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[[United States Land and Property|United States Land and Property]]>[[Minnesota|Minnesota]] | [[United States Land and Property|United States Land and Property]]>[[Minnesota|Minnesota]] | ||
{{ | [[{{Minnesota Linden Barn}}]] | ||
=== Introduction === | === Introduction === | ||
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The availability of land attracted many immigrants to America and encouraged westward expansion. Land ownership was generally recorded in an area as soon as settlers began to arrive. Land records are primarily used to learn where an individual lived and when he lived there. They often reveal other family information, such as the name of a spouse, heir, other relatives, or neighbors. You may learn where a person lived previously, his occupation, if he had served in the military, if he was a naturalized citizen, and other clues. Sale of the land may show when he left and where he was moving. | The availability of land attracted many immigrants to America and encouraged westward expansion. Land ownership was generally recorded in an area as soon as settlers began to arrive. Land records are primarily used to learn where an individual lived and when he lived there. They often reveal other family information, such as the name of a spouse, heir, other relatives, or neighbors. You may learn where a person lived previously, his occupation, if he had served in the military, if he was a naturalized citizen, and other clues. Sale of the land may show when he left and where he was moving. | ||
Minnesota was a public-domain state where unclaimed land was surveyed, then granted or sold by the government through federal and state land offices. The first sale of a piece of land from the government was called a land patent and the first owner of the land was called a patentee. Later when the land was sold or mortgaged by private owners the document was called a deed. The first federal and state transactions were recorded and the paperwork kept at the federal and state level, while all future transactions were recorded at the office of the county register of deeds. Family History researchers usually use land records from county offices, however, records from federal and state offices may also have genealogical value. For detailed descriptions of land record types see [[United States Land and Property|United States Land and Property]]. | Minnesota was a public-domain state where unclaimed land was surveyed, then granted or sold by the government through federal and state land offices. The first sale of a piece of land from the government was called a land patent and the first owner of the land was called a patentee. Later when the land was sold or mortgaged by private owners the document was called a deed. The first federal and state transactions were recorded and the paperwork kept at the federal and state level, while all future transactions were recorded at the office of the county register of deeds. Family History researchers usually use land records from county offices, however, records from federal and state offices may also have genealogical value. For detailed descriptions of land record types see [[United States Land and Property|United States Land and Property]]. For further information regarding land settlement in Minnesota, please read [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnbecker/land2.htm ''A Brief History of Land Settlement in Minnesota'']written by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office. | ||
For further information regarding land settlement in Minnesota, please read [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnbecker/land2.htm ''A Brief History of Land Settlement in Minnesota'']written by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office. | |||
If you are new to land research, you may wish to read the Beginner’s corner and other articles included on the [[United States Land and Property|United States Land and Property]] page. | If you are new to land research, you may wish to read the Beginner’s corner and other articles included on the [[United States Land and Property|United States Land and Property]] page. | ||
=== Early Settlers === | === Early Settlers === | ||
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*The [http://www.mnhs.org/collections/digitalmaps/index.htm Minnesota Historical Society ] has some county maps, land atlases, and plat books | *The [http://www.mnhs.org/collections/digitalmaps/index.htm Minnesota Historical Society ] has some county maps, land atlases, and plat books | ||
*United States. Bureau of Land Management. ''Tract Books''. Washington DC: Records Improvement, Bureau of Land Management, 1957. (The Family History Library films for Minnesota are films {{FHL|1445629}}–1445676. | *United States. Bureau of Land Management. ''Tract Books''. Washington DC: Records Improvement, Bureau of Land Management, 1957. (The Family History Library films for Minnesota are films {{FHL|1445629}}–1445676. Use the Author/Title Search of the microfiche catalog to find film numbers. The tract books devote a page or so to each land section in a township. They list the name of the first owner of each quarter section or the certificate number or both. | ||
*Microfilm copies of the tract books and township plats of the Minnesota land offices are available at the Family History Library. Plat books for counties in Minnesota are listed in the [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=localitysearch&columns=*,0,0 Place Search] of the Family History Library Catalog under: | *Microfilm copies of the tract books and township plats of the Minnesota land offices are available at the Family History Library. Plat books for counties in Minnesota are listed in the [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=localitysearch&columns=*,0,0 Place Search] of the Family History Library Catalog under: | ||
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MINNESOTA - LAND AND PROPERTY | MINNESOTA - LAND AND PROPERTY | ||
UNITED STATES - LAND AND PROPERTY | UNITED STATES - LAND AND PROPERTY | ||
=== Individual Land Transfers === | === Individual Land Transfers === | ||