Please note: Some of the links on this page may resolve to non-governmental agencies. The information on these pages is not controlled by the Office of the Secretary of State or the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
What is a land patent?
Where can I find conveyances after the Grant is issued?
What types of authorizations were used to obtain land under the Virginia & Old Kentucky Patent Series?
How many patents were authorized by each type of warrant or legislative act?
What is a Virginia Land Patent?
What is an Old Kentucky Land Patent?
Where are the original records for the Virginia Patent Series and the Old Kentucky Patent Series housed?
Is there a searchable database for the Virginia & Old Kentucky series that includes survey names, county, watercourse, and other information?
The name on the first image differs from the name on the patent listing. Why?
How does this information relate to Jillson’s publication “The Kentucky Land Grants”?
How does this information relate to the Kentucky Historical publications “The Master Index: Virginia Surveys & Grants” and “Index to Old Kentucky Surveys & Grants and Tellico Surveys & Grants”?
Do other Kentucky Land Office websites relate to the Virginia & Old Kentucky Patent Series?
Is there a master map that depicts the location of Kentucky patents?
Are there other Kentucky Land Patent Series?
How many Kentucky Land Patent Series are now online?
How can I determine if a Grant in my possession is an “original”?
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What is a land patent?
The governmental process by which Kentucky lands are appropriated. Land patenting consists of four steps: (1). a Warrant (or combination of Warrants) determines the total amount of acreage that may be patented; (2) an Entry is filed in the county surveyor’s book reserving land for patenting; (3) a field Survey depicts & describes the tract being patented; and (4) the Governor’s Grant finalizes the patent by conveying title. Warrants & Surveys are assignable during the patenting process; Entries may be withdrawn or amended. Title does not vest until the Governor’s Grant is issued.
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Where can I find conveyances after the Grant is issued? Subsequent conveyances are filed with the county clerk in Deed Books, Will Books and, occasionally, in court records. There is no central registration of deeds in Kentucky. (Be sure to study the county formation table included in the “Reference Library” of the Land Office website to determine which county records you need to access. For example if a patent location is identified as Jefferson County but the watercourse citation indicates the current county location is Larue, you will need to access Jefferson, Nelson and Hardin county records to determine conveyances before 1843 when Larue county was formed.) County records may be researched by contacting the county clerk’s office (see contact information in the Land Office Reference Library). County records such as Wills, Deeds, Marriages and Court cases may also be researched by contacting the Kentucky Department for Libraries & Archives, Coffee Tree Road, Frankfort, Ky.
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What types of authorizations were used to obtain land under the Virginia & Old Kentucky Patent Series?
Warrants issued for: (1) service in the French & Indian War and Lord Dunmore’s War; (2) warrants issued by Virginia Governors; (3) Certificates of Settlement, also known as the “corn claims”; (4) three types of Preemption Warrants; (5) Treasury Warrants; (6) Importation Warrants; (7) warrants used as payment for clearing roads or finding salt; (8) warrants issued to Virginia veterans of the Revolutionary War, their heirs, or assignees; and (9) various legislative acts passed by the Virginia General Assembly and the Kentucky General Assembly, such as the act “for the Relief of Certain Persons Now Resident on the Western Frontier” and legislation for funding various seminaries & academies. (For further research on legislation affecting Kentucky Land Patents, see “Legislation” in the “Reference Library” on the Land Office website.)
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How many patents were authorized by each type of warrant or legislative act?
Databases for both the Virginia and Old Kentucky Patent Series are currently under construction therefore we are unable to provide statistical analysis at this time. When databases are complete, we will also have information regarding the number of surveys conducted by individual surveyors, the number of patents mentioning old roads & canebrakes, and other information of historical importance.
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What is a Virginia Land Patent?
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a daughter of the state of Virginia. Various royal proclamations and legislative acts, such as “Land Laws A & B” passed in May 1779 by the Virginia General Assembly, established the patenting process for “lands on the western waters”, i.e. Kentucky County or the Kentucky District. Under the Compact with Virginia, Kentucky agreed to honor patents issued by Virginia Governors prior to June 1792. (For further research on royal proclamations and Land Laws, see “Legislation” in the “Reference Library” on the Land Office website.) Patent numbers in the Virginia Patent Series (VA) range from 1 to 9441. There are 9540 patent files in the series due to patent number duplications. A few patent numbers were skipped.
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What is an Old Kentucky Land Patent?
After statehood in June 1792, the Kentucky General Assembly maintained the same method of land patenting established by royal proclamations and Virginia Land Laws. Grants signed by Kentucky governors conveyed title to land in the Commonwealth after Kentucky became the 15th state. Patent numbers in the Old Kentucky Series (OK) range from 1 to 7668. There are 7771 patent files in the series due to patent number duplications. A few patent numbers were skipped.
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Where are the original records for the Virginia Patent Series and the Old Kentucky Patent Series housed?
As the Virginia patents affect Kentucky land title and it was imperative the documents be available for research, possible litigation, etc., the legislatures of both states agreed to transfer land patent records to Frankfort shortly after Kentucky’s statehood. (Signatures on assignments on Warrants and Surveys feature signatures that could be challenged for authenticity.) From 1792 until 1898, the Register of the Land Office was a constitutional officer who oversaw the land patent files and directed the issuance of Kentucky land patents. In 1898 the Register’s office was abolished; duties were transferred to the Auditor of Public Accounts. In 1934 a governmental reorganization assigned the Land Office duties to the Kentucky Secretary of State. In 1974, Secretary of State Ken Harper entered into a contract with the Kentucky Historical Society for the research, lamination and preservation of all Kentucky land patent files. The project was later transferred to the Kentucky Department for Libraries & Archives. Original documents for all patent series are now housed with the Land Office Division of the Kentucky Secretary of State, Capitol Annex, Frankfort, Kentucky. Documents on this website are scans of the original records.
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Is there a searchable database for the Virginia & Old Kentucky series that includes survey names, county, watercourse, and other information?
Databases for both series are under construction. Currently researchers can search the images by opening the drop box and accessing the patent number or the name(s) of the person(s) receiving the Grant finalizing the patent. In the event of multiple grantees, the names are not cross-referenced.
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The name on the first image differs from the name on the patent listing. Why?
In most instances the first image in the patent file is a Warrant. Warrants were assignable. Follow the documents through the patenting process until you see the Grant (usually the last record in the file). The name(s) on the Grant will match the name(s) on the patent listing. The person(s) named in the Grant acquired title to the land. When persons assigned their Warrants or the Survey to other individuals “for value received”, they relinquished their claim to the tract. For example, if the patent file includes 10 Warrants, there may be 10 different Warrant names, not counting other assignees recorded on the back of each Warrant. (Researchers are encouraged to check the back of documents for signatures on assignments; signatures can be matched against other documents such as marriage bonds and wills.)
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How does this information relate to Jillson’s publication “The Kentucky Land Grants”?
Names of persons patenting land in Kentucky prior to 1792 are indexed in the “Virginia Grants” chapter of “Kentucky Land Grants” by Willard Rouse Jillson. Names of persons patenting land in Kentucky immediately after our statehood are indexed in the “Old Kentucky Grants” chapter of the same publication by Jillson. Contact your local historical society or library for the availability of Jillson’s “Kentucky Land Grants”. Subscription genealogy websites also offer the patent listings for a membership fee.
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How does this information relate to the Kentucky Historical publications “The Master Index: Virginia Surveys & Grants” and “Index to Old Kentucky Surveys & Grants and Tellico Surveys & Grants”?
The Historical Society publications index patents by names of persons for whom the survey was made. In the back of the “Master Index: Virginia Surveys & Grants”, researchers will find a cross-index identifying the Grantee’s name if the name varies from the Survey name. A separate grantee index is available for the “Index to Old Kentucky Surveys and Grants and Tellico Surveys & Grants.” As Jillson’s book lists grantees only, researchers will see additional names not listed in Jillson’s publication by accessing the Kentucky Historical Society publications. Researchers can then access the image file on this website by searching by patent number (identified as “Survey Number” in the Historical Society publications.) Note: Historical Society Patent Number assignments with “#” have been adjusted. For example VA 4766#1 in the “Master Index” is VA 4766.1 on our website. Contact the Kentucky Historical Society, P.O. Box 1792, Frankfort, KY 40601 for further information regarding the availability of both publications.
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Do other Kentucky Land Office websites relate to the Virginia & Old Kentucky Patent Series?
Yes. For example, if you have found a patent authorized by a Preemption Warrant and the tract was in Lincoln County, be sure to check the “Lincoln Entries” and the “Certificates of Settlement & Preemption Warrants” databases for additional information and images. Check the “Revolutionary War Warrants Database” or the “Treasury Warrants Database” if you find a patent authorized by those types of warrants. To determine a location, access the online “Gazetteer”; to research the requirements for the Act for Poor Persons, check the “Legislation” portion of the Land Office Reference Library. To see maps of early Kentucky, check the online “Maps” in the Reference Library. To determine if future generations of specific surnames patented land in Kentucky (after 1835 to current date), check the “County Court Orders Database”. Click “Advanced Search” and enter the surname in the Grantee or Survey Name search. You can refine the search by county, watercourse, grant year, survey year, etc.
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Is there a master map that depicts the location of Kentucky patents?
No. Those maps were probably kept on the local level with the county surveyor so availability is limited. Patent location maps were not sent to the Land Office by surveyors nor did the Land Office “track” patent locations as Grants were issued. Over the years this has resulted in shingling (overlapping) claims, usually referred to as “Junior” and “Senior” patents. It is possible to plot patent locations. We suggest researchers contact local historical societies and surveyors to determine the availability of patent maps for particular areas. Additionally, by accessing Tax Lists from 1795 to the mid-1830’s researchers can determine the names of persons involved in the original patents. The patent can then be plotted, and, possibly, subsequent deeds and conveyances—if survey calls are provided in the filings.
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Are there other Kentucky Land Patent Series?
There are nine major series: Virginia, Old Kentucky, South of Green River, Tellico, Kentucky Land Warrants, County Court Orders, South of Walker’s Line, West of Tennessee River (Non-Military) and West of Tennessee River (Military). See the Land Office Reference Library for additional information regarding each patent series.
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How many Kentucky Land Patent Series are now online?
The “Virginia Series”, the “Old Kentucky Series”, and the “West of Tennessee River Military Patent Series” are now online. The “County Court Orders Database” and scanned images for over 8200 CCO patents are also included on this website. Additional databases and images are under construction and will be added upon completion. To request copies of patent files that are not currently available online, submit an online order form or contact the Secretary of State’s Land Office Division via e-mail or call 502-564-3490. The Kentucky Department for Libraries & Archives has microfilm of many of the patent series. The Research Library at the Kentucky History Center has microfilm as well as printed versions of Land Office Survey and Grant Books for series other than the County Court Orders.
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How can I determine if a Grant in my possession is an “original”?
Professional archivists can determine the age of paper and ink by examining the document. We also suggest researchers check the document for the term “certified” or “certified copy”. Although the Land Office has copied and certified original documents for two centuries, we have not always had access to today’s modern equipment for generating copies. At one time, the Land Office transcribed each word on a Grant form then wrote “Certified” or “Certified Copy” on the document. The name of the Secretary of State (keeper of the Seal of the Commonwealth) was affixed. By accessing the Secretary of States Biography Page on this website, you can determine the years for the term of office for the Secretary of State (or Assistant Secretary of State) identified in the certification. Researchers can then determine the approximate age of the document. Note: It is not unusual for Kentuckians who have inherited land patented by their ancestors or who have purchased land directly from patent recipients to have the original “Grants” or “Patent Deeds” in their personal archives as part of their chain-of-title.