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Federal land surveys in what is now the State of Illinois first were authorized by an act of Congress of March 26, 1804. Under this act the U.S. Surveyor General, whose office had been created by an act of Congress of May 18, 1796, was given jurisdiction over all public land north of the Ohio and east of the Mississippi Rivers. Surveys began in the western part of the Vincennes Tract in 1804 and in what is now the extreme southern part of Illinois in 1806. From there the surveys worked northward; and by 1831 much of the state had been covered, with the exception of the northernmost portions.
When surveys were started in the Illinois region the U.S. Surveyor General was an independent officer under the direct supervision of the President. By an act of Congress of July 4, 1836, however, the office was placed under the control of the U.S. General Land Office where it remained until well after the Illinois surveys were completed.
By an act approved June 12, 1840 Congress authorized the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury to take all measures necessary to complete surveys in the various districts. When the surveys were completed the Surveyor General of each district was required by the same act to deliver all surveys, field notes, maps, records, and other papers to the state they dealt with. An act approved January 22, 1853, however, prohibited such transfer until the state had satisfactorily provided for their safekeeping.
The surveys in Illinois were deemed complete in 1855 and it appeared that the survey records would be deposited with the Auditor of Public Accounts. The General Assembly, however, failed until 1861 to enact the legislation required by Congress. Provision then was made for acceptance of the records by the Secretary of State (L. 1861, p. 207). They were transferred to the Governor's supervision in 1865 and placed under the control of the Custodian of the U.S. Surveys for the State of Illinois (L. 1865, p. 90). In 1883 the survey materials again were transferred, this time to the Auditor of Public Accounts, an appropriate choice because he had similarly received custody of the U.S. General Land Office records for Illinois in 1879 (L. 1883, p. 44). They remained in that office until transferred to the Secretary of State in 1957 for deposit at the State Archives (L. 1957, p. 1711). Field notes and plats for surveys conducted by the federal government between 1855 and 1970 on previously unsurveyed Illinois land were prepared and forwarded during that time to the appropriate custodian for the State of Illinois.
953.001
INCOMING CORRESPONDENCE. Ca. 1816-1862. 3 vols. and 2 cu. ft. Partial index, 1816-1849.
Incoming correspondence primarily from the Commissioner of the General Land Office, Registers of the ten land district offices in Illinois, and private citizens principally concerns receipt of plats and surveys, confirmation of claims according to the surveys, contested swamp lands, resurveys, and corrections in plats.
For OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE see RS 953.002.
953.002
OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE. April 14, 1819-April 17, 1857. 6 vols. Partial index, April 14, 1819-December 30, 1854.
Copies of outgoing correspondence principally to President of the U.S., Commissioner of the General Land Office, Registers of the ten district land offices in Illinois, Deputy Surveyors, and private individuals primarily concern delivery of plats and surveys to the General Land Office; contracts with Deputy Surveyors; costs of surveys; designation of swamp lands; French, English, and Indian grants; requests for surveys and resurveys; and annual reports submitted to the General Land Office.
For INCOMING CORRESPONDENCE see RS 953.001.
953.003
COPIES OF CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING THE SURVEY OF SHAWNEETOWN LOTS. June 24, 1810-August 31, 1814. 1 vol. No index.
Copies are of correspondence and instructions relating to the survey of Shawneetown lots which were transcribed from files in the Surveyor General's office in 1852. Volume consists of incoming and outgoing correspondence of Surveyor General with Commissioner of the General Land Office, Surveyor at
Shawneetown, and private individuals. Correspondence concerns approval of the Surveyor, receipt and acceptance of plats and field notes, tendency of area toward inundation by Ohio River and details of 1813 flood, and payments of Surveyors' expenses including charges for surveying, food, lodging, and travel.
953.004
CONTRACTS WITH SURVEYORS. March 3, 1806-November 12, 1855. 1 vol. Copy: 1 vol. Index.
Original signed contracts are between the Surveyor General and Deputy Surveyors for original surveys and for resurveys. Entries for each contract include date of contract, name and residence of Deputy Surveyor, legal description of area to be surveyed or resurveyed, date by which work is to be completed, and occasionally the amount the Deputy Surveyor was to be paid. Also included are bonds insuring that work will be completed which include name of bondholder, date and amount of bond, and name of Deputy Surveyor.
Field notes for surveys completed under contracts are recorded in RS 953.005.
953.005
FEDERAL LAND SURVEYORS' FIELD NOTES. December 1, 1804-November 18, 1856. 495 vols. and 1 cu. ft. Index.
Notes were recorded by individual Surveyors while conducting surveys of interior and exterior section lines. Notes include descriptions of methods used to mark section and quarter section corners, either by setting a post in mound or a stone, and by indicating the distance and directional bearing of two bearing trees, described by species and diameter, from the actual corner. Topographical features and vegetation encountered along the section lines were described, including prairie, timber, sizes and types of bodies of water (e.g., streams, brooks, rivers, lakes),
salines, salt licks, islands, soil quality, bluffs, ridges, sloughs, and fields. Various manmade features occasionally were described such as wagon trails, roads, settlements, buildings, Indian reservations, and Indian traces. Boundaries of French, English, and Indian claims also are noted.
Field notes were forwarded to the Surveyor General for approval. After acceptance of field notes, FEDERAL TOWNSHIP PLATS, RS 953.012, were prepared from their descriptions.
For additional index to surveys of boundary lines and subdivisions see RS 953.010.
953.006
UNACCEPTED COPIES OF FEDERAL LAND SURVEYORS' FIELD NOTES. First set compiled July 1857, 212 vols. Second set compiled July 1872, 1,605 vols. Index for first set only, 1 vol. (RS 953.011).
These two sets of copies of FEDERAL LAND SURVEYORS' FIELD NOTES, RS 953.005, were created to ensure the preservation of the record of the original surveys but never were accepted as true copies because of their high rate of inaccuracy. The first set was compiled by the Surveyor General's office; the second set was compiled by the Custodian of the U.S. Surveys for the State of Illinois.
953.007
FIELD NOTES OF PRIVATE SURVEYS. 1809-1814; 1820; 1837. Original Notes: 0.25 cu. ft. Copies: 10 vols. and 1 partial vol. Index.
Field notes of surveys conducted of private claims include those arising from militia, improvement, and ancient grants in the Kaskaskia District; those near the Wabash River in the area of Illinois formerly contained in the Vincennes Tract; and those near Peoria. For each survey field notes usually contain date of survey; name of surveyor; name of present claimant; survey number; claim number; number of acres in tract claimed; names of claimants and survey numbers for adjoining tracts; and descriptions of boundary lines of tracts with locations of posts in mounds indicated by distance to and dimensions and species of bearing trees, bodies of water which boundaries encounter, distances between posts and/or other marking features, and intersections with exterior section lines of federal townships. Occasionally plats are included which show dimensions of boundary lines in poles and often indicate directions of true and magnetic meridians with variations between the two given in degrees and minutes. Original field notes exist for most surveys conducted April 1809-April 1814, numbers 356-794.
Verbatim copies of field notes of confirmed claims appear in RS 953.013. Plats drawn from surveys of confirmed claims are recorded in FEDERAL TOWNSHIP PLATS, RS 953.012.
953.008
TRANSCRIPTS OF FIELD NOTES FOR PREVIOUSLY UNSURVEYED ISLANDS AND LAKES. 1868-1891. 1 vol. No index.
Surveys of previously unsurveyed islands and lakes were conducted under the supervision of the Surveyor General. Transcripts of the field notes for these surveys then were forwarded to the State of Illinois. Field notes for each survey include date of appointment and name of Surveyor; dates of appointments and names of field assistants (i.e., flagmen, chain carriers,
compassmen); description of line run along meander of shoreline with natural features, distances, and direction noted; certification of field notes by Surveyor General; and date of certification.
Plats prepared from field notes are contained in RS 953.012.
953.009
TRANSCRIPTS OF FIELD NOTES AND PLATS FOR PREVIOUSLY UNSURVEYED ISLANDS CLAIMED BY THE STATE OF ILLINOIS UNDER SWAMP LAND ACT OF 1850. 1926-1935; 1939; 1956. 1 vol. and 0.25 cu. ft. No index.
Transcripts of field notes and plats for previously unsurveyed islands in the Mississippi, Rock, and Fox Rivers were conducted under the supervision of the U.S. Supervisor of Surveys in order to determine if the islands should be confirmed to the State of Illinois under the 1850 Swamp Land Act. Documents for each island surveyed generally include appointment of Surveyor with his name and the date on which he received instructions to commence survey, approval of Surveyor by U.S. Supervisor of Surveys with date of approval and legal description of island, appointments of Surveyor's field assistants (i.e., chainmen,
axmen, principal assistants) including their names and dates of appointment, transcripts of Surveyor's field notes showing dates of survey and description of line run along shoreline, and copies of plats.
Appended to the field notes are observations made by the Surveyor relative to the designation of the island as swamp land. These include abstracts of statements made by individuals who were either residing on or were otherwise familiar with the island, with the individuals' names, residences, and occasionally ages. Statements concern individuals' knowledge of the natural state of the island and the typical water level and the length of time individuals had resided in or visited the area. The Surveyor's own observations describe topographical features and vegetation at the time of the survey and state his opinions as to whether the island would have been subject to periodic overflow in 1850.
953.010
REGISTER OF FIELD NOTES OF BOUNDARY LINES AND SUBDIVISIONS OF TOWNSHIPS. Ca. 1804-1839. 2 vols.
Register serves as an index to surveys of boundary lines and subdivisions and contains legal descriptions of townships, dates surveyed, names of Surveyors, and original numbers of field books in which field notes for surveys contained. Also contained is a list which shows original number of field book and the volume number in which it now is contained in FEDERAL LAND SURVEYORS' FIELD NOTES, RS 953.005.
953.011
FIELD NOTES INDEXES AND REFERENCE MAPS. Ca. 1857-1861. 1 vol.
Volume appears to have been kept by the Surveyor General's office as a reference tool. Two sets of indexes are included: one for the FEDERAL LAND SURVEYORS' FIELD NOTES (RS 953.005) and one for the copies of the field notes prepared in 1857 (RS 953.006). Volume also contains several maps of the State of Illinois delineating the boundaries of the ten land districts, variations of the magnetic meridian from the true meridian, counties of Illinois, and townships reserved for the Illinois Central Railroad.
953.012
FEDERAL TOWNSHIP PLATS. 1807-1822; 1830-1862; 1868-1891; 1962; 1970; 1983-1987. 53 vols. and 2 cu. ft. Index.
Plats were prepared for each township from field notes of surveys and include legal description of township; delineation of sections within township; measurements in chains and links of interior and exterior section lines, especially when varying from standard eighty chains; numbers of acres in each section and in entire township, especially when varying from standard; variations in degrees and minutes between true and magnetic meridians; and dates plats certified by Surveyor General.
Plats indicate various types of topographical features and vegetation including areas covered by prairie, timber, bodies of water,
salines, salt licks, sloughs, and fields. Various manmade features occasionally are included, such as wagon trails, roads, settlements, town sites, buildings, and Indian traces. Boundaries, survey numbers, claim numbers, and number of acres also are noted for militia, improvement, and ancient claims as are the boundaries for Indian reservations.
Plats drawn 1807-1822 and 1830-1862 were prepared from field notes for surveys conducted 1804-1855 which are contained in FEDERAL LAND SURVEYORS' FIELD NOTES, RS 953.005, and FIELD NOTES OF PRIVATE SURVEYS, RS 953.007.Those drawn 1807-1822 often were rejected by the Surveyor General because they were inaccurate; those drawn 1830-1862 primarily are corrected versions of the earlier plats. Plats drawn 1868-1891 were prepared from information contained in TRANSCRIPTS OF FIELD NOTES FOR PREVIOUSLY UNSURVEYED ISLANDS AND LAKES, RS 953.008. The two plats drawn in 1962 and 1970 also were for previously unsurveyed land and were prepared by the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Department of the Interior. These plats contain transcripts of the field notes for the surveys from which they were drawn.
For plats of surveys conducted 1926-1935 see RS 953.009.
953.013
TERRIERS OF PRIVATE SURVEYS. Compiled after 1837. 4 vols. Copy: 2 vols. Index.
Terriers are volumes in which land claim interests of private persons are described including the history of the claim and copies of the plat and field notes for surveys of each claim. Private surveys for which terriers were prepared include those for claims based on militia, improvement, and ancient grants in the Kaskaskia Land District, those for the same types of claims and for claims based on head grants in the area of Illinois formerly contained in the Vincennes Tract, and those based on claims for Peoria city lots.
The history of each claim usually includes names of original, intermediate, and present claimants; type of claim; number of acres in tract; township and range in which tract located; claim number; survey number; date of report made by Boards of Commissioners at Kaskaskia or Vincennes to Congress which contained recommendation on claim; dates of acts of Congress under which claim was confirmed; and volume and page references to the Duff Green edition of the American State Papers: Public Lands, 5 vols. (Washington, D.C., 1834) in which claim is discussed. Copies of plats include dimensions of boundaries, usually variations between true and magnetic meridians in degrees and minutes, and scale of drawing. Copies of field notes are transcribed from FIELD NOTES OF PRIVATE SURVEYS, RS 953.007.
953.014
TERRIER OF GRANTS MADE TO POTAWATOMI INDIANS. May 24-November 17, 1834. 1 vol. Index.
Terrier describes land grants made to Potawatomi Indians under Treaty of Camp Tippecanoe on October 20, 1832 including history of the grant, copies of the plat, and transcripts of the field notes for surveys of each grant. Histories of grants include number of acres in grant, legal description of township in which located, name of Deputy Surveyor conducting survey, date of survey, date of Surveyor's contract, and name of Indian to whom grant made. Plats of surveys include dimensions of boundaries, names of owners or claimants of adjoining tracts, and variation in degrees and minutes between true and magnetic meridians.
953.015
MEANDERS OF VARIOUS BODIES OF WATER AND ISLANDS. Ca. 1830-1855. 4 vols., 2 partial vols., and 0.1 cu. ft. No index.
Surveys of the courses and banks of various bodies of water and islands occasionally indicate Surveyor's name and date of survey. Field notes for each survey indicate the direction and distance of each course or portion of the bank and the legal description of the township and section in which the meander lies. Rivers surveyed include Apple, Big Blue, Calumet, Chicago, Current, Fever, Illinois, Iroquois, Kankakee,
Kaskaskia, Macoupin, Menominee, Merrimack (Meramec), Mississippi, Osage,
Pecatonica, Plumb, Rock, Sac, Sangamon, Sinsinniwa (Sinsinawa), Spoon, and Sugar. Lakes include Calumet, Impassible, Michigan, and Peoria. Sloughs include Crooked, Fort
Chartres, Harris, and Henderson's. Also included are Bledsoe's, Carter's, Campbell's and Hurricane Islands; unnamed islands in the Mississippi, Rock, and Illinois Rivers; Mare-de-Ogee
(Meredosia) and Cat Tail Swamps; and the Chenal (Channel) Écarté.
953.016
PLATS OF MEANDERS OF WABASH RIVER. No date. 1 vol. No index.
Plats contain no legal descriptions or measurements but show locations of various natural features in the river such as rapids, sandbars, rocky bottoms, channels, and direction of flow, as well as natural and manmade features on banks such as areas covered by timber, cultivation, town sites, and buildings (e.g., houses, mills, boat stores). Also shown are property owners' names.
953.017
MAPS SHOWING YEARLY PROGRESS OF ILLINOIS SURVEYS. 1837-1838; 1840-1843; 1848-1850; 1852. 10 maps. No index.
Maps were prepared to accompany annual reports of Surveyor General to the Commissioner of the General Land Office and give a graphic representation of the progress of surveys in each township at time of the report. Indications of progress include those townships which had been completely surveyed, resurveyed, subdivided, or were under contract for surveying.
953.018
ABSTRACT OF CONDITIONS OF SURVEYS OF INDIAN GRANTS AND RESERVATIONS. 1850. 1 partial vol. No index.
Abstract was prepared by the Surveyor General as a report to the Commissioner of the General Land Office to clarify the conditions of the surveys for the grants and reservations made in 1830 and 1833 under the Treaties of Prairie du Chien and Camp Tippecanoe. Entries for each grant or reservation include survey number, number of acres in tract, description of location (e.g., names of grantees of surrounding tracts, names of Indian villages nearby), date survey conducted, name of Surveyor, legal description of township in which located, condition of survey (e.g., whether or not platted and described), and date on which plat and description were forwarded to the Commissioner of the General Land Office.
953.019
SWAMP LAND SELECTION LISTS. 1853-1854. 1 vol. No index.
Lists are of tracts selected by the State of Illinois under Swamp Land Act of 1850 as swampy or subject to periodic overflow and therefore unfit for cultivation. Selected tracts were compared with the Surveyor General's survey field notes to determine if their designation as swamp land was valid. A list of selections with which he concurred was then sent to the General Land Office for further action. Each list contains the legal description and number of acres for each selected tract, name of federal land district in which tracts were located, and date of Surveyor General's approval with his signature.
953.020
INDIANA BORDER SURVEY FIELD NOTES AND PLAT. 1821. 0.25 cu. ft. No index.
Field notes and plat of a survey of the Illinois and Indiana border show natural features in relation to the line of the border. They are certified by the Surveyor and each state's Survey Commissioner.
953.021
INVENTORY RECORD. 1853. 1 vol. No index.
Record consists of an inventory of the office of the U.S. Surveyor General for Illinois and Missouri which was located at St. Louis, Missouri. Inventoried items include bound record books, bundles of loose items, single items, printed books, and office furniture and supplies. Bound record book, bundled loose items, and single item entries often list contents. These entries concern township and fractional township surveys, plats, and field notes.
Included within this volume is a list of certificates of new locations as provided for by a February 17, 1815 act of the U.S. Congress, "An Act for the Relief of the Inhabitants of the Late County of New Madrid in the Missouri Territory Who Suffered by the Earthquakes." This list gives the recorder's certificate number, the name of the locator (i.e., property owner), location classification number, location date, and remarks (e.g., a relocation, withdrawn and relocated on the 2nd January 1822, withdrawn and relocated See Class No. 462, withdrawn and relocated in the territory [now State] of Arkansas and Recorder's certificate and relocation transferred to the Surveyor General at Little Rock). These New Madrid entries (pp. 49-72) cover the years 1816-1827.
These records are available at the Illinois State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State.
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