, unless he has reasonable grounds for fearing an unlawful attack on his person, and that such ground of attack shall be immediate and pressing; or unless having or carrying the same on or about his person for the lawful defense of the State, as a militiaman in actual service, or as a peace officer or policeman, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof shall, for the first offense, be punished by fine of not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, and shall forfeit to the county the weapon or weapons so found on or about his person; and for every subsequent offense may, in addition to such fine and forfeiture, be imprisoned in the county jail for a term not exceeding sixty days; and in every case of fine under this section the fines imposed and collected shall go into the treasury of the county in which they may have been imposed; provided, that this section shall not be so construed as to prohibit any person from keeping or bearing arms on his or her own premises, or at his or her own place of business, nor to prohibit sheriffs or other revenue officers, and other civil officers, from keeping or bearing arms while engaged in the discharge of their official duties, nor to prohibit persons traveling in the State from keeping or carrying arms with their baggage; provided, further, that members of the Legislature shall not be included under the term “civil officers” as used in this act.     
    Sec. 2. Any person charged under the first section of this act, who may offer to prove, by way of defense, that he was in danger of an attack on his person, or unlawful interference with his property, shall be required to show that such danger was immediate and pressing, and was of such a nature as to alarm a person of ordinary courage; and that the weapon so carried was borne openly and not concealed beneath the clothing; and if it shall appear that this danger had its origin in a difficulty first commenced by the accused, it shall not be considered as a legal defense. 
    Sec. 3. If any person shall go into any church or religious assembly, any school room, or other place where persons are assembled for amusement or for educational or scientific purposes, or into any circus, show, or public exhibition of any kind, or into a ball room, social party, or social gathering, or to any election precinct on the day or days of any election, where any portion of the people of this State are collected to vote at any election, or to any other place where people may be assembled to muster, or to perform any other public duty, (except as may be required or permitted by law,) or to any other public assembly, and shall have or carry about his person a pistol or other firearm, dirk, dagger, slung shot, sword cane, spear, brass-knuckles, bowie-knife, or any other kind of knife manufactured and sold for the purposes of offense and defense, unless an officer of the peace, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall, for the first offense, be punished by fine of not less than fifty, nor more than five hundred dollars, and shall forfeit to the county the weapon or weapons so found on his person; and for every subsequent offense may, in addition to such fine and forfeiture, be imprisoned in the county jail for a term not more than ninety days.
    Sec. 4. This act shall not apply to, nor be enforced in any county of the State, which may be designated, in a proclamation of the Governor, as a frontier county, and liable to incursions of hostile Indians.
    Sec. 5. All fines collected under the provisions of this act shall be paid into the treasury of the county, and appropriated exclusively to the keeping in repair and maintenance of public roads, and all weapons forfeited to the county under the provisions of this act shall be sold as may be prescribed by the county court, and the proceeds appropriated to the same purpose.
    Sec. 6. It shall be the duty of all sheriffs, constables, marshals, and their deputies, and all policemen, and other peace officers, to arrest any person violating the first or third sections of this act, and to take such person immediately before a justice of the peace of the county where the offense is committed, or before a mayor or recorder of the town or city in which the offense is committed, who shall investigate and try the case without delay. On all such trials the accused shall have the right of a trial by jury, and of appeal to the district court; but, in case of appeal, the accused shall be required to give bond with two or more good and sufficient sureties in a sum of not less than one hundred nor more than two hundred dollars, if convicted under the first section and in a sum of not less than two hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, if convicted under the third section of this act; said bond to be payable to the State of Texas, and approved by the magistrate, and conditioned that the defendant will abide the judgment of the district court that may be rendered in the case; and in case of forfeiture the proceedings thereon shall be as is or may be prescribed by law in similar cases; and all moneys collected on any bond or judgment upon the same, shall be paid over and appropriated as provided in the fifth section of this act.
    Sec. 7. Any officer named in the sixth section of this act who shall refuse or fail to arrest any person whom he is required to arrest by said section on his own information, or where knowledge is conveyed to him of any violation of the first or third sections of this act, shall be dismissed from his office on conviction in the district court, on indictment or information, or by such other proceedings or tribunal as may be provided by law, and in addition, shall be fined in any sum not exceeding five hundred dollars, at the discretion of the court or jury.
    Sec. 8. That the district courts shall have concurrent jurisdiction under this act, and it is hereby made the duty of the several judges of the district courts of this State to give this act especially in charge to the grand juries of their respective counties.
    Sec. 9. It is hereby made the duty of the Governor to publish this act throughout the State; and this act shall take effect and be in force from and after the expiration of sixty days after its passage.
    Approved April 12, 1871.”

Full Text: 1871, TX, ch. 34, An Act to regulate the keeping and beariing of deadly weapons

H. P. N. Gammel, ed., The Laws of Texas 1822-1897: Austin’s Colonization Law and Contract; Mexican Constitution of 1824; Federal Colonization Law; Colonization Laws of Coahuila and Texas; Colonization Law of State of Tamaulipas; Fredonian Declaration of Independence; Laws and Decrees, With Constitution of Coahuila and Texas; San Felipe Convention; Journals of the Consultation; Proceedings of the General Council; Goliad Declaration of Independence; Journals of the Convention at Washington; Ordinances and Decrees of the Consultation; Declaration of Independence; Constitution of the Republic; Laws, General and Special, of the Republic; Annexation Resolution of the United States; Ratification of the Same by Texas; Constitution of the United States; Constitutions of the State of Texas, With All the Laws, General and Special, Passed Thereunder, Including Ordinances, Decrees, and Resolutions, With the Constitution of the Confederate States and the Reconstruction Acts of Congress, vol. 6 (Austin, TX: The Gammel Book Company, 1898), 25-27. Twelfth Legislature, General Laws, First Session, Chapter 34—An Act to Regulate the Keeping and Beariing of Deadly Weapons, §§ 1-9. Approved April 12, 1871.

“NOTICE.

THE FOLLOWING ACT OF ASSEMBLY passed March, 1886, is published for the benefit of those who are in the habit of carrying guns, &c., on days of election: 

    SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland, That from and after the passage of this Act it shall not be lawful for any person in St. Mary’s county to carry on the days of election and primary election, within three hundred yards of the polls, secretly or otherwise, any gun, pistol, dirk, dirk-knife, razor, billy or bludgeon; and any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof by the Circuit Court of St. Mary’s county, having criminal jurisdiction thereof, or before any Justice of the Peace of said county shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars for each offence, and on refusal or failure to pay said fine shall be committed to the jail of said county until the same is paid.

    SEC. 3. And be it enacted, That any constable of said county, or sheriff thereof, who shall refuse to arrest any person violating any of the provisions of this Act upon in­formation of such offense, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof before the Circuit Court for St. Mary’s county, shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than one hundred dollars, and shall in the discretion of the court be discharged from office.

J. PHILIP GREENWELL.
Sheriff of St. Mary’s county.”

Full Text (From Newspapers.com): 1887, Saint Mary’s Beacon, Oct 13, 1887

–N.B.–

This newspaper seems to be referencing a law that is in the repository as a state law, under the title of “1886 Md. Laws 315, An Act to Prevent the Carrying of Guns, Pistols, Dirk-knives, Razors, Billies or Bludgeons by any Person in Calvert County, on the Days of Election in said County, Within One Mile of the Polls, ch. 189, § 1.”

The law is included here again because this newspaper’s instance provides greater context, contains slightly different wording, includes a greater portion of the law’s text, and covers a different county. 

“Notice.” Saint Mary’s Beacon, October 13, 1887, p. 2. Volume 48, Number 357. (Leonard Town, MD).

“APPENDIX II
PASSENGER AND FREIGHT REGULATIONS OF THE CHARLESTON AND HAMBURG RAILROAD, 1835
Reprinted from Miller’s Almanac, Charleston, 1835
Regulations for Passenger Carriage

    1st. All baggage at owner’s risk, 75 lbs. allowed. 2d. Servants not admitted, unless having the care of Children, without the con­sent of all the Passengers. 3d. Passengers not allowed to stand on the outside platform. 4th. Smoking prohibited. 5th. No Gun or Fowling Piece shall be permitted to enter the car unless examined by the Conductor.

…

Regulations

    1st. Freight will be forwarded agreeably to the order of time it is received. That intended for the morning trip must be at the Depository by two o’clock the day previous, in good order, and marked with the name of the station on the line it is to be left at, or it will not be received. 2d. Freight for Jerico and the other stations up to, and including Reeves’, is payable at the Charleston Depository, and to be left at the place directed, at the risk of the owner. 3d. All freight must be paid for at the respective De­positories on its delivery. 4th. No packages of any description, for any of the stations, entered on the freight list for less than 12^½ cents, and no receipt given for a less amount of freight than 50 cents. 5th. GUNPOWDER prohibited.”

Full Text: 1835, Passenger and Freight Regulations of the Charleston and Hamburg Railroad

Ulrich Bonnell Phillips, A History of Transportation in the Eastern Cotton Belt to 1860 (New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 1908), 165-166. Appendix 2.

“…Therefore, no student shall be allowed to have in his room, spirituous, vinous or malt liquor; to play at cards, dice, or any similar game; to use or keep upon the College premises, fire-arms, or gunpowder; to attend assemblies for dancing or theatrical amusements; or to give or attend convivial entertainments, either in students’ rooms or in public houses….”

Full Text: 1850, Beloit College

The Laws of Beloit College (s.l.: s.n., 1850*), 4. Chapter 4—Of the Deportment of the Students, § 2.

*The publication date is not on the monograph itself, and sources differ. Some give the vague date of 185? (i.e., eighteen-fifty-“something”); others plainly state 1850.

    “No student is permitted to use camphene or any burning fluid, to keep in his room gunpowder, fire arms, or any dangerous weapon, or any intoxicating liquor, or allow noise or any disturbance in his apartment.”

Full Text: 1865, Brown University

The Laws of Brown University (Providence, RI: Knowles, Anthony & Co., 1865), 16-17. § 5—Of Discipline, no. 4.

“SECTION IV.

On the moral and religious Conduct of the Students,
and their Conduct towards the Faculty…

        …8. No student shall keep a dog or fire-arms; nor shall he use fire-arms without permission from some one of the Faculty.”

Full Text: https://docsouth.unc.edu/unc/uncbk1018/uncbk1018.html

Laws of the University of North-Carolina; Established by the Board of Trustees, at Their Session in December, 1799 ( Raleigh, NC: J. Gales, 1800), 12.

“No student shall have or keep any gunpowder or fire-arms in his room, or in any building or other place on College grounds; nor shall he at any time use gunpowder or fire-arms within half a mile of the College grounds.”

Full Text: 1878, Williams College

Laws of Williams College, Authorized by the Trustees at Their Meeting in July, 1878 (North Adams, MA: James T. Robinson & Son, 1878), 13. Chapter 3—Of Deportment and Discipline, § 3.

“CHAPTER IV.
OF STUDENTS AS UNDER CIVIL LAW.

    In all matters relating to good order and quietness: to the reatment of property public or private: and in general to the rights and obligations of citizens in a community, the students will be regarded and treated as amenable to the laws of the land and to the police regulations of the city in all respects like other citizens: and in case of any violations of such laws or regulations the Faculty will not shield students from the ordinary processes of justice, but will seek rather to put the Institution under the protection, and to secure for students the wholesome educating influence, of public law.

Extracts from the Revised Statutes of Vermont…

    …SECT. 4234. A person who between sunset and sunrise disturbs and breaks the public peace by firing guns, blowing horns, or by other unnecessary and offensive noise, shall be fined not more than fifty dollars…

…

CHAPTER VI.
OF ROOMS, BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS…

    …SECT. 4. Rooms shall be held by students subject to the condition that all rules, for securing quiet, order, and cleanliness in the rooms, halls, and premises, are strictly observed… the keeping of fire-arms or gunpowder except under direction of the Military Instructor: bringing into the rooms any fermented or distilled liquors: are prohibited…

    …SECT. 9. No student shall use gun powder or fire-arms in the buildings, or on the adjacent grounds of the University, except under direction of the Military Instructor.”

Full Text: 1885, University of Vermont

Laws of the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College: 1885 (Burlington, VT: The Free Press Association, 1885), 14-20. Chapter 4—Of Students as Under Civil Law, § 4234 [Extracted from Revised Statutes of Vermont], Chapter 6—Of Rooms, Buildings And Grounds, §§ 4, 9.

“CHAPTER IX.
DAMAGES AND REPAIRS.

VII. In no case shall a student bring into the College premises, any cannon, musket, pistol, or other species of fire-arms, or any gunpowder in any mode of preparation; and in no case, in term time, shall any student be concerned in the discharge of any fire-arms or fire-works in the town of Amherst.”

Full Text: 1855, Amherst

The Laws and Regulations of Amherst College (Amherst, MA: William Faxon, 1855), 16. Chapter 9—Damages and Repairs, § 7.

“CHAP. VII.
HIGH OFFENCES AND MISDEMEANORS.

76. High offences may be punished at the discretion of the Faculty with any of the College punishments…
The following are deemed high offences:

…

3. Keeping any gun, pistol, or gun-powder, or firing or using the same in the town of Cambridge.—Being concerned in any bonfire, fireworks, or unauthorized illuminations.—Being an actor or spectator at any theatrical entertainment in term
time…”

Full Text: 1825, Cambridge

Statutes and Laws of the University in Cambridge, Massachusetts (Cambridge, MA: Hilliard and Metcalf, 1825), 23. Chapter—7, § 76, no. 3.

“CHAPTER XVII.

OF RELIGIOUS WORSHIP, AND MORAL CONDUCT…

…9. Any student convicted of sending or receiving a challenge to fight a duel, or who shall carry such challenge, or be a second in a duel, or in any wise aid or abet it, shall immediately be dismissed by the faculty, and as soon as practicable expelled by the trustees.”

“CHAPTER XIX.

MISCELLANEOUS REGULATIONS…

…10. No student shall keep for his use or pleasure any horse or riding beast; nor shall any student keep a dog, or gun, or fire-arms and ammunition of any kind, nor any sword, dirk, sword-cane, or any deadly weapon whatever.”

Full Text: 1819, College of NJ

Laws of the College of New Jersey; Revised, Amended, and Adopted by the Board of Trustees, April 14th, 1819 (Trenton, NJ: George Sherman, 1819), 21-26. Chapter 17—Of Religious Worship and Moral Conduct, § 9; Chapter 19—Miscellaneous Regulations, § 10. Adopted April 14th, 1819.

N.B. “The College of New Jersey” here refers to what is now Princeton University¹ not the current College of New Jersey.

“10th. No student shall keep a servant, nor shall he keep fire arms, or any deadly weapon whatever. He shall bring no gun-powder upon the College premises; nor shall horses or dogs be kept by students for their private use or pleasure.”

Full Text: 1824, Columbian College

Laws of the Columbian College in the District of Columbia (Washington City, D.C.: The Columbian Office, North E Street, 1824), 10. Chapter 5—Students, § 2—Religious and Moral Deportment, no. 10.