USC Chapter 23

in effect

43 U.S.C. § 981 Indemnity to States on sale of lands

Upon proof by the authorized agent of the State, before the Secretary of the Interior or such officer as he may designate, that any of the lands purchased by any person from the United States, prior to March 2, 1855, were “swamp lands”, within the true intent and meaning of the Act entitled “An Act to enable the State of Arkansas and other States to reclaim the swamp lands within their limits”, approved September 28, 1850, the purchase money shall be paid over to the State wherein said land is situate; and when the lands have been located by warrant or scrip, the said State shall be authorized to locate a like quantity of any of the public lands subject to entry, at $1.25 per acre, or less, and patents shall issue therefor. The decision of the Secretary or such officer shall be first approved by the Secretary of the Interior.

43 U.S.C. § 982 Grant to States to aid in construction of levees and drains

To enable the several States (but not including the States of Kansas, Nebraska, and Nevada) to construct the necessary levees and drains, to reclaim the swamp and overflowed lands therein—the whole of the swamp and overflowed lands, made unfit thereby for cultivation, and remaining unsold on or after the 28th day of September, A.D. 1850, are granted and belong to the several States respectively, in which said lands are situated: Provided, however, That said grant of swamp and overflowed lands, as to the States of California, Minnesota, and Oregon, is subject to the limitations, restrictions and conditions hereinafter named and specified in this chapter, as applicable to said three last-named States respectively.

43 U.S.C. § 983 Lists and plats of lands, for governors of States

It shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Interior, to make accurate lists and plats of all such lands, and transmit the same to the governors of the several States in which such lands may lie, and at the request of the governor of any State in which said swamp and overflowed lands may be, to cause patents to be issued to said State therefor, conveying to said State the fee simple of said land. The proceeds of said lands, whether from sale or by direct appropriation in kind, shall be applied exclusively, as far as necessary, to the reclaiming said lands, by means of levees and drains.

43 U.S.C. § 984 Legal subdivisions mostly wet and unfit for cultivation

In making out lists and plats of the lands aforesaid all legal subdivisions, the greater part whereof is wet and unfit for cultivation, shall be included in said lists and plats, but when the greater part of a subdivision is not of that character, the whole of it shall be excluded therefrom.

43 U.S.C. § 986 Selection of lands confirmed

All land selected and reported to the General Land Office as swamp and overflowed land by the several States entitled to the provisions of said Act of September 28, 1850, prior to March 3, A.D. 1857, are confirmed to said States respectively so far as the same remained vacant and unappropriated and not interfered with by an actual settlement under any law of the United States.

43 U.S.C. § 987 Lands to be certified to State within one year

It shall be the duty of the Commissioner of the General Land Office, to certify over to the State of California as swamp and overflowed lands, all the lands represented as such upon the approved township surveys and plats, whether made before or after the 23d day of July 1866, under the authority of the United States. The Supervisor of Surveys shall under the direction of the Commissioner of the General Land Office, examine the segregation maps and surveys of the swamp and overflowed lands, made by said State; and where he shall find them to conform to the system of surveys adopted by the United States, he shall construct and approve township plats accordingly, and forward to the General Land Office for approval. In segregating large bodies of land, notoriously and obviously swamp and overflowed, it shall not be necessary to subdivide the same, but to run the exterior lines of such body of land. In case such State surveys are found not to be in accordance with the system of United States surveys, and in such other townships as no survey has been made by the United States, the commissioner shall direct the Supervisor of Surveys to make segregation surveys, upon application by the governor of said State, within one year of such application, of all the swamp and overflowed land in such townships, and to report the same to the General Land Office, representing and describing what land was swamp and overflowed, under the grant, according to the best evidence he can obtain. If the authorities of said State, shall claim as swamp and overflowed, any land not represented as such upon the map or in the returns of the surveyors, the character of such land at the date of the grant September 28, 1850, and the right to the same shall be determined by testimony, to be taken before the Supervisor of Surveys, who shall decide the same, subject to the approval of the Commissioner of the General Land Office.

43 U.S.C. § 988 Act extended to Minnesota and Oregon

The provisions of sections 982 to 984 of this title are extended to the States of Minnesota and Oregon: Provided, That the grant shall not include any lands which the Government of the United States may have sold or disposed of under any law, enacted prior to March 12, 1860, prior to the confirmation of title to be made under the authority of said sections—and the selections to be made from lands already surveyed in each of the States last named, under the authority of said sections, shall have been made within two years from the adjournment of the legislature of each State, at its next session after the 12th day of March, A. D. 1860—and as to all lands surveyed or to be surveyed, thereafter, within two years from such adjournment, at the next session after notice by the Secretary of the Interior to the governor of the State, that the surveys have been completed and confirmed.

43 U.S.C. § 989 Homestead entries by purchasers from Missouri of lands declared not to be swamp lands

In all cases in the State of Missouri where lands have, prior to February 23, 1875, been selected and claimed as swamp and overflowed lands by said State, and the various counties therein, by virtue of any Act of Congress, and said lands have been withheld from market in consequence thereof by the General Government, and the said State and counties have sold said lands to actual settlers, and said settlers have improved the same to the value of $100; said settlers, their heirs, assigns, and legal representatives, who have continued to reside thereon, shall have priority of right to homestead all such lands as may be rejected by the United States as not being in fact swamp and overflowed lands; and it shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Interior to make such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry into effect the provisions of this section: Provided, That nothing herein contained shall prejudice the rights of any person who may have made actual settlement upon such lands under the preemption or homestead laws prior to February 23, 1875.

43 U.S.C. § 990 Grant to Missouri

All lands in the State of Missouri selected as swamp and overflowed lands, and regularly reported as such to the General Land Office, and on March 3, 1877, withheld from market as such, so far as the same remain vacant and unappropriated and not interfered with by any preemption, homestead, or other claim under any law of the United States, and the claim whereto has not been on said date rejected by the Commissioner of the General Land Office, or other competent authority, are confirmed to said State, and all title thereto vested in said State: and it is made the duty of the Secretary of the Interior to cause patents to issue for the same.

43 U.S.C. § 991 Title of purchasers of unconfirmed lands in Arkansas confirmed

The title of all persons who had, on April 29, 1898, purchased from the State of Arkansas any unconfirmed swamp land and held deeds for the same, is confirmed and made valid as against any claim or right of the United States, and without the payment by said persons, their heirs or assigns, of any sum whatever to the United States or to the State or Arkansas. The State of Arkansas does hereby relinquish and quitclaim to the United States all lands prior to April 29, 1898, confirmed, certified, or patented to the State which have been entered under the public land laws; and does cede, relinquish, and quitclaim to the United States all right, title, and interest under the Acts of September 28, 1850, March 2, 1855, and March 3, 1857, in and to all lands in the State which have been heretofore granted, confirmed, certified, or patented by the United States under any other Acts, and the title to such lands is confirmed in the grantees, their heirs, successors, or assigns, anything in this section or any other Act to the contrary notwithstanding: Provided, That this section shall be of no force or effect until the State of Arkansas shall have accepted and approved the conditions, limitations, and provisions herein contained by an act of the general assembly or by an instrument in writing duly executed by the governor under the authority conferred upon him by the legislature of said State, and filed with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of the Interior within one year from April 29, 1898: Provided further, That whereas the General Assembly of the State of Arkansas did, on the 10th day of March, 1897, accept and approve the conditions, limitations, and provisions herein contained before April 29, 1898, making the same effective and conclusive, therefore this section shall be in full force and effect from and after April 29, 1898.

43 U.S.C. § 992 Sale of erroneously designated water-covered areas in Arkansas

The Secretary of the Interior, in his judgment and discretion, is authorized to sell, in the manner hereinafter provided in this section, any of those public lands situated in the State of Arkansas which were originally erroneously meandered and shown upon the official plats as water-covered areas, and which are not lawfully appropriated by a qualified settler or entryman claiming under the public land laws. Any citizen of the United States who in good faith under color of title or claiming as a riparian owner, prior to September 21, 1922, placed valuable improvements upon or reduced to cultivation any of the lands subject to the operation of this section, shall have a preferred right to file in the office of the officer, as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, of the United States land office of the district in which the lands are situated, an application to purchase the lands thus improved by them at any time within ninety days from September 21, 1922, if the lands have been surveyed and plats filed in the United States land office; otherwise within ninety days from the filing of such plats. Every such application must be accompanied with satisfactory proof that the applicant is entitled to such preference right and that the lands which he applies to purchase are not in the legal possession of an adverse claimant. Upon the filing of an application to purchase any lands subject to the operation of this section, together with the required proof, the Secretary of the Interior shall cause the lands described in said application to be appraised, said appraisal to be on the basis of the value of such lands at the date of appraisal, exclusive of any increased value resulting from the development or improvement thereof for agricultural purposes by the applicant or his predecessor in interest, but inclusive of the stumpage value of any timber cut or removed by the applicant or his predecessor in interest. An applicant who applies to purchase lands under the provisions of this section, in order to be entitled to receive a patent must within thirty days from receipt of notice of appraisal by the Secretary of the Interior pay to the officer, as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, of the United States land office of the district in which the lands are situated the appraised price of the lands, and thereupon a patent shall issue to said applicant for such lands as the Secretary of the Interior shall determine that such applicant is entitled to purchase under this section. The proceeds derived by the Government from the sale of lands hereunder shall be covered into the United States Treasury and applied as provided by law for the disposal of the proceeds from the sale of public lands. The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to prescribe all necessary rules and regulations for administering the provisions of this section and determining conflicting claims arising hereunder.

43 U.S.C. § 993 Sale of lands in Louisiana; preference rights; application for purchase; appraisal; payment for land

The Secretary of the Interior, in his judgment and discretion, is hereby authorized to sell, in the manner hereinafter provided, in this section, any of those lands situated in the State of Louisiana which were originally erroneously meandered and shown upon the official plats as water-covered areas, and which are not lawfully appropriated by a qualified settler or entryman claiming under the public land laws. Any citizen of the United States who, or whose ancestors in title in good faith under color of title or claiming as a riparian owner, prior to February 19, 1925, placed valuable improvements upon or reduced to cultivation any of the lands subject to the operation of this section, shall have a preferred right to file in the office of the officer, as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, of the United States land office of the district in which the lands are situated, an application to purchase the lands thus improved by them at any time within ninety days from February 19, 1925, if the lands have been surveyed and plats filed in the United States land office; otherwise within ninety days from official notice to such claimant of the filing of such plats. Every such application must be accompanied with satisfactory proof that the applicant is entitled to such preference right and that the lands which he applies to purchase are not in the legal possession of an adverse claimant or in the actual possession of a person or persons who have improved the property and who have attempted to enter same in compliance with the laws and regulations of the United States land office. Upon the filing of an application to purchase any lands subject to the operation of this section, together with the required proof, the Secretary of the Interior shall cause the lands described in said application to be appraised, said appraisal to be on the basis of the value of such lands at the date of appraisal, exclusive of any increased value resulting from the development or improvement thereof for agricultural purposes by the applicant or his predecessor in interest, but inclusive of the stumpage value of any timber cut or removed by the applicant or his predecessor in interest. An applicant who applies to purchase lands under the provisions of this section, in order to be entitled to receive a patent, must within six months from receipt of notice of appraisal by the Secretary of the Interior pay to the officer, as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, of the United States land office of the district in which the lands are situated, the appraised price of the lands, and thereupon a patent shall issue to said applicant for such lands as the Secretary of the Interior shall determine that such applicant is entitled to purchase under this section. The proceeds derived by the Government from the sale of the lands hereunder shall be covered into the United States Treasury and applied as provided by law for the disposal of the proceeds from the sale of public lands. The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to prescribe all necessary rules and regulations for administering the provisions of this section and determining conflicting claims arising hereunder. All purchases made and patents issued under the provisions of this section shall be subject to and contain a reservation to the United States of all the coal, oil, gas, and other minerals in the lands so purchased and patented, together with the right to prospect for, mine, and remove the same.

43 U.S.C. § 994 Sale of lands in Wisconsin

The Secretary of the Interior, in his judgment and discretion, is authorized to sell, in the manner hereinafter provided in this section, any of those lands situated in the State of Wisconsin which were originally erroneously meandered and shown upon the official plats as water-covered areas, and which are not lawfully appropriated by a qualified settler or entryman claiming under the public land laws. Any owner in good faith of land shown by the official public land surveys to be bounded in whole or in part by such erroneously meandered area, and who acquired title to such land prior to February 27, 1925, or any citizen of the United States who in good faith under color of title or claiming as a riparian owner had, prior to said date, placed valuable improvements upon or reduced to cultivation any of the lands subject to the operation of this section, shall have a preferred right to file in the office of the officer, as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, of the United States land office of the district in which the lands are situated, an application to purchase the lands thus improved by them at any time within ninety days from said date if the lands have been surveyed and plats filed in the United States land office; otherwise within ninety days from the filing of such plats. Every such application must be accompanied with satisfactory proof that the applicant is entitled to such preference right and that the lands which he applies to purchase are not in the legal possession of an adverse claimant under the public land laws. In event such erroneously meandered land is bounded by two or more tracts of land held in private ownership with apparent riparian rights indicated by the official township plat of survey at date of disposal of title by the United States, the Secretary of the Interior or such officer as he may designate shall have discretionary power to cause such meandered area, when surveyed, to be divided into such tracts or lots as will permit a fair division of such meandered area among the owners of such surrounding or adjacent tracts under the provisions of this section. In administering the provisions of this section, where there shall exist a conflict of claims falling within its operation, if any claimant shall have placed valuable improvements upon the land involved, or shall have reduced the same to cultivation, then to the extent of such improvements or cultivation, such claimant shall be given preference in adjustment of such conflict: Provided, That no preference right of entry under this section shall be recognized for a greater area than one hundred and sixty acres, in one body, to any one applicant, whether an individual, an association, or a corporation: Provided further, That this section shall not be construed as in any manner abridging the existing rights of any settler or entryman under the public land laws. Upon the filing of an application to purchase any lands subject to the operation of this section, together with the required proof, the Secretary of the Interior shall cause the lands described in said application to be appraised, said appraisal to be on the basis of the value of such lands at the date of appraisal, exclusive of any increased value resulting from the development or improvement thereof for agricultural purposes by the applicant or his predecessor in interest, but inclusive of the stumpage value of any timber cut or removed by the applicant or his predecessor in interest. An applicant who applies to purchase lands under the provisions of this section, in order to be entitled to receive a patent, must within thirty days from receipt of notice of appraisal by the Secretary of the Interior pay to the officer, as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, of the United States land office of the district in which the lands are situated the appraisal price of the lands, and thereupon a patent shall issue to said applicant for such lands as the Secretary of the Interior shall determine that such applicant is entitled to purchase under this section. The proceeds derived by the Government from the sale of lands under this section shall be covered into the United States Treasury and applied as provided by law for the disposal of the proceeds from the sale of public lands. The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to prescribe all necessary rules and regulations for administering the provisions of this section and determining conflicting claims arising thereunder.