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REVIEWS
THE TRANS-MISSISSIPPI WEST, 1804–1912: A GUIDE TO FEDERAL RECORDS FOR THE TERRITORIAL PERIOD PART IV, A GUIDE TO RECORDS OF THE DEPT. OF THE INTERIOR FOR THE TERRITORIAL PERIOD, SECTION 3, RECORDS OF THE GENERAL LAND OFFICE
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by Robert M. Kvasnicka
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| National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C., 2007. Photographs, index. 1130 pages. $49.00 paper. |
| In 1935, the Department of State began an ambitious undertaking, the publication of the Territorial Papers of the United States. For most of the life of the project, Clarence E. Carter skillfully edited many volumes of documents pertaining to the government of several territories, mostly those lying east of the Mississippi River. In 1950, the project was transferred to what was then known as the National Archives and Records Service (now the National Archives and Records Administration, NARA). Unfortunately, Congress "suspended" (a better term would be "killed") the project in 1975, justifying the action on the high cost of publishing the large number of documents produced by territories in the later years of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The last volumes published were those for Wisconsin Territory, which was admitted to statehood in 1848. This left the papers of the great majority of territories west of the Mississippi unedited and unpublished. Scholars wishing to examine the papers of, for example, Oregon Territory, still need to go to the National Archives or order copies from the Archives. Microfilm versions of the territorial papers are also available. |
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In 1989, NARA launched the series of which this volume is a part, intending it to be a "continuation" of the Territorial Papers project (p. xv). It also builds on previous guides, lists, and preliminary inventories. This series consists of guides to records of federal agencies rather than edited versions of the records themselves. Volumes that have appeared thus far cover records of the Departments of State, Justice, Agriculture, and Interior. The publication reviewed here is one of three "sections" pertaining to Interior records. The two volumes are devoted to Record Group 49, the records of the General Land Office, the principal predecessor of the Bureau of Land Management. The other two sections deal with the files of the Office of the Secretary of the Interior and the Commissioner of Railroads and "Select Agencies" of the department. |
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The "Territorial Period" as defined here spans the years from the Louisiana Purchase to the admission of Arizona and New Mexico to statehood. The records of a particular territory described extend to 1912 and, in many cases, beyond — even though most of the territories had achieved statehood by the end of the nineteenth century. This guide includes the records of Alaska Territory but not those of the territories of Hawaii and Puerto Rico and other overseas possessions. |
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The first volume describes the records by activity rather than by territory and state. We find, for example, descriptions of "Records Concerning Boundary Surveys," "Records Relating to Military Bounty Land Warrants," and "General Records Relating to Private Land Claims." Figures are given showing the physical extent of the various series, such as the number of linear feet. The first volume concludes with a useful "Glossary of Public Land Terms." |
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The second volume contains lists "intended to acquaint the users of this guide with a quick introduction to the kinds of records available to researchers interested in the activities of the General Land Office in a particular State or Territory" (p. 1). The volume consists of six appendixes, the first two being "File Lists, by State, of Selected Series of Records," and "Surveyors General of Public Lands States West of the Mississippi River." |
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Both volumes, for the most part, treat records found at National Archives facilities in the Washington, D.C., area. The justification given for not including those at NARA's regional branches is that records there are mostly duplicates of, or similar to, those in the Washington area. Nevertheless, researchers should check to make certain they are not overlooking something. The regional branches hold a good many unique treasures. |
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This guide offers users of the archives a great, painstakingly compiled research tool. The editor and his staff deserve the thanks of all scholars using the NARA system. |
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| Michael J. Brodhead
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| U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Virginia |
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