United States, Cancelled, Relinquished, or Rejected Land Entry Case Files - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States

What is in This Collection?
This collection consists of canceled and relinquished case files of land entries that progressed from an application to an allowed entry, but were later canceled by the General Land Office (GLO) in Washington D.C., or relinquished by the entryman from 1861-1932. Application files could be for homesteads, mining claims or land preemptions. A file may contain the original entry application, correspondence between the officials of the district (local) land offices, receipts for fees paid, public notices, affidavits and witness statements, proof of military service, the entryman’s (a settler or person making a land claim) naturalization records, and documents concerning the cancelation or relinquishment of the entry.

The initial point of contact between a settler and the government was a district land office. A District Land Office was staffed by a Register and a Receiver. The Register was responsible for land entry papers until they were sent to the GLO, and for maintaining the tract and register books and other records relating to claims. The Receiver handled the money involved in land claims.

A person wanting to make an entry of any type went to the Register of the local land office and filed his claim upon the public domain (available public lands). Some types of claims, such as cash entries, were settled quickly; other claims required several proofs over time. When all the legal requirements for title to the claimed land had been satisfied, a final certificate was issued by the Register to the entryman, and all papers regarding the claim were sent to the GLO. If all the was found to be in order a patent (title) was prepared and sent to the Register for delivery to the entryman. Case files where a final certificate or title was issued were removed by the land office and sent to the GLO.

Local Land Offices included in this Collection are shown in a Coverage Table in the Collection Contents Section below.

 Related Publications 
 * Kenneth Hawkins, comp.  Research in Land Entry Files of the General Land Office. NARA Reference Information Paper 114

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:

Land
 * Name of applicant
 * Date
 * Description and location of land

How Do I Search This Collection?
You can view the images in this Collection. Before using this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The name of the applicant
 * The approximate date of application

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the :
 * 1) Select the State
 * 2) Select the Local Office Name
 * 3) Select the Record Type, Date Range, and File Number Range to view the images.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

What Do I Do Next?
Whenever possible, view the original records to verify the information and to find additional information that might not be reported. These pieces of information can lead you to additional records and family members.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Use the ages in those records to estimate birth dates and find birth, christenings, marriage and death records
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well
 * Search the indexes and records of Nebraska, United States Genealogy or Kansas, United States Genealogy
 * Search in the Nebraska Archives and Libraries or Kansas Archives and Libraries

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in the United States.
 * United States Guided Research
 * United States Record Finder
 * Research Tips and Strategies

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.