Charleston Carnegie Public Library plans to host a free “1821 land survey” event.
Charleston Carnegie Public Library plans to host a free “1821 land survey” event.
People can view past panoramas of the Illinois landscape from noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 30, when Eastern Illinois University (EIU) offers its free “1821 land survey” event at the Charleston Carnegie Public Library.
Citizens should convene at noon in Rotary Room B to glean knowledge of how westward expansion in the U.S. in the early 1800s and land ownership boundaries ultimately affected the geographical and geopolitical landscape we know today.
As settlers traversed these lands to record and set boundary lines, the federal government required a clear-cut system in order to divide newly acquired land. Participants will learn about and discuss “before and after” similarities and differences, in addition to how the system helped to shape the terrain we live in today.
“Some of the best data come from the land survey notes made in the early 19th century,” an Illinois State Museum representative said.
Most of Illinois was surveyed between 1804 and 1856, according to the museum.
This seminar will examine issues surrounding how this vast new territory was managed -- as well as how decisions were made and conflicts resolved -- all without modern technology. By exploring pre-settlement land papers recorded by the general land office, citizens will gain a deeper awareness of what the regional landscape looked like before settlers came through.
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