The Public Land Survey System

1
The Public Land Survey System
Teacher Guide
This activity introduces students to the Public
Land Survey System (PLSS).
Overview
NCGE Standards
The World in Spatial Terms STANDARD 1 How to
use maps and other geographic representations,
tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and
report information. Places and Regions STANDARD
3 How to analyze the spatial organization of
people, places, and environments on Earth's
surface. STANDARD 4 The physical and human
characteristics of places. Human Systems
STANDARD 12 The process, patterns, and functions
of human settlement. The Uses of Geography
STANDARD 17 How to apply geography to interpret
the past. STANDARD 18 To apply geography to
interpret the present and plan for the future.
High School Oklahoma History STANDARD 1 The
student will demonstrate process skills in social
studies. STANDARD 8 The student will examine
factors that contributed to the political,
economic, and social history of Oklahoma during
the twentieth century. High School World
Geography STANDARD 1 The student will use maps
and other geographic representations, tools and
technologies to acquire, process, and report
information from a spatial perspective. STANDARD
2 The student will use the concepts of places
and regions as the basic units of geographic
inquiry. STANDARD 4 The student will examine
human cultures, populations and activities such
as settlement, migration, commerce, conflict, and
cooperation. STANDARD 6 The student will
analyze problems and issues from a geographic
perspective using the tools and skills of
geography.
PASS Objectives
Ninth Grade
Grade Level
Beginner. No prior knowledge of GIS is
necessary, although it may be conceptually
beneficial.
GIS Skill Level
Two 50-minute class periods for completion of
activity and discussion.
Time
Materials
This activity requires personal computers with
high-speed internet connections.
Sources
The National Atlas - www.nationalatlas.gov Oklaho
ma Data Warehouse Interactive Mapper -
www.geo.ou.edu
Public Land Survey System
Teacher Guide
2
The Public Land Survey System
The goal of this activity is to gain an
understanding of the Public Land Survey System.
The Public Land Survey System (PLSS) is a way of
subdividing and describing land in the United
States. All land in Oklahoma is part of the PLSS.
Part 1
Learning more about the PLSS

• To begin, start Internet Explorer.
• Go to the national atlas at www.nationalatlas.gov
  
• Be sure that pop-ups are allowed for this site.
• Click on the Map Maker link.
• Click on the Boundaries category in the Map
  Layers.
• Click on the words Public Land Survey System.
• Read the Background Information, and then answer
  the following questions.

• What government agency is responsible for
  regulating and maintaining the PLSS?
• What are two reasons the Federal government
  needed to divide its land and transfer it to
  private individuals?
• 1.
• 2.
• The dimensions of townships are ___miles by ___
  miles.
• Scroll back up the Map Layer Info page and click
  on Public Land Survey System under the Map Maker
  Sample heading.
• Why do you suppose that Texas is not part of the
  PLSS?
• Zoom into northwestern Wyoming
• Why do you think there are not any townships here?

Public Land Survey System
1
3
Part 2
How the PLSS works
The PLSS actually consists of a series of
separate surveys. Most PLSS surveys begin at an
initial point, and townships are surveyed north,
south, east, and west from that point. The
north-south line that runs through the initial
point is a true meridian and is called the
Principal Meridian. There are 34 Principal
Meridians in the US, each is named, and these
names are used to distinguish the various
surveys. The east-west line that runs through
the initial point is called a Base Line. This
line is perpendicular to the Principal Meridian.
Oklahoma Principal Meridians and Base Lines
US Principal Meridians and Base Lines
Oklahoma is one of several states that has
multiple surveys. What are the names of
Oklahomas two surveys/principal
meridians? 1. 2. Each township is identified
with a township and range designation. Township
designations indicate the location north or south
of the Base Line, and range designations indicate
the location east or west of the Principal
Meridian. For example, a township might be
identified as Township 7 North, Range 2 West,
which would mean that it was in the 7th tier of
townships north of a Base Line, and in the 2nd
column of townships west of a Base Line. 
Public Land Survey System
2
4
Part 2 continued
How the PLSS works
Using the information above, label the squares
below with their correct township. Use this
abbreviated format T1N, R1W. Two of the squares
have been labeled to help you.
PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN
T3N, R1W
BASE LINE
T1S, R2E
INITIAL POINT
Within the 6 mile by 6 mile townships, square
miles are known as sections. There are 36
sections in each township. Sections are numbered
in a boustrophedon fashion. Boustrophedon is an
ancient way of writing manuscripts and other
inscriptions in which, rather than going from
left to right as in modern English, or right to
left as in Arabic, alternate lines must be read
in opposite directions. The name is borrowed
from the Greek language. Its etymology is from
ß???, "ox" st?efe??, "to turn", because the
hand of the writer goes back and forth, so that
the resulting inscription resembles the path of
an ox that draws a plow across a field and turns
at the end of each row to return in the opposite
direction. Sometimes this is referred to as the
plow turns (Source Science Daily).
Public Land Survey System
3
5
Part 2 continued
How the PLSS works
24
Boustrophedon numbering
The majority of Hennessey is located in section
24 of T17N, R7W. Use your new knowledge of the
Boustrophedon numbering technique and the PLSS to
answer the following questions In what section
is the far south part of the town located? Is
this section in the same township (TR) as the
main part of Hennessey? In what section are the
high school playing fields located? Is this
section in the same township (TR) as the main
part of Hennessey?
Land is subdivided and named based on its
location within a section. Examine the following
example of typical section subdivisions. Use it
as a guide to help answer the questions on the
following page. Remember to always begin your
legal land description with the smallest known
unit and work your way up to successively larger
units. Take a close look at the example legal
land description on the next page before you
begin.
Public Land Survey System
4
6
Part 2 continued
How the PLSS works
EX.
E
B
A
D
C
SECTION 24
Describe the locations of the plots EX. NE ¼,
NE ¼, SEC. 24 A. B. C. D. E.
Part 3
The PLSS online

• Now we will take a look at the Oklahoma Data
  Warehouse Interactive Mapper. This is another
  online GIS that operates in a similar fashion to
  the National Atlas.
• In Internet Explorer go to www.geo.ou.edu
• Be sure that pop-ups are allowed for this site.
• Now click the Oklahoma Data Warehouse
  Interactive Mapper icon

Public Land Survey System
5
7
Part 3 continued
The PLSS online

• As you can see, the different layers are listed
  on the right side of the screen. If you check
  the box to the left of the layer, it will add it
  to the view. If you check the box to the right
  of a layer it will add appropriate labels (if
  that layer has labels).
• Many of the layers and their labels are
  scale-dependent. This means that some layers and
  labels only appear on the map at certain scales.
  Most of the time, this refers to layers and
  labels that will only appear when you get
  zoomed-in closely enough.
• Check the label box for the County Boundary
  layer.
• Then click the Refresh button on the left side
  of the screen.
• Zoom-in to Kingfisher County.
• Now add the following layers and their labels
  Township/Range, Sections Highways (TIGER), and
  Municipal and Refresh the view. Zoom-in to
  Hennessey. Notice that the townships are labeled
  with their township and range and many of the
  sections have labels.
• Check the circle next to the Sections layer to
  make it the active identification layer.
• Now try the Identify tool on a section in
  Hennessey. You should have an identify result
  that tells you the section, township, and range
  of where you clicked.

Public Land Survey System
6
8
Part 3 continued
The PLSS online

• Lets assume you wanted to drive across the
  Indian Meridian.
• How would you know where the Indian Meridian is
  located just by looking at Township and/or Range
  numbers?
• If you were leaving from Hennessey
• What direction would you need to drive?
• What highway(s) would you take?
• It may be helpful to use the Pan tool.
• What county would you be in when you crossed the
  Indian Meridian?
• Find the Initial Point of the Indian Survey.
• What community is closest to the Initial Point?
• Find the Initial Point of the Cimarron Survey.
• Describe the location of this initial point.

Part 4
Legal land descriptions
A complete legal land description of a section
includes the State, Principal Meridian name,
Township and Range designations with directions,
and the section number to the first quarter. For
example Nebraska, Sixth Principal Meridian,
T7N, R2W, NW ¼ Sec. 5 Provide the legal land
description to the quarter section for the center
of the 50-yard line at either OU or OSUs
football stadium (You will need to use some
different imagery layers to figure this out).
Public Land Survey System
6
9
Part 4 continued
Legal land descriptions
Determine the full legal land description to the
quarter-quarter section for Coach Esaus
classroom Determine the full legal land
description to the quarter-quarter section for
your home Determine the full legal land
description to the section for the closest named
airport/landing strip to Hennessey Name Lega
l Determine the full legal land description to
the section for the Dover Cemetery
Part 5
Review questions
What is the Public Land Survey System? What is
an Initial Point? What is a Principal
Meridian? How many Principal Meridians does
Oklahoma have? What is a Base Line? What does a
complete legal land description include? How
many square miles is a township?
Public Land Survey System
7