History of Georgia Land Surveying

In the rich history of the state of Georgia, land surveying has played a large role since before its inception. From weathering the shifts in power and policy regarding land distribution to rebuilding the devastating destruction across the entire state in the wake of the Civil War, Georgia's land surveyors have been instrumental in literally shaping the state into the Georgia we know today.

The first land surveyors to chart Georgia were actually Spanish seafaring explorers. The first surveys completed on the land that is present-day Georgia were geodetic surveys which charted the coast. French Jesuits would later move farther inland, charting the geography they came across as they went. Dr. Henry Woodard would later be credited with exploring and mapping much of Georgia as the first British settler, but in reality, there were not many places he went that the Spanish and French hadn't already been.

Before Georgia adopted their historical Land Lottery system, they used a headright system, which was commonplace during the settling of the Thirteen Colonies. Headrights were plots of land varying in size, given out to encourage people to cross the Atlantic Ocean and help populate the colonies. In Georgia, the headright system was instituted in 1777, although no land would be granted under the program until 1780. Families were offered 200 acres, plus an additional 50 acres per person to settle in Georgia. Surveyors were employed to parcel the land intended for grants. Some land was so highly prized that in 1784 a brawl broke out over the headright distribution for Franklin and Washington Counties.

The Yazoo Land Fraud was the greatest example of abuse of the headright system, as it not only involved corrupt business men, but also elected officials. In 1789 three companies, were formed in order to buy land from the Georgia legislature. The governor at the time, Telfair signed a deal to sell 20,000,000 acres of land to the Yazoo companies for $207,000, or about 1 cent per acre. Not only was this well below current market standards, but the members of the company attempted to pay with worthless old currency. This caused the deal to fall through. In 1794, four new companies managed to convince the legislature to sell them 40,000,000 acres of land (including the land included in the previous deal) for $500,000. The reason why the deal passed became apparent when it was learned that many Georgia official and legislators were stockholders in the four companies. When these associations were made public, outrage spread through the people of Georgia, and demands to rescind the deal were heard all the way to the capital. One of the leaders of the reform effort, Jared Irwin, was elected Governor. Less than two months after taking office, he signed a bill nullifying the Yazoo deal. They burned all copies of the bill, except for one which had been sent to George Washington. But some people who had been sold land by the four companies refused the refunds offered to them, insisting that they stay on the land. The matter was not resolved until 1803, when Georgia ceded all claims to any lands west of its present-day border.

Georgia's most well-known example of land surveying began with the Georgia Land Lottery of 1805. Again, land surveyors were called in to measure and regulate the parcels of land that were to be sold off by lottery. This job was a bit more hazardous than for a land surveyor today, as much of the land that was to be sold off had been "ceded" by the Native Creek and Cherokee tribes. The tribes fought the seizure of their lands, and in fact won a decision from the Supreme Court, which both the local state government and President Andrew Jackson ignored. The Cherokee, in particular, had to be forcibly removed, and President Jackson sent national troops in to assist Georgia in this process. In all, eight Land Lotteries were held; the last, held in 1832, would divide Old Cherokee County into the existing North Georgia Counties.

With agriculture, most especially the cotton industry, growing in northern and central Georgia post-Revolution, the government realized that they needed a more stable and speedy means of delivering product than rivers and roads. Surveyors began to map out what would become an extensive railroad system. This involved not only the route surveys to prepare for the railroad ties to be laid, but also site plan and construction surveys for the towns that would develop along the rail lines. This led to the first city of a significant size to be located inland in the United States. Atlanta would become a city of roads located in the center of the state, rather than a port. This also led to a shift in power from the coastal city of Savannah to land-locked Atlanta.

After the Civil War, Georgia would again need to call on land surveyors to assist in rebuilding the state. While marching south, General Sherman had destroyed most of the Georgia rail lines, which had been the best in the Deep South. Atlanta had been nearly destroyed, and all of Georgia was in a state of upheaval, both from the destruction as well as the social changes occurring, including the abolishment of slavery. Because of the poor economic situation Georgia was in, the rebuilding of the infrastructure took much longer than the initial surveying and building had.

In an attempt to put to work thousands of unemployed land surveyors during the Great Depression, Georgia commissioned a survey which would lead to Georgia the being the first state in the Union to have complete horizontal and vertical control nets. This was the first time in its history that all of Georgia's land and boundaries were measured, monumented and clearly delineated.

Since 1937, Georgia land surveyors have been mandated by the Georgia State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors, who has the power to adopt rules, set standards for licensure, adopt mandatory standards of professional conduct and ethics, and investigate and discipline unauthorized, negligent, unethical or incompetent practice. They also review applications, administer examinations, license qualified applicants, and regulate the professional practice of licensees throughout the state.

We at Point to Point Land Surveyors pride ourselves on accuracy, customer service and quality work delivered on time, guaranteed. Telecommunication land surveys are a specialty.

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Learn How to Profit From the Greatest Land Rush in US History!

At precisely twelve noon on September 16, 1893 a cannon's boom unleashed the largest land rush America ever saw. Carried by all sorts of transportation - horses, wagons, trains, bicycles or on foot - an estimated 100,000 raced to claim plots of land in an area of land in northern Oklahoma Territory. There had been a number of previous land rushes in the Territory - but this was the big one.

Many would be disappointed. There were only 42,000 parcels of land available - far too few to satisfy the hopes of all those who raced for land that day. Additionally, many of the "Boomers" - those who had waited for the cannon's boom before rushing into the land claim - found that a number of the choice plots had already been claimed by "Sooners" who had snuck into the land claim area before the race began. The impact of the land rush was immediate, transforming the land almost overnight.

Over 100 years later, we are in the midst of a second rush for land. When it is over it will go down as the greatest land rush in United States history far eclipsing the Oklahoma land rush of the 1890's.

How will it be different? Baby Boomers, investors and institutional investment firms are preparing to buy over one-half of the useable land in the U.S. in the next ten years. Are you aware there is approximately 1.6 billion acres (Yes, billions - with a big B!) that can be bought and sold? The potential is for millions and millions of land deals in the next few years.

Just like the previous "land rush", the demand for land it is going to transform who owns land in our country and what they are going to use it for.

In last month's article, I wrote how Baby Boomers are buying land in all shapes, sizes and types. Let's read what the media is saying who else is participating in this modern day rush for land:

Wall Street Journal

"Is it still possible to make money in real estate? With home prices continuing to plummet, many people have finally stopped seeing their family manse as a big bottomless bag of cash. But look beyond your front door, and you'll find some alternative real-estate related opportunities that are holding up despite the current economic downturn including rural land. Rising food prices, demand for corn-based ethanol and a growing desire by many urbanites for a place in the country are making rural land more valuable."

The New York Times

"The real estate market may have cooled, but investor demand may soon be heating up for at least one type of property: LAND. Some of the most attractive deals lately have come from land developers and home builders, who are divesting parcels in many parts of the country as they whittle down excess housing inventory. Even smaller landowners, facing their own financial strains, are selling off lots once meant for building."

"The time is ripe to start looking; I haven't seen this market in 20 years," said Jaime Raskulinecz, a real estate investor from NJ, who wants to buy land in the hard-hit market of Cape Coral, FL. She found lots for sale on or near the water at about a third to half below their peak prices of two years ago. On a larger scale, H. Ray Alcorn Jr., an investor in VA, is picking up commercial and residential parcels after two years on the sidelines. Mostly using cash, he has bought more than 100 acres throughout Virginia this year, much of it at reduced prices, and he has options to buy more."

Bloomberg.com

"...farmland is having its biggest revival in almost 30 years as demand for corn and soybeans from Asia and the ethanol industry drive commodity prices to record highs. From Iowa to South Dakota to Wyoming, gains in rural land prices have ranged from 78 percent to more than 200 percent, according to farmers and data from Farm Credit Services of America."

"TIAA-CREF, the largest U.S. manager of retirement funds, bought $340 million of farmland in seven states in December. George Washington University plans to earmark $100 million for agricultural investments during this year. "

"Farm values probably will rise at an annual rate of 6 percent to 10 percent in the next five years," said Murray Wise, the CEO of Westchester Group Inc., manager of $550 million of global farm tracts. In comparison, the median U.S. home is forecast to gain 1.2 percent through 2010 and stay below the 2006 peak of $221,900, the Mortgage Bankers Association in Washington said.

"It's just crazy out there right now,'' said Mac Boyd, 65, a real estate broker in Arcola, IL, who has sold farms for more than three decades. "The land market has never been stronger."

http://www.LandFlip.com, the premier land website, recently conducted a poll asking "When are you likely to purchase land?" 73% responded said they plan to purchase land in the next 12 months!

What is creating such an interest in land?

Retiring Baby Boomers - In my previous article, I documented that many Boomers are nearing retirement. Here is a snapshot of this group:

o 10,000 Boomers will retire every 24 hours!

o 17 trillion dollars are going to flow out of retirement accounts over the next two decades into the hands of Boomers.

o 1 in 4 Boomers own more than one piece of real estate.

o 1/2 of Boomers own their home free and clear.

o 60% of Boomers plan to move to a rural setting.

Since 1 in 4 Baby Boomers own more than one property, the logical conclusion is they will allocate a portion of their investment portfolio and buy land in the near future.

Baby Boomers are buying land, but most unlikely to ever move on the property

Where are Boomers going to relocate when they retire? In a poll commissioned by the National Association of Realtors, 60% plan to move to a rural area upon retirement. The operative word is PLAN. Many are in the process of purchasing small and large tracts of land all around the country to fulfill their future dream. Chances are that they will never move on to the property.

Nonetheless, everyday there are more and more Boomers entering into the land arena to buy their dream property - and they are ready to buy soon!

Stock market and the drive toward buying land

As in most economic cycles, there are times when the stock market has not performed to investor's expectations. When the stock market is doing well there is no reason for investors to look elsewhere to secure a modest return on investment. But, as we know, the stock market is mired in uncertainty. Because of this, some investors look for other investment options such as hard assets. Both individual and institutional investors are looking to land as one safe haven to relocate part of their investment portfolio. This translates that billions of dollars will be moved into land over the next few years.

The demand for land is reoccurring again but this time it is happening nationwide! Also, there are brokers reporting around the country that they have more buyers than sellers. That is a great dilemma to have! If the stock market continues to be volatile, more and more investors are going to look to land to fulfill a part of their investment needs. Some are buying land like it is a stock and betting that it will increase in value over the next 5 to 10 years and beat stock market returns.

Don't be left behind! Be a part of the next great land rush!

When the dust settled, many walked away from the Oklahoma land rush disappointed and empty handed. Don't sit on the sidelines any further waiting for the next opportunity. You can say to your children that you were part of THE greatest land rush in US history! There simply isn't a better time to profit from land!

In the next few years there will be millions and millions of land transactions. I specialize in finding sellers - and you can too. The marketplace needs investors like me to find affordable land for this new generation of buyer.

Some of you are saying, "Can I really buy and sell land?" Land is by far the simplest, easiest form of real estate on the planet. Don't be intimidated because you have never done something like this before. The marketplace desperately needs more investors to step into this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Won't you join me?

Buy land. They've stopped making it. - Mark Twain

As featured in the October Issue of Invest Magazine

Learn how to develop a competitive edge as a real estate investor by applying the principles Russell Ward writes about in his Home Study Course, Vacant Land Guide - How to Buy Vacant Land at Wholesale Prices. The turn-key program teaches how to make $5K to $10K per month quick turning small parcels of land and $50K to $100K per deal on larger tracts of land in just 10-15 hours per week!

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History and Duties of the General Land Office

The General Land Office, or GLO, was a United States government agency responsible for public domain lands throughout the country. Created in 1812, it took over the surveying duties that had already begun in 1785 with the Public Land Survey System. This system was used to survey western lands, including those that were included in the Louisiana Purchase. Once surveyed, the lands were platted and sold.

During the time the General Land Office was in existence, thousands of acres of public lands were sold off as Americans moved westward. They had the responsibility for surveying the land prior to sale, managing the land while it remained in federal possession, and disposing of these public lands through the Homestead Act and other policies.

The General Land Office's best-known project, the Public Land Survey System (or PLSS) was used to survey the rural and undeveloped land found west of established cities during the nineteenth century. Before being sold, this land was surveyed and then split into townships. The Public Land Survey System nearly always created rectangular townships, which is why it is sometimes called the rectangular survey system. This massive undertaking was the first such survey conducted across any modern country.

The General Land Office's surveying actions were necessary because much of the land under federal ownership, particularly that lying to the west of established civilization, had not yet been surveyed. Though the government was ready to sell or give this land to potential settlers, it is difficult to give away land when it is not known how much of it exists, and potential settlers wanted to know what the land looked like before traveling west to settle there. Homesteading depended in the Public Land Survey System, which provided the basis for assigning particular areas of land to settlers.

As part of its duties, they described the methods used for PLSS surveys in manuals. Today, these guidelines are still in use by the Bureau of Land Management, the successor of the GLO, for their surveying activities.

Between 1820 and 1908, the General Land Office created survey plats of public lands. These surveys are currently available to the public on the Bureau of Land Management website. The BLM Geographic Coordinates Database (GCDB) program is currently working to match these surveys with exact geographic coordinates.

The General Land Office was instrumental not only in selling off public lands, but also in preserving them. In 1891, forest reserves of nearly 18 million acres were created to conserve timber lands. Once created by the General Land Office, management was then transferred to the Forest Service, a newly created agency under the Department of Agriculture.

By the early twentieth century, most public lands administered by the General Land Office had been sold off through the Homestead Act and other policies. The focus then shifted to land conservation, as the GLO began issuing leases, collecting mineral fees, and other duties. The General Land Office continued to oversee these activities until it became the Bureau of Land Management in 1946. This office continued to oversee public lands, of which 264 million acres still remained in federal ownership, but no longer sold or gave away public lands as the agency once had.

We at Point to Point Land Surveyors pride ourselves on accuracy, customer service and quality work delivered on time, guaranteed. Residential land surveys are a specialty.

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