§752 Boundaries and contents of public lands; how ascertained

Summary

Sets how to find the official corners, boundary lines, and sizes of sections, half-sections, and quarter-sections of public land. Corners shown in surveys sent by the Secretary of the Interior (or an agency he picks) are the correct corners. If a half- or quarter-section corner was not marked, place it about halfway between the two marked corners on the same line. Use any boundary lines that were actually run and marked in those surveys and use the lengths recorded. If a line was not run, draw a straight line between the established corners. In fractional townships where opposite corners can’t be fixed, run lines due north‑south or east‑west from the fixed corners until you meet a stream, an Indian boundary, or the township’s outer edge. If a survey report gives the exact area of a section or subdivision, use that area. If a half- or quarter-section has no separate area listed, count it as exactly one-half or one-fourth of its parent section’s reported area.