History of Land Title in America

Courthouse Operations

Recorder's Office

Title plants are built from information submitted and recorded in the Recorder's office. Individuals, title companies, businesses, and governmental offices send documents in for a process called recording. To record a document, it is deposited at the office of the county recorder in the county within which the property is located. The recorder then endorses upon the instrument the proper identifying number (reception number and in most counties a book and page) in the order in which it is deposited, the date, hour, and minute of its reception and the amount of fees for recording. The recorder also indexes the document by party names, microfilms a copy for the public archives and then returns the original to the sender. Certain instruments may also be filed with the recorder, such as incorporation papers, financing statements, and the like. The difference between filing and recording is that a filed document remains in the custody of the recorder while a recorded document is returned to the party interested in the property.

Documents affecting real estate must become part of the public records and maintained by the county recorder in order for them to have legal validity. If a document of conveyance is not recorded, it is considered void as against a subsequent purchaser of the same property in good faith and for a valuable consideration and without actual notice of the prior conveyance once the subsequent purchaser records his deed. Title companies use copies of this recorded document film to maintain their title plants.

Clerk's Office

The County Clerk is charged with the care and custody of all books, records, maps, papers, plats, etc. affecting the title to real property. The Clerk's office also keeps files of divorces, judgments, probates, and other court cases, in which the final outcome must become part of the public record. Title companies use those records which pertain to real property. Abstracts of these records appear on the document film in most counties. Many counties combine the Clerk's and the Recorder's office because the duties are so similar.

Assessor's Office

The Assessor determines the value of every piece of property in the county for taxation purposes. To do this, most assessors keep a set of maps and indexes. These maps, continually updated, are drawn to scale and show each individual parcel with an identifying number. Title companies obtain copies of these maps for use as research tools when available. Assessor's fiche, which is updated annually, consists of a set of indexes organized in most counties by property owner names, street addresses, and parcel numbers. The Assessor's fiche contains information on assessed property values, tax amount, and legal descriptions of property.

Treasurer's Office

The County Treasurer collects general taxes using the information provided by the Assessor's Office. The Treasurer's Office also sends documents dealing with delinquent taxes and sales of property for back taxes to the Recorder's Office.

County Commissioner's Office

County Commissioners are elected officials who are responsible for the overall governing of a county. Many of their decisions — such as setting tax rates, subdivision rules, and zoning — affect real property and, as a result, affect the county's title records.

Title Insurance

Title Insurance is legally defined as a "contract of indemnity against loss or damage arising out of defects in or liens upon the title to real property".

Unlike real property, when one buys an ordinary article like a coat, stereo, or a ring, he or she does not have to buy insurance to insure ownership. However, when purchasing a home, building, or even a vacant piece of land, one must purchase title insurance to insure himself of ownership and from loss. Title insurance companies make a complete investigation or examination of the chain of ownership of that piece of property before insuring the purchaser. This is somewhat similar to purchasing life insurance. Before a life insurance company will issue insurance, that person must have a physical examination by a doctor to determine that person's state of health.

On a more practical note, title insurance is a contract between an underwriter (a title insurance company) and its customer which guarantees the customer against monetary loss (up to the face amount of the policy) which would result from a title dispute. The title insurance policy states the description of the insured real property, the name of the insured party(ies), the name of the owner(s), the amount of the insurance, and a list of items against which the company does not insure. Unlike other types of insurance which indemnify the insured against occurrences in the future, title insurance indemnifies against future effects of occurrences in the past.

If a defect of title occurs from which the insured could sustain a loss, the title insurance company could:

1. Cure the defect if possible, or
2. Defend the title — possibly in court, or
3. As a last resort, pay for the loss up to the face amount of the policy.

Title insurance is also unique in that the largest percentage of the premium is spent in research, while in other kinds of insurance, it is expended for claims. Also unique to title insurance is the nature of commitments, binders, and policies. Unlike other types of policies, these are used to a great extent for informational purposes in preparing for the sale and mortgaging of real property.

Real estate has always been among the most valuable possessions a person can have. It has such great value and wealth that many laws have been enacted for its protection. The owner of land has strong rights, as does his family and heirs. However, others may also have "rights" in the property. Title insurance helps to insure these rights and ownership. Truly title insurance is unique in nature as well as effect. To the vast majority of owners and lenders, it is indispensable.

General Property Information

Joan was telling her girlfriend how excited she and her husband John are about the new home they bought for $100,000. She described it as a beautiful tri-level with white bricks in the front, three large bedrooms, and the kitchen that she's always wanted (Fig. 1). But the deed that John and Joan received from Showcase Home Builders described:

Lot 4 in the Resubdivision of Lots 1 thru 12, inclusive, in Block 1 of Warner's Subdivision of the Southwest ¼ of the Southeast ¼ of Section 36, Township 2 South, Range 67 West of the Sixth Principal Meridian, in Adams County, Colorado.

Actually, John and Joan bought a lot, being a parcel of land, and it was improved with the beautiful home that Joan described. The building and the other fixtures — driveway, patio, and swimming pool — made the value of the lot worth $100,000.

Most of us pay little attention to the legal description of the property upon which our homes stand. Terms like resubdivision, subdivision, section, township, and range are meaningless to the average home buyer. They may also be confusing for newcomers to the title business, if they have not had courses in real estate.

The puzzle started nearly 500 years ago when Columbus discovered America. During the next 300 years, shiploads of pilgrims landed along the eastern shore of North America. Thirteen colonies were established, and land was granted, bought, sold, and exchanged (Fig. 2).

A legal description for the sale of land was very sketchy in the colonial days, unless the land was part of a subdivision. A subdivision is an area of land represented on a map placed in the public records, and indicates a designated number for each individual area drawn thereon.

Large areas of land are called tracts, and when formally represented as subdivisions, the maps of such areas are called plats. Individual areas drawn on a plat are numbered and labeled as blocks. If smaller areas are drawn within a block, they are numbered and labeled as lots.

Tracts of land that did not lie within the boundaries of a subdivision were difficult to describe in the colonies. A typical description might start out: "Beginning in the middle of the white pine stump standing on the west side of Simon Cook's land, and on the north side of the road that leads to the new city," etc. Such a place of beginning probably doesn't exist today.

After the Revolution in 1776, the new United States Government became the owner of all the land outside of the original thirteen colonies. Thomas Jefferson was instrumental in designing a new system for describing land that is not included in a subdivision plat. It would be known as the Rectangular Survey System.

Thirty of the eventual fifty United States would be governed by this survey system. The other twenty states, which include the original thirteen colonies and the states carved out of them, retained direction over surveys of lands within their boundaries upon admission to the Union. This means that unsubdivided lands in these states are linked together by independent surveys. To use the Rectangular Survey System in any of these states would have created endless disputes over boundary lines, since land had already been bought and sold for several years based on early descriptions.

States Governed by Rectangular Surveys

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Florida
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Mexico
• North Dakota
• Ohio^*
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• South Dakota
• Utah
• Washington
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

States Excluded

• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Kentucky^**
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Carolina
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Vermont
• Virginia
• West Virginia

^* Parts of the State of Ohio were not surveyed.

^** The Jackson Purchase in western Kentucky was surveyed.

In 1785, a committee headed by Thomas Jefferson began to send surveyors on expeditions to establish the rectangular lines for the system. It would be a continuing project for the next 100 years, moving from territory to territory, and renewed with the acquisition of Alaska where some lines were established as recently as 1956.

Thirty-five principal meridian lines and thirty-two base lines were established in various areas. These lines formed the framework upon which the rectangular surveys would be laid out across the country.

Shown above is the Third Principal Meridian which was established in the State of Illinois. A meridian line runs from the North Pole to the South Pole, but must pass through a permanent monument on the earth. In the case of the Third Principal Meridian, the monument is the mouth of the Ohio River. Base lines are established perpendicular to a meridian, and are parallel to the equator.

Of course, the surveyors didn't draw lines on the ground. They placed monuments, usually an iron pipe, into the ground to extend the course of these lines from point to point. The placement of each monument was fixed by an astronomical reading.

From each principal meridian, guide meridians were established both east and west of the principal meridian. These lines run due north from points along a base line (or correction line) at 24-mile intervals. Notice that these guide lines converge with the principal meridian, since all of these lines meet at the North Pole. This necessitated the location of correction lines at 24-mile intervals, both north and south of the base line. These correction lines were established at points along the principal meridian, perpendicular thereto and parallel to the base line.

Shown above is the 24-mile grid formed by these lines, and laid across those states governed by the surveys. Each square represents an area of approximately 576 square miles, and notice the appearance of the areas in relation to the curvature of the earth.

Areas of some 576 square miles proved to be too large in which to describe and locate a tract of land. Therefore, each area was surveyed into sixteen 6-mile squares, called townships. The north and south boundary lines of the townships are called township lines, but the east and west boundary lines are called range lines. Each township is distinguished from all of the other townships by the range in which it lies, either east or west of a principal meridian and its position north or south of a baseline. Due to the curvature of the earth, the north line of a township is 50.16 feet shorter than its south line. This means that a township is not a perfect square, and contains an area of slightly less than 36 square miles.

Even the area of a township proved to be too large in which to pinpoint a tract of land. In 1796, the Congress of the United States passed an act directing that the townships be surveyed into thirty-six sections. Each section should be, as nearly as possible, one mile square, and contain 640 acres of land. They should be numbered consecutively from 1 to 36, beginning with #1 in the northeast corner of the township, and proceeding west and east alternately through the township, ending in the southeast corner with #36.

Again, because of the curvature of the earth, it's not possible for all sections to contain 640 acres of land. Those that do not are referred to as fractional sections. In some areas, a section is partially displaced by a river, lake, ocean, or reservation, and it too is referred to as a fractional section.

Since a township could not be surveyed so as to form 36 identical sections, as to shape and area, the Government Surveys provided for the deficiency or excess of footage in this manner. Any deficiency or excess occurring in the measurements from south to north was deducted from or added to the north row of sections, being sections 1 to 6. A deficiency or excess occurring in the east to west measurements was deducted from or added to the row of sections on the west, being sections 6, 7, 18, 19, 30, and 31.

There were periodic modifications to the Government Survey Plans, eventually providing for the division of each section into a NE ¼, NW ¼, SW ¼, and SE ¼. It was intended that each of these quarter divisions would contain 160 acres. In fractional sections, as many of such divisions were made as possible, with the remaining portion divided into lots designated as Government Lots.

In 1832, the Congress of the United States directed a final division of the sections into quarter-quarter areas of 40 acres each. By giving the area in question, the section number, the township number north or south of the base line, and the range number east or west of the controlling meridian, a given tract of land can be located by the Rectangular Survey System.

Shown in Fig. 7 in bold outline is the Southwest ¼ of the Southeast ¼ of Section 36, Township 1 North, Range 1 West of the Third Principal Meridian. It is the only such 40-acre tract of land in the United States with that section, township, and range identification. It is located in Washington County, Illinois.

Title to the land owned by the United States Government was granted to individuals by a patent. William Warner became the owner of the 40 acres of land by a succession of deeds from the patentee. He decided to subdivide the land into lots and blocks, and sell the lots for home sites.

Shown above is the Plat of Warner's Subdivision. It had to be approved by the County Clerk of Adams County, as to its compliance with zoning laws and building restrictions. The plat must indicate a means of access to each lot, and any easements that are being established.

A subdivision is a profitable venture for the owner and the county. The owner will profit from the sales of homes and home sites, and the county will receive greater tax revenues from the developed land.

Showcase Home Builders bought Lots 1 thru 12 in Block 1 for the purpose of re-subdividing the area, and building more expensive homes on larger sites.

Now we see the Plat of Resubdivision of Lots 1 thru 12 in Block 1, and it too must be approved by the county clerk.

It was Lot 4 in this resubdivision that John and Joan bought from Showcase Home Builders, and by the way, they made sure that their title was protected by a Title Insurance Company.

A totally different living concept from the typical home has risen from the ground up. It's the condominium apartment home (Fig. 10).

Buyers purchase apartment homes in modern buildings, and receive a percentage of the title to the land on which the condominium is developed. Buyers are granted rights to building facilities, and share the real estate tax assessments, as well as the expense of property maintenance. Title and assessments are in proportion to the size of the apartment. Condominium developments are subject to state and local regulations.

Busy executives with no time to maintain property, and retired citizens with no desire to maintain property, have found condominium apartments to be ideal for their lifestyle.

Subdivisions make it very simple to describe land in a deed of conveyance. The description need only mention the lot and/or block, and identifies the subdivision in question. Such is also the case for resubdivisions, and as the term suggests, a resubdivision creates larger lots out of smaller lots or smaller lots out of larger lots.

Apartment units in condominium developments can be described by referring to the unit number and identifying the development.

Unsubdivided land in those states governed by the rectangular surveys is relatively easy to describe. The description will pinpoint the tract of land to a particular section, or portion thereof. Then the tract is defined by a metes and bounds description. This means that the description must begin at a point that can be readily identified. Then, after reciting the courses and distances from point to point around the tract, the description must return to the point of beginning.

In states not governed by the rectangular surveys, unsubdivided land is more difficult to pinpoint into a specific area. Descriptions must refer to prior independent surveys, existing subdivisions, highways, or a well-known and established monument that can be relocated with certainty. Then the tract of land is similarly defined by a metes and bounds description.

That's the basic story of land from Columbus to the condominium, and hopefully solves the puzzle of sections and subdivisions. But there can be problems in the title to any parcel of land, and uncertainties about its physical characteristics. Like John and Joan, it's wise to have the protection of a title insurance company when purchasing land.

The next time you fly, look out the window at the farmland below. If you see irregular patterns, you're passing over a state that was not included in the Government Surveys. But if you see neat squares of land, you're looking at the sections of the Rectangular Survey System.