Huntsville gazette., 1890-01-18

lkely 10 De candidate Tor their suf.
Frages.
Readers of The Athenian may he
to know that there is vet
act less than one million acres of
land in Alabama subject
% homestead entry, or pre- -emption,
in fact there is probably two million
acres of Government land. but by
act of Congress. March, 80, 1883.
about 600, 600 acres Of coal and iron
ore and other mineral lands were
Withdrawn from entry or emp
ton, on account, no doubt, of the
fact that such lands were rapidly
drifting into the hands of specula-
tors through FRAUDULENT enteries, and
it is the investigation ofsuch matters
that constitutes part of my duties.
These withdrawn mineral lands are
principally located between latitude
$50 and $40 north, in counties as
follows:
Tuscaloosa, coal; jefferson, coal
and iron; Shelby, coal and iron; Tai
ladega, iron; Clay, iron, gold and
silver; Randolph. iron; Cleburn, iron
and gold; Calhoun, iron; St. CLAIR,
C. al and iron; Etowah. coal and iron;
jackson, coal and iron; Blount, coal;
Walker, coal; Fayette, coal; Winston,
coal; Bibb. coal and iron; Chiffon,
iron. The trend Of coal ard iron
deposits is principally nort-east, or
starting from Chattanooga. south
west, with Guntersville on the vest
and Gadsden on the east, through
Birmingham to Tuscaloosa. The
coal area is much greater. of course,
than the iron area, the latter being
confined principally to a narrow
range of mountains and hills ranging
due southwest from Chattanooga, Will
the coal fields broaden out west OF
this to the Mississippi line.
In addition to these 600, 900 acres
of mineral lands withdrawn from en-
t,y, Senator Morgan secured the
passage Of an act Of Cong ress. April
%, 1884, by which 10000 acres OF
public land in the state was dona ed
to the university Of Alabama, to be
selected at random, or wherever the
committee appointed to make the
selection saw fit to make it. They
have been particular Of course, to
select from some of the best mineral
lands to be found. In addition to
the above. another 10000 acres has
been donated as supplementary to
an act ofCongress away back in 1919
or the: eabout, granting every
sixteenth, or thirty-sixth section for
public school purposes, this 10000
acres being intended to cover any
deficiency in such sixteenth or thir.
tyesixth sections as were cut up by
streams or boundary lines, called
fractional" because they did not
coutain $40 acres.
Thus it will be seen that the schools
of Alabama are pretty well provided
for in the way Of land donations.
am giving these details concern
ing these public lands, and mineral
districts. because many inquiries
have reached me concerning this
subject from acquaintances. and 9th
ers, who will read this article, and /
hope it will thus enable them to
Judge better when they consider the
Feasibility of locating here.
The state is divided into two land
districts, the northern district with
the Huntsville land office as head,
quarters, has .or its southern boundary
a base line running east and ives t
through Celera; the southern district,
with the Montgomery land Office as
headquarters, extends from the above
line through Calera, to Florida and
the gulf.
Both Offices are doing rushing
business, there having been about
$1,000 acres of public land entered
as homes in November and December
$4,000 of which was entered through
the Montgomery Office, and 1000
through the Huntsville office. AT
this rate it will not be many years
until Government lands in Ala
bama, will be thing of the past, so if
any of "you'uns" in Tennessee want
homestads down here / would advise
you to set your houses in order and
come along. Counties having the
most pub ic land in the Huntsville
(northern) district. are as follows:
Winston, Walker, Jackson, Marion,
Franklin, Etowah, Lamar, Fayette.
Limestone; Blount, with some in
Calhoun, Cherokye, Cleburn, and
Jefferson. Those having the most
public land in the state are in the
Montgomery district as follows:
Chocktaw, $4,000; Mobile, $1,000:
Baldwin, $1,000; Escambia, $4,000
Covington, ZOO; Geneva, 29, $50;
Henry, $3.50; Dale, $3.50; Coffee,
10, O,2SO; Monroe and Conecuh tcgeth.