Between 1791 and 1807, Elizabeth Town saw the formation of its first fire company, United, and residents were required to own a leather bucket for firefighting. On December 27, 1791, Elizabeth Town was incorporated by the Maryland General Assembly, which appointed Thomas Hart, Ludwick Young, William Lee, John Shryock, John Giger, Peter Heighsly, and Baltzer Gole as the town's first commissioners. In 1793, an ordinance imposed a fine of seven shillings and six pence on property owners who had chimney fires, as a penalty for failing to maintain their chimneys. In 1794, opposition to the Whiskey Tax led many area residents to revolt against the federal government as part of the Whiskey Rebellion, and draft riots followed in Elizabeth Town; when 800 state militia ordered to the town by Governor Thomas Sim Lee put down the riots, one hundred fifty residents were arrested. In 1797, John Gruber published the first issue of the Hagers-Town Town and Country Almanack. On January 24, 1800, a symbolic funeral procession for the late President George Washington was held in the town's streets. In 1807, the Hagerstown Bank was formed.
