The Federal Survey Created Lands and Waters

Congress created what are our lands and water bodies by several different survey statutes from 1785 to 1832. This creation is known as the Public Land Survey System. It determined our land acreages to the 100th decimal of each fraction of a section, whole section and township. For every meandered water body, acreage was excluded for the area as measured within the meander lines. The area lakeward of the ordinary high water mark is always considered unsurveyed land. That unsurveyed land can never be sold. Total acreage of each of the 1240 townships is set forth on the plat of each survey which was required by federal statute. In the process, it mandated that these survey lines, their lengths, and the entire acreage content of each such section and township are forever unchangeable. It is very important to note that Michigan has never had any involvement in the creation of the public domain lands that make up this state. The original boundary survey and contents were and are unchangeable, forever.