PUBLIC LANDS.
System of Surveys.--Meridian and Base Lines.--Townships.--Diagram of a
township surveyed into Sections.--Land Districts and Offices.
--Pre-emption rights.--Military Bounty Lands.--Taxes.--Valuable Tracts
of country unsettled.
In all the new states and territories, the lands which are owned by the
general government, are surveyed and sold under one general system.
Several offices, each under the direction of a surveyor general, have
been established by acts of Congress, and districts, embracing one or
more states, assigned them. The office for the surveys of all public
lands in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and the Wisconsin country is located
at Cincinnati. The one including the states of Illinois and Missouri,
and the territory of Arkansas is at St. Louis. Deputy surveyors are
employed to do the work at a stipulated rate per mile, generally from
three to four dollars, who employ chain bearers, an axe, and flag man,
and a camp-keeper. They are exposed to great fatigue and hardship,
spending two or three months at a time in the woods and prairies, with
slight, moveable camps for shelter.
In the surveys, "_meridian_" lines are first established, running north
from the mouth of some noted river. These are intersected with "_base_"
lines.
There are five principal meridians in the land surveys in the west.
The "_First Principal Meridian_" is a line due north from the mouth of
the Miami.
The "_Second Principal Meridian_" is a line due north from the mouth of
Little Blue river, in Indiana.
The "_Third Principal Meridian_" is a line due north from the mouth of
the Ohio.
The "_Fourth Principal Meridian_" is a line due north from the mouth of
the Illinois.
The "_Fifth Principal Meridian_" is a line due north from the mouth of
the Arkansas. Another Meridian is used for Michigan, which passes
through the central part of the state. Its base line extends from about
the middle of lake St. Clair, across the state west to lake Michigan.
Each of these meridians has its own base line.
The surveys connected with the third and fourth meridians, and a small
portion of the second, embrace the state of Illinois.
The base line for both the second and third principal meridians
commences at Diamond Island, in Ohio, opposite Indiana, and runs due
west till it strikes the Mississippi, a few miles below St. Louis.
All the _townships_ in Illinois, south and east of the Illinois river,
are numbered from this base line either north or south.
The third principal meridian terminates with the northern boundary of
the state.
The fourth principal meridian commences in in the centre of the channel,
and at the mouth of the Illinois river, but immediately crosses to the
_east_ shore, and passes up on that side, (and at one place nearly
fourteen miles distant) to a point in the channel of the river,
seventy-two miles from its mouth. Here its base line commences and
extends across the peninsula to the Mississippi, a short distance above
Quincy. The fourth principal meridian is continued northward through the
military tract, and across Rock river, to a curve in the Mississippi at
the upper rapids, in township eighteen north, and about twelve or
fifteen miles above Rock Island. It here crosses and passes up the
_west_ side of the Mississippi river fifty-three miles, and recrosses
into Illinois, and passes through the town of Galena to the northern
boundary of the state. It is thence continued to the Wisconsin river and
made the principal meridian for the surveys of the territory, while the
northern boundary line of the state is constituted its base line for
that region.
Having formed a principal meridian with its corresponding base line,
for a district of country, the next operation of the surveyor is to
divide this into tracts of six miles square, called "_townships_."
In numbering the townships _east_ or _west_ from a principal meridian,
they are called "_ranges_," meaning a range of townships; but in
numbering _north_ or _south_ from a base line, they are called
"_townships_." Thus a tract of land is said to be situated in township
four north in range three east, from the third principal meridian; or as
the case may be.
Townships are subdivided into square miles, or tracts of 640 acres each,
called "_sections_." If near timber, trees are marked and numbered with
the section, township, and range, near each sectional corner. If in a
large prairie, a mound is raised to designate the corner, and a billet
of charred wood buried, if no rock is near. Sections are divided into
halves by a line north and south, and into quarters by a transverse
line. In sales under certain conditions, quarters are sold in equal
subdivisions of forty acres each, at one dollar and twenty-five cents
per acre. Any person, whether a native born citizen, or a foreigner, may
purchase forty acres of the richest soil, and receive an indisputable
title, for fifty dollars.
_Ranges_ are townships counted either east or west from meridians.
_Townships_ are counted either north or south from their respective base
lines.
_Fractions_, are parts of quarter sections intersected by streams or
confirmed claims.
The parts of townships, sections, quarters, &c. made at the lines of
either townships or meridians are called _excesses_ or _deficiencies_.
_Sections_, or miles square are numbered, beginning in the northeast
corner of the township, progressively west to the range line, and then
progressively east to the range line, alternately, terminating at the
southeast corner of the township, from one to thirty-six, as in the
following diagram:
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| | | | | | |
| 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| | | | | | |
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| | | | | | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| | | | | | |
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| | | | | | |
| 18 | 17 | 16[A]| 15 | 14 | 13 |
| | | | | | |
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| | | | | | |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| | | | | | |
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| | | | | | |
| 30 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 |
| | | | | | |
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| | | | | | |
| 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 |
| | | | | | |
+------+------+------+------+------+------+
[A] Appropriated for schools in the township.
I have been thus particular in this account of the surveys of public
lands, to exhibit the simplicity of a system, that to strangers,
unacquainted with the method of numbering the sections, and the various
subdivisions, appears perplexing and confused.
All the lands of Congress owned in Ohio have been surveyed, and with the
exceptions of some Indian reservations, have been brought into market.
In Indiana, all the lands purchased of the Indians have been surveyed,
and with the exception of about ninety townships and fractional
townships, have been offered for sale. These, amounting to about two
millions of acres, will be offered for sale the present year. In
Michigan, nearly all the ceded lands have been surveyed and brought into
market. The unsurveyed portion is situated in the neighborhood of
Saginaw bay; a part of which may be ready for market within the current
year.
In the Wisconsin Territory, west of lake Michigan, all the lands in the
Wisconsin district, which lies between the state of Illinois and the
Wisconsin river, have been surveyed; and in addition to the lands
already offered for sale in the Green Bay district, about 65 townships,
and fractional townships, have been surveyed and are ready for market.
The surveys of the whole country west of lake Michigan and south of the
Wisconsin river, in Illinois and Wisconsin territory, will soon be
surveyed and in market. Here are many millions of the finest lands on
earth, lying along the Des Pleines, Fox, and Rock rivers, and their
tributaries, well watered, rich soil, a healthy atmosphere, and
facilities to market. A temporary scarcity of timber in some parts of
this region will retard settlements, for a time; but this difficulty
will be obviated, by the rapidity with which prairie land turns to a
timbered region, wherever, by contiguous settlements, the wild grass
becomes subdued, and by the discovery of coal beds. Much of it is a
mineral region. In Illinois, the surveys are now completed in the
Danville district, and in the southern part of the Chicago district.
They are nearly completed along Rock river and the Mississippi. The
unsurveyed portion is along Fox river, Des Pleines and the shore of lake
Michigan, in the north-eastern part of the state. Emigrants, however, do
not wait for surveys and sales. They are settling over this fine portion
of the state, in anticipation of purchases. In Missouri, besides the
former surveys, the exterior lines of 138 townships, and the subdivision
into sections and quarters, 30 townships in the northern part of the
state, and contracts for running the exterior lines of 189 townships on
the waters of the Osage and Grand rivers have been made. A large portion
of this state is now surveyed and in market. Surveys are progressing in
Arkansas, and large bodies of land are proclaimed for sale in that
district.
I have no data before me that will enable me definitely to show the
amount of public lands now remaining unsold, in each land office
district. In another place I have already given an estimate of the
amount of public lands, within the organized states and territories,
remaining unsold, compared with the amount sold in past years.
The following table exhibits the number of acres sold in the districts
embraced more immediately within the range of this Guide, for 1834, and
the three first quarters of 1835, with the names of each district in
each state. It is constructed from the Report of the Commissioner of the
General Land Office to the Treasury Department, December 5th, 1835. The
sales of the last quarter of 1835, in Illinois, and probably in the
other states, greatly exceeded either the other quarters, and which will
be exhibited in the annual report of the Commissioner in December,
1836.
_Statement of the amount of Public Lands, sold at
the several Land Offices in Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Missouri, and
Arkansas, in 1834._
=====================+==============
| _Acres and
LAND OFFICES. | hundredths_
---------------------+--------------
OHIO.
Marietta district, 11,999.52
Zanesville do 33,877.23
Steubenville, do 4,349.19
Chillicothe, do 21,309.32
Cincinnati, do 27,369.52
Wooster, do 9,448.77
Wapaghkonetta do 125,417.13
Bucyrus do 245,078.56
----------
Total for the State, 478,847.24
INDIANA.
Jeffersonville district. 67,826.11
Vincennes do 56,765.80
Indianopolis do 204,526.63
Crawfordsville do 161,477.87
Fort Wayne do 96,350.30
La Porte do 86,709.73
----------
Total for the State, 673,656.44
ILLINOIS.
Shawneetown district. 6,904.24
Kaskaskia do 15,196.52
Edwardsville do 124,302.19
Vandalia do 20,207.61
Palestine do 22,135.69
Springfield do 66,804.25
Danville do 62,331.38
Quincy do 36,131.59
----------
Total for the State, 354,013.47
MICHIGAN TERRITORY
Detroit district. 136,410.69
Monroe do 233,768.30
White Pigeon Prairie }
Bronson do } 128,244.47
----------
Total for the Territory 498,423.46
WISCONSIN TERRITORY.
Mineral Point dist. 14,336.67
MISSOURI.
St. Louis district. 43,634.68
Fayette do 71,049.74
Palmyra do 76,241.35
Jackson do 18,882.11
Lexington do 43,983.80
----------
Total for the State, 253,791.70
ARKANSAS TERRITORY.
Batesville district. 8,051.31
Little Rock do 25,799.74
Washington do 65,145.88
Fayetteville do 24,514.94
Helena do 26,244.59
----------
Total for the Territory 149,756.46
_Statement of the amount of Public Lands, sold at
the several Land Offices in Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Missouri, and
Arkansas, from January 1st, to September 30th,
1835, including nine months._
=====================+=============
| _Acres and
LAND OFFICES. | hundredths_
---------------------+-------------
OHIO.
Marietta Dist. 11,012.98
Zanesville do 42,978.36
Steubenville do 3,649.29
Chillicothe do 12,586.87
Cincinnati do 20,105.76
Wooster do 5,157.68
Wapaghkonetta}
and Lima, } do 103,020.23
Bucyrus do 154,706.63
----------
Total for the State, 353,217.80
INDIANA.
Jeffersonville Dist. 44,634.81
Vincennes do 70,903.62
Indianapolis do 158,786.68
Crawfordsville do 108,055.22
Fort Wayne do 148,864.28
La Porte do 227,702.35
----------
Total for the State, 758,946.96
ILLINOIS.
Shawneetown Dist. 5,754.08
Kaskaskia do 13,814.38
Edwardsville do 123,638.07
Vandalia do 16,253.46
Palestine do 14,088.01
Springfield do 316,966.70
Danville do 94,491.35
Quincy do [A]40,274.58
Galena do [B]262,152.73
Chicago do 333,405.73
------------
Total for the State, 1,220,838.76
MICHIGAN.
Detroit Dist. 213,763.57
Brownson do 400,722.48
Monroe do 446,631.61
------------
Total for Michigan}
proper, } 1,061,127.66
WISCONSIN.
Mineral Point Dist. 67,052.55
Green Bay do 68,365.53
----------
Total for Wisconsin}
Territory, } 135,418.08
MISSOURI.
St. Louis Dist. 32,914.57
Fayette do 55,839.58
Palmyra do 101,018.00
Jackson do 28,995.19
Lexington do 42,801.45
Springfield do 320.00
----------
Total for the State, 261,888.79
ARKANSAS.
Batesville Dist. 2,021.22
Little Rock do 22,291.92
Washington do 43,360.81
Fayetteville do 8,723.72
Helena do 312,169.09
----------
Total for the Territory 388,566.76
[A] Returns only to May 31st.
[B] Returns only to July 31st.
Since those periods, sales at
these Offices have been immense
The reader will perceive that the sales of the three first quarters of
1835, almost doubled those of the whole year of 1834. The inquiry was
often made of the writer, while travelling in the Atlantic states in the
summer of 1835, whether there was still opportunity for emigrants to
purchase public lands in Indiana, Illinois, &c. where land offices had
been opened for sale of lands many years. He found almost everywhere,
wrong notions prevailing. The people were not aware of the immense
extent of the public domain now in market, and ready to be sold at _one
dollar and twenty-five cents per acre_, and even in as small tracts as
forty acres. Take for example, the Edwardsville district, in which the
writer resides. It extends south to the base line, east to the third
principal meridian, north to the line that separates townships 13 and 14
north, and west to the Illinois and Mississippi rivers, and embraces all
the counties of Madison, Clinton, Bond, Montgomery, Macouper, and
Greene, a tier of townships on the south side of Morgan and Sangamon,
five and a half townships from Fayette, and about half of St. Clair
county. The lands for a part of this district have been in market for 18
or 20 years;--it contains some of the oldest American settlements in the
state, and has also a number of confined claims never offered for sale.
And yet the receiver of this office informed me in November last, that
he had just made returns of all the lands sold in this district, and
they amounted to just _one third_ of the whole quantity. Every man,
therefore, may take it for granted that there will be land enough in
market in all the new states, for his use, during the present
generation. These are facts that should be known to all classes. The
mania of land speculation and of monopolists would soon subside, were
those concerned to sit down coolly, and after ascertaining the amount of
public lands now in market, with the vast additional quantity that must
soon come into market, use a few figures in common arithmetic, with the
probable amount of emigration, and ascertain the probable extent of the
demand for this article at any future period.
The following information is necessary for those who are not acquainted
with our land system.
In each land office there are a Register and Receiver, appointed by the
President and Senate for the term of four years, and paid by the
government.
After being surveyed, the land, by proclamation of the President, is
offered for sale at public auction by half quarter sections, or tracts
of 80 acres. If no one bids for it at one dollar and twenty-five cents
per acre, or more, it is subject to private entry at any time after,
upon payment of $1.25 cents per acre at the time of entry. _No credit in
any case is allowed._
In many cases, Congress, by special statute, has granted to actual
settlers, pre-emption rights, where settlements and improvements have
been made on public lands previous to public sale.
_Pre-emption rights_ confer the privilege only of purchasing the tract
containing improvements at one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre, by
the possessor, without the risk of a public sale.
In Illinois and several other western states, all lands purchased of the
general government, are exempted from taxation for five years after
purchase.
_Military Bounty lands._--These lands were surveyed and appropriated as
bounties to the soldiers in the war with Great Britain in 1812-'15, to
encourage enlistments. The selections were made in Illinois, Missouri,
and Arkansas. The Bounty lands of Illinois lie between the Illinois and
Mississippi rivers, in the counties of Calhoun, Pike, Adams, Schuyler,
Macdonough, Warren, Mercer, Knox, Henry, Fulton, Peoria, and Putnam. Out
of five millions of acres, 3,500,000 were selected, including about
three-fifths of this tract. The remainder is disposed of in the manner
of other public lands. The disposition of this fine country for military
bounties has much retarded its settlement. It was a short-sighted and
mistaken policy of government that dictated this measure. Most of the
titles have long since departed from the soldiers for whose benefit the
donations were made. Many thousand quarter sections have been sold for
taxes by the state, have fallen into the hands of monopolists, and are
now past redemption. The Bounty lands in Missouri, lie on the waters of
Chariton and Grand rivers, north side of the Missouri river and in the
counties of Chariton, Randolph, Carroll, and Ray, and include half a
million of acres. The tract is generally fertile, undulating, a mixture
of timber and prairie, but not as well watered as desirable. With the
bounty lands of Arkansas I am not well acquainted. Their general
character is good, and some tracts are rich cotton lands.
_Taxes._--Lands bought of the U. S. government are exempted from
taxation for five years after sale. All other lands owned by
non-residents, equally with those of residents, are subject to taxation
annually, either for state, or county purposes, or both. The mode and
amount varies in each state. If not paid when due, costs are added, the
lands sold, subject to redemption within a limited period;--generally
two years. Every non-resident landholder should employ an agent within
the state where his land lies, to look after it and pay his taxes, if he
would not suffer the loss of his land.