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Does anyone know specific details with sources, about what information would have to be supplied by a Grantee to the State of Tennessee, (such as, Identification, whether or not he was a natural born citizen, etc..) for land under the Act of January 9, 1830?

I already know of the Indian Removal Act for westward expansion from 1830 and so forth. I'm wanting to know what a buyer or grantee would have to do to acquire the grant.

My source and reason I seek this information:

Cheatham County Loose Records:
A Tennessee Land Grant

(Below is a grant abstract for land in Cheatham County. The land grants were given away by the State of Tennessee, and a buyer could purchase the land under the Act of January 9, 1830, which offered tracts of land for 12 ½ cents per acre. The original land grants have never been microfilmed and are located in the Tennessee State Library and Archives. ed.)

State of Tennessee to William (Rediker) Redeker. Entry No. 53, Grant No. 25127.

By virtue of an act of the General Assembly, January 9, 1830, I have surveyed for William Redeker, 77 ½ acres in the second district, dated April 10th 1860 on the waters of Blue Spring branch. Beginning on a small white oak, Alexander Lowe’s south boundary; mentions Morris and Carney’s line. Surveyed April 25, 1860 by County Surveyor, G.W. McQuary.

Cheatham County Historical and Genealogical Association

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    Can you clarify your question? For example, do you want to know (1) What information a land grant record contains about the buyer; (2) Information about Tennessee land grants, specifically the the 1830 act designed by the state government to encourage settlement in the middle of the state; (3) More information about land grants in middle Tennessee counties, such as Cheatham, in the 1860s. Feb 16, 2013 at 13:13
  • (1) What information a land grant record contains about the buyer;the thought behind this question is we have to supply different types of documents in our day. Did they have to? Thank you for the comment @KristenJamesEberlein Feb 16, 2013 at 15:18

1 Answer 1

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Land grants, such as the Tennessee act of 1830, were designed to encourage individuals and corporations to develop unused land in relatively unpopulated areas. Individuals or their proxies applied at an entry taker’s office. These land grants were not restricted to native-born men nor were the applicants required to have someone attest to their identity. (All land grants issued in the USA were before the Spanish-American War; this is way before anyone had any sort of state or government-issued identification.) After a certain time period after the application, if no other people applied for the land, it was surveyed. Finally, the recipient of the land had his grant recorded in the county where the land lay.

Your best source of information about this grant and its recipient will be the deeds book of Cheatham county, Tennessee. Records and loose papers concerning these land grants are located at the Tennessee State Library and Archives, but they have not been microfilmed nor are they available for viewing.

Since the information that you posted came from a newsletter of the Cheatham County Historical and Genealogical Association, you might simply want to inquire as to where the information came from and whether additional information might be available. The wording of the article suggests that the information came from "Loose papers" available at the county level.

Unless you are interested in the specifics of the property, I doubt you will find out much more about the recipient from the property records of the county.

Sources:

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  • I've been to the deed office in Cheatham County. I have images of all the deeds for my family in Cheatham County from 1857 to about the 1940's. I haven't been able to make it to the Tennessee State Library and Archives yet. I've made queries with the CCHGA about these loose papers and I have an early deed I need to find also at TSLA. Thank you for the help, did you also have a source for this information in your question? Thank you very much, Ezri J. Rediker @Kristen James Eberlein Feb 17, 2013 at 17:35
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    @ Ezri J. Rediker: I added sources to my answer above. Do you have specific questions about William (Rediker) Redeker that you are trying to answer? Feb 17, 2013 at 20:09
  • @ Kristen James Eberlein: I have many, I have no solid information before 1857 about him. I've been looking for quite some time now. I've been hoping that these land records might shed some additional light but to no avail so far. Thank you for adding the sources. I appreciate the well written answer. Feb 17, 2013 at 22:29

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