The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1921-02-16
LIBRARY GETS
HISTORICAL AND
VALUABLE WORK
GOVERNMENT LAND COMMITS
SIONER DOES NOT FORGET
HIS OLD HOME TOWN

Byron r. Brown, secretary of the
local board of commerce, is in re,
ceipt of the following letter from
Clay Tallman, commissioner of the
United States land office in which. that
official brings to light the fact that
he is presenting his old home town
with very valuable and historical
survey of the land comprising Otis
co township.
We are reproducing the letter
which is as follows:
Washington D. c., Feb. 5, 81
Mr.. Byron +. Brown,
Belding Michigan.
My dear Byron:-
AS a matter of local his
torlcal interest and perhaps some
little practical use, l am sending YOU
under another cover, a folio / have
had prepared consisting of a photo
photographic copy of the official plat
of survey to T. 8 N, r. 8 W., Mich
igan Meridian (Otisco township), to-
gether with Photographic copy of
the official field notes of the survey
of that township, together also with
Photographic copy of that portion of
the tract book records of this office,
showing all the original entries of
public lands, by whom taken and
when.
Reference to the plat will show
that the survey was made by one N.
Brookfield under contract dated Oc-
tober 81, 1886; that the field work
was done during the year 1897, and
that the plat was approved March 18,
1899; it was filed in the proper local
United States Land Office and the
land became available for entry or
sale shortly thereafter. AS Michigan
was admitted as a state by the act
of Congress of June 15, 1886 (5 stat. !
49) these surveys and sales were all
made after statehood. You will note |
that the Surveyor Generals office was
then located at Cincinnati. That was
because Ohio, Indiana and Michigan |
(and up to 1916, Illinois) were all in !
the same surveying district. The
Surveyor Generals office was moved
to Detroit in 1845 and to st. Paul in |
1857. The field notes of survey will
be readily understood by any survey
or who could doubtless trace out the |
old lines with large degree of GER
tainty.
In the tract book records, / find
many familiar names. A cursory ex-
animation shows that the first sale
IL NhC OOWllSLlD was 10 NOllcY Del
ding ,on July "a, 1889 for the SWH, i
Sec. a; the next sale was to George I
w. Dickinson on July 80, 1889, COW
ering lots 2 and of Sec. /: and
shortly thereafter, in the month of
August, a number of sales took place I
some thirty sales occurring on Aug I
ust 6, 1889. You will f urther note j
that practically all this township was i
disposed of by the end of 1851; the [
last entry we note on the tract book s
is May 13, 1854, by which time the c
entire township was in private own G
ership. 1
May l suggest that you place this '
folio in the public library or other a
similar place where it may be readi- a
ly accessible to any who may be in a
terested. n
Cordially yours,
Clay Tallman b
Clay Tallman was a graduate of b
the local high school, being a mem "
ber of the class of 1891. Mr.. Tall Ii
man holds big, man sized job at "
and we read very often
a great deal about the work which
ne is doing in the vast areas of the
west. C,
Bedding people will be very CRATE W
ful to Land Commissioner Tallman Il
for his thoughtfulness in presenting I
his valuable and historical work. $,