The Land Grants of Navarro County
(Sometimes called patented land)
By: Alva Taylor
Originally published in "The Navarro County Scroll", 1962
Reprinted with permission of the Navarro County Historical Society

Navarro County has 697,000 acres.  These acres are divided up into 931 land grants of all sizes.  The largest land grant was issued to Thomas J. Chambers on September 23, 1834, and was located fourteen miles east of Corsicana.  The smallest land grant was fourteen acres and was issued by Jacob J. Wright in 1859.  It is eight miles west of Corsicana.

Eleven land grants of Navarro County were made by the Republic of Mexico before Texas became a Republic.  These eleven grants are for 58,500 acres of land.

Besides Chambers, there was John Choates, who got 4,428 acres issued on October 8, 1835.  Then Enoch Frier received a grant for 4,428 acres which was issued on October 11, 1835, and which is located six miles south of Corsicana.  Jeremiah Latham received a grant for 4,428 acres, which was located twelve miles west of Corsicana and the grant was issued on Oct 12, 1835.

Others issued were to Martin Latham for 4,428 acres on October 5, 1835; Rachel Leach for 4,428 acres, issued on October 27, 1835; then to Robert Longbotham on July 24, 1835, for 3,717 acres; next to John McNeal for 4,428 acres, issued on October 15 1835; then Jehu Peoples for 4,428 acres, issued July 12, 1835; Michael Shire on October 12, 1835 for 4,428 acres; and to John Taylor for 4,428 acres on October 12, 1835.

As the settlers moved in they were given land.   A single man was given 320 acres of land as a homestead.  A man and his wife were given 640 acres and for each boy over seventeen years of age, they could get an extra 320 acres.  The records show that two hundred forty single men were each issued 320 acres of land and one hundred eighty-five families received land grants.

One requirement was that to receive land, one must live on the land for three years.  Many settlers were assigned land sevearl years prior to the time their title was recorded and patented.  For instance, George W. Hill moved near Springhill in 1838 and applied for 320 acres of land, before he married Catherine Slauter in November, 1846.  Hill died May 20, 1860 and his land was patented April, 1863.

Navarro County was issued 8,622 acres of school land.  To make it easy to find certain land grants, we wil give their names alphabetically

These land titles are from the records of Texas Abstracts and Land Company 1902, founded 1876.  Passed on by John H. Rice, W. J. McKie, E. D. Call, J. L. Autry, D. E. Greer, and B. L. Davis, experienced land lawyers.

Notes:

• Texas County Maps showing the original surveys can be purchased from the Texas General Land Office.  I highly recommend these maps, they are full color, printed on very high quality paper, and are perfect in detail. I have three different maps framed and hanging in the house for research as well as decoration.  ...ed

Land Measurement Definitions

Surveying = to measure boundaries, area, or elevations of part of the earth's surface by means of measuring angles & distances.

Area Measurements
    1 acre = 4,840 square yards or 43,560 square feet
    1 Township = 36 square miles
    1 Section = 640 acres or 1 square mile
    1 league (Spanish used in early TX & CA) =  4,428 acres = 3 square miles = 6.9 sections
    1 labor (Spanish used in early TX & CA) = 200 acres
    1 arpent (French, used in early MO & LA) = .85 acres

Linear Measurements
    1 chain = 100 links of iron or steel or about 20 meters or 66 feet
    1 pole = 1 rod = 1 perch = 5.5 yards = 16.5 ft = 5.03 meters
    1 vara (Spanish used in early TX & CA) = approx. 1 yard