General Land Office

“ The character of the lands in the public domain is decided by the surveyors who execute contracts from the General Land Office for subdividing or staking the country off into townships and sections, according to our American system. ”

“ The first of those acts established a General Land Office, while the last one reorganized that office. Each of those acts made provision for the appointment of certain officers, and each limited the prohibition against the purchasing or becoming interested in the purchasing of public lands to the officers or employees named in them, respectively. ”

“ That any person desiring to avail himself of the provisions of this act shall file with the register of the proper district a written statement in duplicate, one of which is to be transmitted to the General Land Office, designating by legal subdivisions the particular tract of land he desires to purchase, setting forth that the same is unfit for cultivation and valuable chiefly for its timber or stone; that it is uninhabited ”

“ Following the dissolution of the company in 1624, the office of surveyor-general was established with a royal appointee who was charged with the responsibility of maintaining the survey records and issuing commissions to the surveyors of the colony. Some difficulty was encountered in securing qualified and reliable men. This led during the interregnum to a law in March, 1654⁄55, calling for the dismissal of unqualified surveyors and placing the power of appointment in the hands of the county court. ”

“ That spring the newspaper office became a clearing house for homestead lands. People wanting either to buy [206] or sell relinquishments came there for information. All kinds of notices to be filed with the Department of the Interior were made out by the office, which began to keep legal forms in stock. Gradually I found myself becoming an interpreter of the Federal Land Laws and settlers came many miles for advice and information. ”

“ Now, with the change in management, it's time to take inventory. The Federal Government owns some 730 million acres-about one-third of the total land area of the United States. The Department of Interior has jurisdiction over most of that, including our national parks, wildlife refuges, wilderness lands, wetlands, and coastal barriers. Not included in those 730 million acres are our offshore coastal waters, the Outer Continental Shelf, which is also Interior's responsibility. ”

“ The people of Texas have always been interested in better educational systems. Early Texas newspapers reflect this fact. Consequently, land was set aside by the Republic or State at one time or other for the benefit of The University of Texas, county schools, eleemosynary institutions, and public schools. In many cases, this land has been sold, and the systems have benefited from the fund thereby created. ”

“ An Act of March 13, 1875, increased each county’s grant to four leagues. All but 18 of the state’s present 254 counties received this land, and most of them sold it, receiving small sums. Some counties retained their land, and many have had oil discovered on their property. Each county set up its own permanent school fund into which goes money from sale of county lands or money from mineral leases. Most counties that did not sell their land today have permanent funds of several hundred thousand dollars. ”

“ The story of Texas oil development is also pertinent to the history of Texas land.
Through the whole account shines the far-sightedness, honesty, and devotion of early Texas leaders. By their efforts we enjoy much that would not otherwise be ours, not the least of which are our two great educational funds, the Permanent School Fund and the Permanent University Fund.
Does it not seem proper that we treat the educational future of our young people with at least as much respect as our ancestors? ”

“ The 1866 and 1870 laws were made a part of the Constitution of 1876, and settlers continued to claim land under pre-emption laws until 1898, when litigation in the courts brought this class of claims to an end.
The main reason for the end of pre-emptions was that homesteaders ran out of public domain on which to settle. However, 4,847,136 acres were granted under Homestead or Pre-emption laws. ”

“ I am quite inclined to believe that if provision were made, as in section 1063 of the Revised Statutes, relating to claims in other departments, for the transfer to a proper court, under proper regulations, of certain contest cases involving questions affecting large classes of claims, it would be a relief to the Land Office and would tend to a more speedy adjustment of land titles in such cases, a result which would be in the interest of all our people.
Nothing is more disadvantageous to a community, its progress and peace, than unsettled land titles. ”

“ The company's right of selection in the forest reserves is limited to such land as would, under the practise of the Land Office, have been available to individuals under the public land laws either for clearing and subsequent cultivation, or for grazing, or for any other purpose commonly classified by the Land Office as coming within the preemption and homestead laws. ”

“ The three parties named will subdivide the land, under the supervision of the inspector, among themselves, and such others as may choose to settle near them, so that each family shall have a plot of not more than forty acres of tillable ground, and, when it borders on some water-channel, with not more than eight hundred feet water-front, in the possession of which land the military authorities will afford them protection until such time as they can protect themselves, or until Congress shall regulate their title. ”

“ Another area of oil development in Texas has been the so-called “tidelands”, the submerged lands under the Gulf of Mexico to the three-league limit. Production in the tidelands began as early as 1940 but drilling exploration has never developed to the desired extent. One reason has been the controversy between the United States and Texas over the ownership of the tidelands. ”