 Literary Hall was built upon a land lot designated " Lot 56 " to the immediate west of the public square of Romney . In 1790 , the trustees of the Town of Romney commissioned John Mitchel to draft a cadastral survey map of Romney . Prior to this survey , Lord Fairfax had commissioned a similar cadastral survey of Romney sometime before the town 's incorporation on December 23 , 1762 . On June 30 , 1790 , Mitchel submitted to the trustees a " Plan of the Town of Romney " , which divided the town into 100 land lots of equal size , with four lots adjacent to the courthouse comprising the public square . 
