The principal meridians are not located in equal distances from one another. Because the rectangular or government survey system was instituted when the United States was a brand-new country, it was used to describe most of the land west of the original 13 . Halves are 320 acres, and quarters are each 160 acres. Finally, sections can be further divided into halves or quarters that are named for their direction within the section: the east half, the west half, the north half, the south half, the northwest quarter, the northeast quarter, the southwest quarter, and the southeast quarter. The rectangular survey system may just be a giant grid covering the United States, but understanding how it is used can seem a little complex, so stick with us while we cover the basic definitions.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'realestatelicensewizard_com-box-4','ezslot_11',688,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-realestatelicensewizard_com-box-4-0'); The largest grid comprises of two types of lines, principal meridians, and baselines. The principal meridians and baselines are based respectively on lines of longitude and latitude.\r\n\r\nYoure likely to see at least a few questions on the on calculating the area of part of a section, and youll also see questions about terminology and some of the measurements that the rectangular survey system uses. She has a Masters in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University and a Bachelor's in English from Thomas Edison State University. Sections are numbered from the northeast (top right) corner, running first horizontally to the west and then down and back to the east in a serpentine pattern. If you want to define smaller properties, we can take the southeast of section 3, which will only be 160 acres. is a way of subdividing and describing land in the United States. distinguishing among the various surveys. Lines that are parallel to the Base Line are called the standard parallels which run at 24-mile intervals north and south of the Base Line. After the Revolutionary War ended, the United States Government needed a way to describe lands in the West to insure locating and selling. The legal description includes the state name, the meridian name, the township and range directions, and usually the section number. Using principal meridians and baselines as points of reference, land areas are divided by two kinds of lines, township lines and range lines. The guide meridians occur every 24 miles east and west of the principal meridian. A simple approach to a complex concept, Jeff gives students practical guidance that can be used on any Government Rectangular Survey question. They are often combined to create a more accurate map of property boundaries. Novation in Real Estate | Novation of Contract. These townships are not the same as political subdivisions.\r\n
Each township is further divided into 36 sections of one square mile each, or 640 acres, by horizontal and vertical section lines. It will serve as the basis for surveys of government in a specified area under its jurisdiction. The numbering then moves from right to left across that first upper tier. Dont Miss: Small Business Loan Government Programs. Areas smaller than full-size sections are known as government lots and are numbered and placed in fractional sections. Government Survey System (Rectangular Survey System) Public Land Survey System (PLSS) After the Revolutionary War ended, the United States Government needed a way to describe lands in the West to insure locating and selling. Dummies helps everyone be more knowledgeable and confident in applying what they know. 1. It is known that Jefferson proposed a rectangular survey system, although his system was based on the decimal system -- townships 10 miles by 10 miles. We know that there are 640 acres in one section, and we are taking a 1/4 of a 1/2 section. Get unlimited access to over 88,000 lessons. Since the earth is not flat like a checkerboard, there needed to be some adjustments made along the way to make sure everything worked out. The land can be further divided into even smaller sections by dividing the halves or quarters into smaller halves or quarters. He is also a real estate investor, board gamer and homebrewer. Using the Fifth Principal Meridian in Missouri, the description would look like this: The W 1/2 of the SE 1/4 of Section 14, Township 2 South, Range 3 West of the Fifth Principal Meridian, Missouri. The grid is further divided by lines that run parallel to and between the principal meridian lines, called range lines, and lines that run parallel to and between the baselines, called township lines. True of False - When land is mapped on the rectangular survey system, you locate the parcel by reading the directions from left to right. Those states are: An error occurred trying to load this video. In reality, because of this earth curvature issue, many sections and townships vary from their exact area measurements. Think about two more lines running up and down the page on top of the first two lines, also about an inch apart. These range lines form ranges. The creation of the legal description for the Governmental Survey System is based on special longitude and latitude lines called principal meridians and base lines. The north-south line that runs through the initial point is a, ). The states that use the rectangular survey system are:Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Alabama, and Florida. Section 16 is located directly in the center of the section and historically was always designated as the school section. In other words, after section number 6, it drops down to 7 on the next tier then goes left to right to number 12. Township lines, which run east and west, parallel to baselines, are horizontal parallel lines that form township tiers.\r\n\r\nThink about two lines running from left to right across this page about an inch apart. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. Just because they are referred to as government lots does not mean the government owns the land they contain. Many plans have been made on how to subdivide the public domain lands. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. For example, a legal description of Missouri, Fifth Principal Meridian, T4S, R7E, sec 23 indicates a property that is 4 townships south and 7 townships east of the Fifth Principal Meridian in Missouri. ( the major vertical line) -37 in the U.S. Base Line The horizontal line ( the major one) Ranges The roads in a lot of communities in the U.S. run along survey Base Lines as well just like in Arkansas, especially in Little Rock, the baseline road follows the baseline used by the Louisiana Purchase surveyors. How Do You Use the Rectangular Survey System? Using principal meridians and baselines as points of reference, land areas are divided by two kinds of lines, township lines and range lines. Each one is distinguished by a different name and number and has an intersecting baseline. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. Since townships are six miles north to south and six miles east to west, each township is 36 square miles. Principal meridians run perpendicular to the earths equator, north to south. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. Concepts will include principal meridians, the PLSS, and how sections of a township are. Its worth noting quadrangles are not used when identifying land with the rectangular survey method, only the principal meridians, baselines, and townships and sections. You may be asked to identify sections in the Rectangular Survey System, so remember the order from specific to general. This system, sometimes called the Public Land Survey System, was created in 1785 to plat or divide real property into squares and rectangles for sale and settling. Correction lines occur at every fourth township line or every 24 miles north and south of the baseline. Because the rectangular or government survey system was instituted when the United States was a new country, it was used to describe most of the land west of the original 13 colonies, so most of you are likely to see some questions about this system.\r\n\r\nLongitude and latitude are imaginary lines that divide the earth through the north and south poles (longitude) and run parallel with the equator (latitude). Water & Littoral Rights Concept & Purpose | What are Water Rights? Doing the math, its 1/2 1/4 640 = 80 acres.
\r\n\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_274746\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"556\"]![\"quarter](\"https://www.dummies.com/wp-content/uploads/real-estate-exam-quarter-section.jpg\")
A quarter section can be split into smaller parts. You can drill down by clicking on the land map, but you need to click the calc button to get the latitude and longitude. [/caption]\r\n\r\nEach section of 640 acres can be divided into halves and quarters called, get this, half sections and quarter sections. -also known as the Public Land Survey System (PLSS), because it was originally, used to survey federally owned blocks of land-is regulated by the, The rectangular government survey system is used in 30 western and southern states. Just imagine you are to layout an area of land based on the geography, the meets, and bound system will show you the visible marks of the land. The townships are consecutively numbered by their location within the intersection of multiple range lines and township lines. Every fourth township line is called a correction line, and every fourth range line is called a guide meridian. The area created by the intersection of a township line and a range line is a township. Way in which the U.S. government uses to subdivide public land. Doing the math, its 1/2 1/4 640 = 80 acres.\r\n\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_274746\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"556\"] A quarter section can be split into smaller parts. The boundary of each township is 6 miles long, so a township contains 36 square miles and is described as being 6 miles square. Figuring out the size of a piece of property, which sometimes is called a parcel, is simple, if you keep in mind that youre always dealing with a section of 640 acres. School University of Minnesota, Duluth; Course Title MARKETING MISC; Uploaded By MajorTarsierMaster692. Baselines run parallel to the earths equator, from east to west. Correction lines occur at every fourth township line or every 24 miles north and south of the baseline. However, in some areas of the country, a township refers to a legal municipality rather than a geographic area, which can lead to some confusion. The system was further modified to facilitate the transfer of large quantities of government-owned western lands to . Also known as the Rectangular Survey System, it was created by the Land Ordinance of 1785 to survey land ceded to the United States by the Treaty of Paris in 1783, following the end of the American Revolution. So how does the system describe land? Originally proposed by Thomas Jefferson, the PLSS began shortly after the Revolutionary War, when the Federal government became responsible for large areas west of the thirteen original colonies. ","noIndex":0,"noFollow":0},"content":"The rectangular survey system, often referred to as the government survey system, is based on a system of lines that form rectangles and squares throughout the United States. by six miles square (for a total area of 36 square miles or 23,040 acres). There are 37 principal meridians in the national survey, which are referred to when. The following table indicates some distance and area conversions in the PLSS: The states that use the rectangular survey system are:Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Alabama, and Florida. Quarter sections have an area of 160 acres.\r\n \t