New York (State). Dept. of State. Bureau of Miscellaneous Records.

The Department of State, created by Chapter 437 of the Laws of 1926, is the official office of record for filing many documents, including certificates of incorporation (except for banking, insurance, and educational corporations), and the office of Secretary of State (head of the department) has served as the general recording office for state government since its creation in 1778. Much of the material in the files is date stamped as filed in the Department of State.

Chapter 64 of the Laws of 1909 (derived from Chapter 414 of the Laws of 1897, and Chapter 607 of the Laws of 1907) declares a village is deemed incorporated when a certificate of the secretary of state is issued certifying that an outline map and description of the corporate limits of a village have been received and filed in the office of the secretary of state, together with the date of the filing. The certificate becomes the record of the village clerk's office, and the date of filing of the map and description by the secretary of state completes the incorporation and is deemed the date of incorporation of the village. An amendment to that law, Chapter 205 of the Laws of 1911, required the president of a village to prepare a certified map and description of the corporate limits of the village "drawn or traced in black india ink on tracing cloth" and file it with the secretary of state. In turn the secretary was required to notify each village president of the filing requirement.

Annexation of land to a village is covered by Chapter 607 of the Laws of 1907, which states that territory not in a village or city may be annexed to an adjoining village. A petition for annexation may be presented to a board of trustees of the village, and upon their consent a proposition for annexation is submitted at a special election. If adopted, the annexation takes effect when the village clerk receives a certificate of the secretary of state certifying that an outline map and description of the village as extended, together with the date of its filing in the secretary of state's office, is received by the village clerk. The map must plainly show and describe the territory annexed, and the date of filing is deemed the date of annexation of the territory into the village.

From the description of Village incorporation files and maps, 1886-1988 (bulk 1908-1987). (New York State Archives). WorldCat record id: 82821546