The system is based on two sets of intersecting lines:
principal meridians and base lines
. run north and south. has a name or number and is crossed by a base line. this and its corresponding base line are used to survey a definite area of land, indicated on the map by boundary lines.
What is the rectangular survey system used for?
The Public Land Survey System (PLSS) is the surveying method developed and used in the United States to
plat, or divide, real property for sale and settling
. Also known as the Rectangular Survey System, it was created by the Land Ordinance of 1785.
What is a government rectangular survey system?
The rectangular survey system, often referred to as the government survey system, is
based on a system of lines that form rectangles and squares throughout the United States
. … The principal meridians and baselines are based respectively on lines of longitude and latitude.
What is a base line as used in the rectangular government survey system?
Baseline
.
the main imaginary line running east and west and crossing a principal Meridian
at a definite point. used by surveyors for reference and locating and describing land under the rectangular Survey System of legal description.
Is a survey a legal description?
A legal description is
a description of real property by a government survey
, a metes and bounds survey, or by lot numbers of a recorded plat, which description is complete enough that a particular parcel of land can be located and identified. … Surveys are generally prepared by professionals known as land surveyors.
How does the rectangular survey system work?
A rectangular system of land survey
divides a district into 24-square mile quadrangles from the meridian (north-south line) and the baseline (east-west line)
. The tracts are divided into 6-mile-square parts called townships, which are in turn divided into 36 tracts, each 1 mile square, called sections.
What is the rectangular survey method?
The Rectangular Survey System is
a method of surveying designed to divide the real property into specified plots
. … Prior to the land ordinance of 1785 and the Rectangular Survey System, the state lands' state which would be the 13 colonies, surveyed their land with meets and bound system.
What are the advantages of the rectangular land survey?
The rectangular survey is likely to lead to
more market transactions
, fewer border disputes, greater investment, higher land values, and more infrastructure investment than metes and bounds.
How are townships calculated?
would be
12 to 18 miles east of the principal meridian
. Each square, six miles by six miles is called a township. Townships are subdivided into SECTIONS. Since each township is six miles by six miles, township contains 36 square miles, each one forming a section.
Which parcel of land is the smallest?
A
quarter section
is 160 acres (65 ha) and a “quarter-quarter section” is 40 acres (16 ha). In 1832 the smallest area of land that could be acquired was reduced to the 40-acre (16 ha) quarter-quarter section, and this size parcel became entrenched in American mythology.
Which method is the most accurate form of describing property?
That's why
using a legal description
is the most accurate way to identify real estate. A legal description can be long and look complicated, but it's a more precise method of describing where a property is located.
What is a datum in a legal description?
What is a datum in a legal description?
A code indicating the date and time that a survey is recorded
.
An area measurement included in a plat survey
.
How large is a section used in the rectangular government survey system?
Township – an area that is six miles squared and is divided into 36 one mile square increments (sections). Section – an area that is one mile squared and consists of
640 acres
.
How do you read a legal survey description?
The descriptions are generally
read from front to back
. For example, the description above would be read “The north 1/2 of the southeast quarter of the southwest quarter of section 24, township 32 north, range 18 east.” However, the easiest way to interpret descriptions is from back to front (or, right to left).
Is a survey legally binding?
The drawing of the boundaries
is a legally binding document. The surveyors must comply with state rules and regulations about defining property lines and detailing parcels of land.
What is a legal description of a property example?
The legal description
pinpoints the location of a given property within its particular township, range, and section
. For example, each township is six square miles, or 23,040 acres, and contains 36 square sections, which are each intended to be one square mile (or 640 acres).
