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BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
General Land Office (GLO)
Automated Records System
MICHIGAN
DISCLAIMER
NO WARRANTY IS MADE BY THE BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT (BLM) FOR USE
OF THE DATA FOR PURPOSES NOT INTENDED BY BLM.
The Bureau of Land Management built this data base from information
contained on the original copy of the land patent/certificate/document
maintained by the Secretary of the Interior. The records are stored
and maintained by the BLM Eastern States, 7450 Boston Boulevard,
Springfield, Virginia 22153. The public may contact or visit the
Eastern States Public Room at the above address, Monday through Friday
(excluding Federal holidays), from 7:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.(eastern
standard time).
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT CD-ROM
General Land Office Records Project
GLO TERMS and DATA FIELD DEFINITIONS
Accession Number
An alpha-numeric code unique to each document that directly relates
a document image to the original hardcopy document. Identifies the
state, volume number, and page of the original GLO document. This
item is also referred to as the Document Reference ID as discussed
in Section 6.11. An example of this might be FL301__.023, which
identifies a Florida document found in Volume 301, Page 23.
Date Signed
The month, day, and year that the land document was signed.
Document Image
An electronic "picture" of the original land document that has been
preserved on optical disk and that can be shared by several people
at the same time.
Document Number
The primary identification number given to the original GLO
document. A certificate number, warrant number, serial number, or
patent number may be used as the Document Number.
Land Office
Name of a location (usually a city or town) where the General Land
Office established a district Land Office to handle various land
transactions. Patents that were issued were bound into volumes by
Land Office names. Usually, several Land Offices existed for each
state.
Miscellaneous Document Number
A secondary identification number found on the original GLO
document. An application number, Choctaw certificate number, or
survey number may be used as a Miscellaneous Document Number. Not
all documents have a Miscellaneous Document Number (e.g., Cash
Entry patents).
Patentee First Name
The first name of the person (i.e., Patentee) that received the
document as it appears on the certificate.
Patentee Last Name
The last name of the person (i.e., the Patentee) that received the
document as it appears on the certificate.
Patentee Middle Name
The middle name or initial of the person (i.e., Patentee) that
received the document as it appears on the certificate.
Title Transfer Authority
Refers to the congressional act or treaty that supports the
transfer of land from the United States government to private
owners. A set of 6-digit authority codes are used to identify the
various types of land documents. These codes are derived from the
chapters in the Federal Code of Regulations established for the
various authorities. An example is Authority Code 251101 which
denotes the Homestead Act of 1862 (as amended).
Total Acres
The total number of acres described on a land document. For those
documents that have more than one parcel of land described, Total
Acres is zero for all land descriptions except for the last one.
In this case, the last land description will contain the total
acreage for all pieces of land on the document. This number is
expressed to the nearest thousandths of an acre.
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
General Land Office Automated Records Project
Contact Information
For more information regarding the GLO Automated Records System, or
to arrange a tour and demonstration of the system, please contact
one of the following, Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
(eastern time):
Mr. Jim Gegen
GLO Project Manager
or
Ms. Linda Brooks
Assistant GLO Project Manager
Bureau of Land Management
Eastern States
7450 Boston Boulevard
Springfield, Virginia 22153
(703) 440-1685
or
Ms. Gloria Ridolfi
Chief of Accounts and Public Services Section
Bureau of Land Management
Eastern States
7450 Boston Boulevard
Springfield, Virginia 22153
(703) 440-1605
BLM Eastern States Public Services Section . . . (703) 440-1564
For user services, system information, accounting information,
and rates information
BLM GLO System Administrator . . . . . . . . . .(703) 440-1639
For technical assistance, remote set up assistance
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
General Land Office Automated Records Project
DOCUMENT IMAGE ORDERING FORM
Please use one form for each document requested.
__________________________________________________________________
User Name
__________________________________________________________________
Address
__________________________________________________________________
City State Zip Code
Please supply the following information for each image you want a
copy of:
_____ ___________
State Accession #
__________________ __________ ______________
Patentee Last Name First Name Middle Initial
_______________
Document Number
Number of copies requested
Prices: $1.25 for an uncertified copy of a one page document.
$0.25 to certify a document.
The prices are based on retrieving one document image and include copy fees.
Please send your request to:
Bureau of Land Management
Eastern States, Attn: Public Services Section
7450 Boston Boulevard
Springfield VA 22153
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
LAND PATENTS AND CERTIFICATES
Before the homesteaders, soldiers, and other patentees received
their patent, some government paperwork had to be done.
Homesteaders had to file applications, witnesses had to testify
that the homesteader had actually lived on the land, and those
purchasing the land were issued receipts. These documents are on
file at the National Archives.
The National Archives welcomes researchers to use both original and
microfilmed records. The reference staff can help you to plan your
research and to locate and understand records. If you are unable
to visit the National Archives, or its regional archives, you may
obtain copies of documents through the mail.
Case file information about the patents can be obtained by writing
to:
Mr. George Brasher
Assistant Branch Chief, Suitland Reference Branch
National Archives and Records Administration
Washington, D.C. 20408