Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-12-27
The Public Domain.

| Public documents are considered by III.
! thoughtiess to be dry affairs. but they
/ contain valuable information for persons
! DESTROYS of acquainting themselves with
the history and progress of the nation.
! One of the Federal bureaus with which
| the public is too little acquainted is tn,
general land office. and lack of knowledge
| concerning 1t is especially prevalent In
! the older and settled states. An interest
! ing record of the operations of this bu-
rrau Is found in the annual report of the
| secretary of the interior The public do
/ main is estimated TO contain ISL. OF SO.
! acres. and comprises the lands now
owned or heretofore disposed of by the
United States. as follows: State cessions
| tWestern reserved. 25S. 504 l29 acres; Lou
| isiana purchase from France. April 90
! 1863 ,50,6s6S3i acres; Florida purchase
| from Spain. February - 1919. 1926 .oUl
| acres: Mexican cession. treaty of Febru-
| airy >. 1913. 500 623. 30 acres. Texas pur-
chase. November %. 1850. 81. ed. 1853 acres
O ldsden purchase from Mexico, Deem
! ber 30, 1853, %, l42 400 acres. and Alaska
purchase from Russia. March 30, 1867.
| 369. 529 900 acres
| Omtting the acreage. the cessions made
| by the original states were as follows:
| Alabama. northern portion. formed from
| Georgia and south Carolina: Illinois, In
diana. Michigan. Wisconsin. Kentucky
| and Eastern Minnesota. from Virginia
northern part of Mississippi from Geor-
I
ginia and Connecticut; Tennessee, from
( North Carohna. Michigan and Minnesota
were disputed territory. already en-
braced in cessions by Massachusetts and
chase was formed Alabama (southern
parp, Arkansas. Colorado northeast
paru. Idaho. Iowa. Indian Territory.
Kansas Except southwest corner). Louis
lana, Minnesota (west of the MississippD,
Mississippi (southern parD. Missouri.
Montana Nehrac la naE Okla
homa least of 100 degrees west. Oregon,
South Dakota. Washington and Wyo-
ming except southwest partD
| The state of Florida embraces the ter
ritory obtained by the Florida purchase.
The land obtained by the Mexico cession
is thus apportioned. Arizona north
pa"D. California, Colorado (west of the
Rockiesp. Nevada. New Mexico north
west parD, Utah and Wyoming South
west part) The Texas purchase yielded
Colorado lsouthern parp, Kansas 5south-
west corner). New Mexico least of the
Rio Grande) and Oklahoma western
parto The Gadsden purchase gave us
Arizona (southern parD and New Mex
leo southwest corner) while the Alaska
purchase is represented by the territory
of that name. OF the other states out
side of the thirteen original states Texas
entered the Union by treaty of anneXa-
| ton. Vermont formed part of New York,
Maine was separated from Massachu-
| sets and West Virginia was taken from
| Virginia.
| The land office has no record of exist
| ing public domain in the colonial
states or in Texas, Kentucky. Vermont.
| Maine. West Virginia and District of Co
| lumbia. Vacant public lands are those
subject to settlement and to filing and en-
| try if surveyed. They aggregate 591 .343 953
| acres. of which 212.2941 2) acres are I'M
| surveyed. These lands are principally in
Montana. Nevada. New Mexico. Arizona.
| Wyoming, Idaho. Utah. California. Col
orado. Oregon. North Dakota and Was :
| ington. The acreage of reserved land is
| 1872. ia. This land embraces territory
| reserved for satisfaction of railroad
grants. for military and naval purposes,
reservoir sites. the Indians. timber and
| such lands as are included in uncon!irmell
| private land grants. The appropriated
| land comprises TAI. 365 acres. and in
! cludes all lands embraced in selections,
filings and entries. perfected and upper
! fected. and the area of lands granted for
school purposes.-Public Ledger.