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Original Highland Land Purchases
With Purchase And Patent Dates, Places Of Residence, Etc.

The information presented below has been gleaned from both First Land Owners of Oakland County, Oakland County Genealogical Society (1981) and inspection of scans of the actual land patents, available online at the Bureau of Land Management web site at:

http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/

The columns can be sorted by clicking on the green column headers.  An arrow will appear to show whether the column is sorted in ascending or descending order.  Click again to change the sort order.  A useful "trick" for using this sort function is explained here.  Dates are presented in YYYY-MM-DD format to enable use of the sort feature.

Many of these purchasers never actually settled in Highland Township.  Some were residents of adjoining communities who extended their holdings across township lines.   Others were outright speculators, buying cheap government land in hopes of later selling at a profit.  Links in the "NAMES" column lead to short accounts which discuss these and other details about a particular purchaser and/or purchase.    Links in the "SECT. NO." column lead to maps showing all purchases within a particular section.  Note, however, that clicking such links will "undo" any column sorts.   You may also wish to consult this short FAQ on The Public Land Survey System which explains of how government land was sold, the difference between purchase and patent dates, the significance of Section 16 land, etc. 

Click On The Green Column Headers To Sort By Name, Residence, Date, Etc.

Abbreviations:
Doc. No. = the number on the original patent, warrant, etc.
Sect. No. = Section Number
pt = part
F. = fractional section, quarter, etc.
PP =  pre-emption patent

A Useful "Trick" When Sorting The Data Columns

As noted, each column of this table can be sorted in either ascending or descending order by clicking on the green column title.  Of interest is the fact that this feature "remembers" the previous sort when performing a new one.  For example, if the data is first sorted by "Purchase Date," then immediately sorted again by "Name," multiple entries under the same name will be given in chronological order.  If the data is then sorted again by date, any two or more purchases made on the same date will appear in alphabetical order.  You may thus want to experiment with the order and number of times the different columns are sorted.  

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