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Supplemental Materials |
| Prorations - Area and Cube Math - Commissions
- Real Estate Taxes Legal Descriptions - Table of Measures and Equivalents If you right click a link, you can open that link in a new window. |
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"Legal Descriptions"
Supplement
Oklahoma uses the Federal System of Rectangular Survey to describe
land, "Real Property".
Click here to view the Rectangular
Survey Map. It will open in a new window.
In the following map you will see the Two Base Lines and the two
Principal Meridians. Also you will see how Oklahoma is divided into Tiers, Ranges,
Quadrangles, Townships and Sections. These are the basic fundamentals of all legal
descriptions in Oklahoma. Note the Initial Point, located in Davis, Oklahoma.
Click here to view the Base Line Map. It will
open in a new window.
Guide Meridians and Standard Parallels are established at 24 mile intervals, east and west of the principal meridians and north and south of the base line.
Each 24 Mile by 24 Mile square established by guide meridians is called a "Quadrangle or Check".
Because of the Earth's curvature, guide meridians converge toward the north pole. To correct for this, a correction is made at each standard parallel, Thus, the north side of each quadrangle is actually slightly less than 24 miles.
Townships. Each quadrangle is divided into 16 townships, each measuring 6 miles square with exception of the north and south boundaries which are slightly less because of the curvature of the earth, unless the south boundary is on a correction line.
Tiers of Townships. North-south rows or TIERS of townships are called RANGES and are numbered east and west of the principal meridian. East-west rows or tiers are called TOWNSHIPS and are numbered north and south of the base line. Thus begins the first basic concept of legal descriptions. T2S, R2E. In the illustration below, if the Meridian Line was the Indian Meridian, then the location of the Section in black would be 10 miles East and 10 miles South of Davis Oklahoma. This would give us an idea of where to start looking.
Sections. Each standard township is divided in 36 squares called "SECTIONS".
Above is a standard township, divided into 36 sections. They are 1-mile square. The area
shown in black is a section. A section of land is 640 Acres. Other forms of measurement is
80 square chains or 320 square rods. The most common form of measurement is 5280
square feet. This is because we stopped measuring with chains and rods.
Numbering of sections: Numbering is consecutive, starting at the TOP
RIGHT HAND CORNER or the NORTHEAST CORNER of a township, then
west to the LEFT HAND CORNER or the NORTHWEST CORNER
then SOUTH to the EAST SIDE, then South to the west and
so on. Just remember that the numbering starts backwards from conventional thinking.
Reading Left to Right like we were taught, you will see 6 5 4 3 2 1. Then directly SOUTH
of, or below Section 6, would be 7, then EAST with 8 9 10 11 and 12. SOUTH
OR BELOW section 12 is section 13 and so on. Numbering starts in the EAST
and goes WEST then South from West to East then South from East to West until you reach
36.
| This illustrations shows a Township with each section numbered and the section from adjacent townships with their respective section numbers. |  |
We then can continue to further define the location of a piece of property by subdividing the section.
Subdividing Sections. Each section is further subdivided by splitting the section into quarters (1/4) repeatedly as required. Each quarter section is labeled according to its compass location within the section.
A section is one-mile square, 1-mile X 1-mile and one square mile, 640 acres. It is important to know dimensions and the acreage of fractional sections for legal descriptions.
The following diagram of a subdivided section shows the legal
description, dimensions and acreage for each subdivision. Click on the image or the link
below to view a full size image and the legal descriptions in a new window.
Click here to open in "New Window".
HINT, The easiest way to figure the number of acres in a legal description is to start at the end of the legal description, enter 640 into a calculator and divide by the bottom denominator. If you run across a legal description with the word "and" START OVER with 640 and add the two numbers together.
| EXAMPLE A; W1/2, NE1/4, SW1/4, NW1/4
is the same as W1/2 of NE1/4 of SW1/4 of NW1/4 640 ÷ 4 =÷ 4 =÷ 4 =÷ 2 = 5 Acres. |
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| EXAMPLE B; W1/2, NE1/4, NW1/4 and
E1/2, NW1/4, NW1/4 (640 ÷ 2 = ÷ 4 = ÷ 4) = 20 (AND, +) (640 ÷ 2 = ÷ 4 = ÷ 4) = 20, Therefore 20+20=40 acres. |
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Problem:
How many acres are contained in the following descriptions?
1. E 1/2 of NE1/4 of SW1/4 of NW1/4 of Section 9, T2N R4E IM.
2. SW1/4 of SE1/4 of NE1/4 and S1/2 of SW1/4 of NE1/4 of Section 9, T2N R4E IM.
3. Write the Legal description of the shaded area below of Section 8,
T2N R4E IM.
4. How many miles north of the base line is the south boundary of Section 15, T12N, R5E IM?
5. How many miles east is the west boundary of Section 15, T12N, R5E IM?
6. How many acres are in the following legal description?
Beginning at the SW corner of section 16. then N 45º E to the NE corner of Section 10,
then S 2 miles, then S 45º W to the SW corner of Section 22, then N 45º W to the point
of beginning.
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Hint, click here to open this image in a new window. Then print the image and you can draw it out. These types of legal descriptions are called "Metes and Bounds". |
Click here for the answer AFTER you try to work them out on your own.
Prorations - Area and Cube Math - Commissions
- Real Estate Taxes
Legal Descriptions - Table
of Measures and Equivalents
If you right click a link, you can open that link in a new window.
Send comments or questions to burroughs@burroughsco.com .
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