New York State Engineer and Surveyor Records of Surveys and Maps of State Lands
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Overview of the Records
Repository:
New York State Archives
New York State Education Department
Cultural Education Center
Albany, NY 12230
Summary:
This series contains the miscellaneous filed papers of the New York State Surveyor General and the State Engineer and Surveyor.
The series documents the role of the Surveyor General and State Engineer and Surveyor in establishing the boundaries of public
and private lands, and in planning the development of the State's transportation system. A number of volumes contain documents
relating to the sale of Loyalist lands by the Commissioners of Forfeitures during and after the Revolutionary War.
Creator:
Title:
Records of surveys and maps of state lands
Quantity:
51.6 cubic feet
29 disbound volumes
Quantity:
Inclusive Dates:
1686-1892
Series Number:
A4016
Arrangement
Certain records in the series are grouped by subject. For example, records relating to state roads are found in Volume 1;
material on town boundaries appears in Volumes 3 and 4; and documents relating to the sale of Loyalist lands by the Commissioners
of Forfeitures are found in Volumes 7, 8, 9, 10, and 17.
Administrative History
New York's revolutionary government began seizing the personal and real property of suspected Loyalists in the summer of 1776.
Statutes of 1779 and 1784 authorized the forfeiture and sale of real property of "persons who have adhered to the enemies
of this State." An individual's real property became forfeit to the state when he was adjudged guilty of treason, either by
an act of attainder passed by the State Legislature, or by trial and conviction in the Supreme Court of Judicature. Commissioners
of Forfeitures were appointed to manage, sell at public auction, and convey by deed the lands forfeited to the state.
The Commissioners of Forfeitures operated in four disctricts: Western District (Albany, and Tryon/Montgomery Counties); Eastern
District (Charlotte, Cumberland, and Gloucester Counties); Middle District (Dutchess, Orange, and Ulster Counites; and Southern
District (New York, Kings, Queens, Richmond, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties).
Scope and Content Note
This series, commonly referred to as "Land Papers, 2nd series,"contains the miscellaneous filed papers of the New York State
Surveyor General and the State Engineer and Surveyor. The series documents the role of the Surveyor General and State Engineer
and Surveyor in establishing the boundaries of public and private lands, and in planning the development of the State's transportation
system. A number of volumes contain documents relating to the sale of Loyalist lands by the Commissioners of Forfeitures during
and after the Revolutionary War.
The series contains records of land surveys undertaken for applicants for land grants; for landholders; to resolve disputes
over property lines; and in preparation for land use by the State. A wide variety of document types are present: survey descriptions
and measurements; survey diagrams; survey maps showing lots and numbers, name of town, names of landholders, property lines,
route and length of roads, and waterways; small proofs of maps used in compiling David H. Burr's atlas of New York State in
1829; appraisals of the value of various tracts or lots; surveyors' certifications that land had been surveyed; correspondence
and maps relating to errors in and corrections to previous surveys and maps; instructions to surveyors directing them to survey
various lands; correspondence from surveyors discussing work they had done; petitions for land, often from soldiers; and Surveyor
General's responses to petitions for lands or for resolution of property line disputes.
Volumes 7-10 and 17 of the series consist entirely or partly of documents relating to the sale of lands of Loyalists. These
documents include contracts of sale by the Commissioners of Forfeitures; drafts or copies of deeds issued by the Commissioners
of Forfeitures (up to 1788) and the Surveyor General (1788 and later); formal "locations" of lands by applicants to purchase;
descriptions and surveys of those lands; and appraisals of the value of those lands. Occasionally other documents including
correspondence, copies of judgments of attainder, and additional land title documentation are included. The series contains
documents pertaining to forfeited lands in all sections of the state except for the Southern Disctrict (New York, Kings, Queens,
Richmond, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties). Most records concern lands located in the Western District (Albany and Tryon/Montgomery
Counties).
NOTE: The name index referenced in this finding aid pertains only to two very specific subsets of the series - 1. Records
pertaining to loyalists and/or the sale of land confiscated from loyalists during and after the Revolutionary War; 2. Applications
for land grants submitted by veterans of British regiments that served in the American colonies during the Seven Years' War.
Researchers interested in other portions of the series must consult the paper indexes available onsite.
Alternate Formats Available
A4016-77: Photostat use copies are available at the New York State Archives.
Scanned records relating to Loyalist Robert Leake are available at the New York State Archives.
Items Online
High resolution images of selected original documents in this series are available in State Archives Digital Collections.
Portions of the series are digitized and are available to New York State residents for free on Ancestry.com New York. You
must sign up for a free account to access these records without a paid subscription.
To learn how to create the free account, go to How to Use Ancestry.com New York.
Ancestry.com
Records of surveys and maps of state lands on Ancestry.com
New York State Archives Digital Collections
Records of surveys and maps of state lands, 1686-1892 in Digital Collections
Related Material
A1816 New York State Assembly Petitions, Correspondence, and Reports Relating to Forfeited Estates, contains related information.
B1858 Card file Index to Records of Surveys and Maps of State Lands, indexes this series
A4024 Indexes to Maps and Land Records (Volume 3), is the preferred index.
Other Finding Aids
Available at Repository
Each volume is indexed alphabetically by county, town, name or location of tract or patent, name of landholder, and name of
surveyor. The series is also indexed by Series B1858, Card File Index to Records of Surveys and Maps of State Lands and Volume
3 of Series A4024, Indexes to Maps and Land Records.
Online Index
Personal Name Index The index to series A4016 contains 2563 entries. Each entry includes the individual's name and role. Some entries include
the geographic locations referenced in the records. Each entry also provides a pointer to the location within the record series.
Access Restrictions
There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of this series.
Access Terms
Corporate Name(s):
Geographic Name(s):
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Detailed Description
Dates |
Contents |
Box |
Accretion: A4016-05 |
1787-1862 |
Miscellaneous Documents Estrayed from the Original Accession |
1 |
Accretion: A4016-77 |
|
Volume 1: Pages 2-89 |
1 |
|
Volume 1: Pages 260-388 |
3 |
|
Volume 2: Pages 190-361 |
5 |
|
Volume 3: Pages 161-401 |
7 |
|
Volume 4: Pages 173-390 |
9 |
|
Volume 5: Pages 86-170 |
11 |
|
Volume 5: Pages 171-202 |
12 |
|
Volume 6: Pages 75-145 |
14 |
|
Volume 6: Pages 146-198 |
15 |
|
Volume 7: Pages 86-160 |
17 |
|
Volume 7: Pages 161-194 |
18 |
|
Volume 8: Pages 86-175 |
20 |
|
Volume 8: Pages 176-200 |
21 |
|
Volume 9: Pages 86-159 |
23 |
|
Volume 9: Pages 160-200 |
24 |
|
Volume 10: pages 86-161 |
26 |
|
Volume 10: Pages 162-192 |
27 |
|
Volume 11: Pages 44-86 |
29 |
|
Volume 11: Pages 87-198 |
30 |
|
Volume 12: Pages 86-170 |
32 |
|
Volume 12: Pages 171-200 |
33 |
|
Volume 13: Pages 86-159 |
35 |
|
Volume 13: Pages 160-200 |
36 |
|
Volume 14: Pages 1-129 |
37 |
|
Volume 14: Pages 130-200 |
38 |
|
Volume 15: Pages 81-160 |
40 |
|
Volume 15: Pages 161-200 |
41 |
|
Volume 16: Pages 86-170 |
43 |
|
Volume 16: Pages 171-200 |
44 |
|
Volume 17: Pages 51-100 |
46 |
|
Volume 17: Pages 101-150 |
47 |
|
Volume 17: Pages 151-200 |
48 |
|
Volume 18: Pages 55-114 |
50 |
|
Volume 18: Pages 115-173 |
51 |
|
Volume 18: Pages 174-200 |
52 |
|
Volume 19: Pages 51-100 |
54 |
|
Volume 19: Pages 101-150 |
55 |
|
Volume 19: Pages 151-200 |
56 |
|
Volume 20: Pages 51-100 |
58 |
|
Volume 20: Pages 101-150 |
59 |
|
Volume 20: Pages 151-200 |
60 |
|
Volume 21: Pages 51-100 |
62 |
|
Volume 21: Pages 101-150 |
63 |
|
Volume 21: Pages 151-200 |
64 |
|
Volume 22: Pages 51-100 |
66 |
|
Volume 22: Pages 101-150 |
67 |
|
Volume 22: Pages 151-200 |
68 |
|
Volume 23: Pages 51-100 |
70 |
|
Volume 23: Pages 101-150 |
71 |
|
Volume 23: Pages 151-199 |
72 |
|
Volume 24: Pages 51-100 |
74 |
|
Volume 24: Pages 101-150 |
75 |
|
Volume 24: Pages 151-200 |
76 |
|
Volume 25: Pages 51-100 |
78 |
|
Volume 25: Pages 101-150 |
79 |
|
Volume 25: Pages 151-200 |
80 |
|
Volume 26: Pages 51-100 |
82 |
|
Volume 26: Pages 101-150 |
83 |
|
Volume 26: Pages 151-200 |
84 |
|
Volume 27: Pages 51-100 |
86 |
|
Volume 27: Pages 101-150 |
87 |
|
Volume 27: Pages 151-200 |
88 |
|
Volume 28: Pages 51-100 |
90 |
|
Volume 28: Pages 101-150 |
91 |
|
Volume 28: Pages 151-200 |
92 |
|
Volume 29: Pages 51-100 |
94 |
|
Volume 29: Pages 101-150 |
95 |
|
Volume 29: Pages 151-200 |
96 |
|
Indexes to Volumes 1-5 |
97 |
|
Indexes to Volumes 7-10 (Index to Vol. 6 Never Received) |
98 |
|
Indexes to Volumes 11-15 |
99 |
|
Indexes to Volumes 16-20 |
100 |
|
Indexes to Volumes 21-25 |
101 |
|
Indexes to Volumes 26-29 |
102 |
Accretion: A4016-94 |
1789-1791 |
Field Book of a survey of the Township of Lysander (No. 1) by Nathan Parshall |
1 |
1886-1887 |
Field Notes of Survey by Col. W. Martin surveying boundary lines between towns of Dix, Montour, Catherine, Hector, Veteran,
and Catlin in Schuyler and Chemung counties
|
1 |
1837 July |
Survey of the Moose River Tract |
1 |