Tract Books

United States Land and Property  Tract books

Tract books were originally maintained by the federal government for each parcel of land obtained from the federal government. Family historians use tract books to help locate the property of ancestors and their neighbors, and for clues to find associated land records.

These ledgers (tract books) were used to record entries, leases, withdrawals and other actions affecting the disposition of lands in the public domain. This information allowed federal land officials to determine the status of lands and minerals. For further details about federal tract books available on the Internet, see also  United States, Bureau of Land Management Tract Books (FamilySearch Historical Records).

Likewise, county governments keep their own separate land records usually in the form of deeds and plat maps. Counties keep deeds and plat maps for each parcel of real property in their jurisdiction in order to track ownership and status of real estate AFTER it left federal control.

In most cases the federal tract books are more comprehensive and complete than copies, if any, kept by the state or county for the same area.

Federal tract books 1820-1908
There are 3,907 United States federal tract books containing the official record of each parcel of public land until it was transferred from federal to private ownership in 28 of the 30 federal land states between the years 1820 and 1908. The federal tract books for Alaska and Missouri are lost.

Why they were created
These federal  tract books show the federal government transactions and status of each parcel of surveyed public land. These books indicate who obtained the land, and include a physical description of the property and where the land is located. The type of transaction is also recorded such as cash entry, credit entry, homesteads, patents (deeds), timberland rights, or mineral rights granted by the federal government, and other conveyances of title such as Indian allotments, internal improvement grants (to states), military bounty land warrants, land grants from previous foreign governments, railroad grants, school grants, and swamp grants.

Why genealogists use them
Federal tract books show details about when and where an ancestor first obtained land from the federal government. Tract books provide information to help find further federal (case files) and local land ownership records (deeds) which sometimes hold clues about an ancestor's residence and family members. Also, after finding where an ancestor lived, a researcher can search for a variety of non-land records of the ancestor in that area. Tract books also can be used to find information about neighbors—people who sometimes turn out to be relatives. Tract books even show when an ancestor applied for federal land but failed to obtain it.

Tract books lead to case files
Federal tract books serve as a comprehensive reference to over ten million land entry case files preserved at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC. These case files show the application papers of each individual who attempted to obtain a private claim to some public land, whether they succeeded or not. Successful claims  received a patent (original title) and are indexed in the BLM Land Patent Search 1820-1908 for all federal land states. Unsuccessful claims  still have case files, and tract books are one of the best ways to find the information needed to obtain a case file from the two million otherwise unindexed land entry case files that were never finished, forfeited, rejected, or cancelled.

Content
Federal tract books show the type of land entry, its legal description (numbered section, township and range), acreage, price, entryman's name, application date, and (if applicable) patenting date and numbers. Remarks added near an entry sometimes provide clues to find additional records.

Tract book entries were almost always recorded close to the time of land transactions. They are part of the formal record and are accurate and reliable.

Two types of records are closely associated with tract books: patents and case files. Patents are very reliable and represent the formal transfer of land from federal to private ownership. Case files can include a variety of records such as applications, reports, affidavits, genealogical pages from family Bibles, letters from attorneys, or surveys which must be evaluated individually to assess their reliability.

These tract books document nearly 100 percent of the land transactions in 28 of 30 federal land states between 1820 and 1908. Every ancestor who applied to the federal government in to obtain federal land (except in Alaska or Missouri) should be entered in one of these tract books whether the application was approved (patented), or not.

The availability of inexpensive land was one of the primary attractions for immigrants to America. As high as 80 percent of the population have owned property at some point in their life. However, only a small part of population obtained that land directly from the federal government. Therefore, only a small percentage of the land-owning population would be listed in federal tract books. Nevertheless, the remaining landowners would definitely be mentioned in county land and property records such as deeds.

Because of homestead laws, a higher percentage of the land owning population in the Great Plains states after 1862 are likely to be in tract books than in other western states. On the other hand, it is likely mining and mineral rights claims in tract books would be more common in the Mountain West states.

There are over ten million land entry case files (applications) in the National Archives most of which would have a corresponding entry in a tract book. About eight million land patents have been indexed in the BLM Land Patent Search for successfully completed federal land applications. This suggests about two million applications were left unfinished or were rejected—the best remaining access point to such unpatented case files is through page-by-page tract book searches.

How to use tract books
Tract books are easiest to use if you have an ancestor's land description with the section, township number, and range number to help you quickly turn to the page where an ancestor should be listed.

What it helps to know. To begin your search of federal tract books it is helpful to know (or guess) the following:


 * Name of the entryman (person who filed a claim)
 * State
 * Land Office location
 * County
 * Land description (section, townhsip, and range) See Rectangular surveys for an explanation of these terms.

Search strategies
1. Find the land description. The best strategy is to first find an ancestor's land description.


 * Sources which show the land description:


 * Land patent. If your family still has the patent (original title) for a piece of property, that patent will show the land description.
 * BLM land patent search. The online index to eight million land patents 1820-1908 and military bounty land shows each entry's land description. However, this index does not include the two million case files which were never finished, forfeited, relinquished, or cancelled.
 * Seven states index. The seven states index  at the National Archives in Washington, DC, also gives each entry's land description. The index covers Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, Nevada and Utah for pre-1908 case files both patented and unpatented.
 * '''Use search engines like Google to identify state land record indexes that could reveal land descriptions.

2. Search tract books page-by-page. Alternatively, IF  you cannot find the section, township number, and range number, you could search page-by-page through the tract books for the county where an ancestor lived until you find his or her name.

Select the tract books to search
The following sources can help narrow the number of tract books to search:


 * Coverage table. Use the description of the townships and ranges covered in each tract book as described in the Tract Books Coverage Table to narrow down the volumes you will need to view to find an ancestor's land entry.
 * Index. Or, if you have access to the National Archives in Washington, DC, use the Index to Tract Books, RG 49, MLR# UD2321, to each state's tract books which allows researchers to identify the tract book number that covers the area in which they are interested.
 * Townships and ranges in each county. In addition, "Appendix A" in   lists each present-day federal land state and county together with its farthest north-, east-, south-, and west- township and range for that county, and the meridian(s) that applies. This information can help you narrow down the number of tract books you will need to search.
 * Land offices. Tract books for some states, such as Alabama and Ohio are organized by land office. Others are organized for the whole state. "Appendix B" in Land and Property Research in the United States  shows the varying land office boundaries in each state over many years.

Use the description of the townships and ranges covered in each tract book as described in the Tract Books Coverage Table to narrow down the volumes you will need to view to find an ancestor's land entry.

Or, if you have access to the National Archives in Washington, DC, use the Index to Tract Books, RG 49, MLR# UD2321, to each state's tract books which allows researchers to identify the tract book number that covers the area in which they are interested.

In addition, "Appendix A" in Land and Property Research in the United States  lists each present-day federal land state and county together with its farthest north-, east-, south-, and west- township and range for that county, and the meridian(s) that applies. This information can help you narrow down the number of tract books you will need to search.

Federal tract books for some states, such as Alabama and Ohio are organized by land office. Others are organized for the whole state. "Appendix B" in Land and Property Research in the United States  shows the varying land office boundaries in each state over many years.

Tract book arrangement
Tract book volumes are arranged by the present-day state. In some states tract book volumes are also divided into groups by land office. The townships and ranges covered in each of the 3,907 tract books are listed at United States, Bureau of Land Management Tract Books Coverage Table (FamilySearch Historical Records).

Inside each tract book the arrangement is by the legal land description of the section, township, and range. Each land entry was recorded in the tract book across two pages.


 * If you know the land description, locate land entry in the appropriate federal tract book under the appropriate numbered section, township, and range listed on the left side of each page in the volume.
 * If you do NOT know the land description, search each appropriate tract book line-by-line and page-by-page for the name of an ancestor.

When you find an ancestor's entry. Once you find the record of the land entry in a federal tract book, be sure to


 * photocopy both tract book pages  of the entry
 * write down the exact title, volume number, and page number  (source information) of the tract book volume in which the ancestor's entry was found

This information is important to helping the National Archives retrieve the land entry case file for you.

Access
Original federal tract books, Internet digital versions, and microfilms exist:


 * Originals. The National Archives in Washington, DC has the original federal tract books for 16 western states. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Eastern State Office, 7450 Boston Blvd, Springfield, VA 22153 has custody of the tract books for the 12 eastern federal land states (AL, AR, FL, IL, IN, IA, LA, MI, MN, MS, OH, and WI). The tract books for Alaska and Missouri are lost.
 * Internet. Digital copies of each federal-land-state's tract books (except  Alaska  and Missouri) are available in FamilySearch Historical Records online at United States Bureau of Land Management Tract Books, 1820-1908
 * Microfilms of tract books are also on 1,265 films for each federal-land state (except  Alaska and Missouri) at the National Archives in Washington, and the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.
 * United States Bureau of Land Management, Tract Books (Washington, District of Columbia : Records Improvement, Bureau of Land Management, 1957)..

Related Wiki Articles

 * United States, Bureau of Land Management Tract Books (FamilySearch Historical Records) describes the online federal tract book collection for 28 federal land states from 1820-1908.
 * Tract Books Coverage Table lists the state, volume, land office, township numbers and range numbers in each federal tract book 1820-1908.
 * Grants from the Federal Government (Public Domain) explains public lands, how individuals claimed some of it, and the paperwork created during the process.
 * BLM Land Patent Search discusses the index to eight million patented (finished) land applications, and military bounty land papers. Each entry in this index includes the land description useful for finding an ancestor in a tract book.
 * Land entry case files describes the 10 million files in the National Archives created to document individual claims to federal land using cash entry, credit entry, homestead, military bounty land, private land claims, mineral or timberland rights. A case file exists for each tract book entry.
 * Rectangular surveys includes a section about tract books. This article shows how principal meridians, baselines, townships, ranges, sections, and aliquots are used for land descriptions found in tract books and other property records.
 * United States Land and Property page is a general discussion of land record research for genealogists. It serves as a table of contents to related Wiki pages about American land records including tract books, related land entry case files, and the BLM land patent search.

Local tract books and land records
State and county archives sometimes have partial copies of federal tract books. In general these are not as complete as the federal copies.

Counties are responsible for documenting all land transactions AFTER title was transferred from the federal government to an individual. Deeds, mortgages, property tax records, and plat maps are examples of land records typically generated at the county level.

Related Websites

 * Bureau of Land Management General Land Office Records includes the Land Patent Search, instructions, and search tips.
 * Form NATF-084 (pdf) used to order land entry case files from the National Archives.
 * Land Records: Introduction and Links to Resources on Land Entry Case Files and Related Records National Archives explain land record research.

For Further Reading

 * Kenneth Hawkins, Research in the Land Entry Files of the General Land Office: Record Group 49, Reference Information Paper, 114 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 2007), 9. Internet version (pdf)
 * E. Wade Hone, Land and Property Research in the United States (Salt Lake City, Utah : Ancestry Pub., c1997), chapters 8 and 9. ;.