1. Soil Survey Reports and Legal Land Descriptions

2. Objectives
Identify and define range and township lines, townships, and sections.
Identify specific land locations from a legal land description.
Determine acreages from legal land descriptions.
Analyze a soil survey map for specific information.

3. Key Terms Range lines Township lines
Section, half-section, quarter-section
Soil survey map

4. Reading a Map

5. Numbering Sections Within Township
Townships are divided into 36 one-mile-square sections.

6. 36 Sections Make Up One Township

7. Dividing Sections into Smaller Tracts
10 a.
SE 1/4 SW 1/ a.
20 a.
N 1/2 SW 1/ a.
E 1/ a.
NW 1/ a.
Dividing Sections into Smaller Tracts
N 1/2 SW 1/4 SW 1/4
SW 1/4 SW 1/4 SW 1/4

8. Determining Acreages from Legal Land DescriptionsB

9. Determining Acreages from Legal Land Descriptions
S ½, SE ¼, Sec acres

10. Determining Acreages from Legal Land Descriptions
SE ¼, NW ¼, Sec acres

11. Determining Acreages from Legal Land Descriptions
S ½, N ½, SW ¼, Sec acres

12. Determining Acreages from Legal Land Descriptions
N ½ and SW ¼, Sec acres

13. Town 3 South
Range 23 West 3 2 1 10 11 12

14. Legal Land Descriptions
A – N1/2, Sec 2, R23W, T3S
B – SW1/4, NW1/4, Sec 12, R23W, T3S
C – S1/2 Sec 3 and N1/2, N1/2, Sec 10, R23W, T3S
D – N1/2, SE1/4, NE1/4 Sec 11, R23W, T3S

15. Town 3 South
Range 23 West 3 2 1 A C 10 11 12 B D