klandgr

Kentucky Land Grants

The two chief considerations which describe land are location and ownership. This does not refer to the standard real estate agent's remarks about property value consideration, that the three determinants of value are location, location and location. It instead means, what exactly is the property. Today this includes the standard survey description, combined with a deed of some type which further describes the property. Additional legal attachments may additionally define the limits of ownership of the parcel. With an understanding of what the property consists,i.e. its legal location, property may be tranferred by various means. Usually this involves a sale from the legal owner to a willing buyer.

In Colonial America, neither location or ownership of property was a straightforward affair. Entire states were subject to conflicting ownership claims. Title to land in the late 1700s was generally transferred to an individual by the colony, and later the state, or by the federal government. This applied to land which was untitled. Vast areas of land were, owned by private individuals by the time the U.S.Constitution was ratified.

The ownership of land in present day form is fairly straightforward, with some exceptions. There existing little, if any, unclaimed land in the United States today. With modern technology, photographs can be taken of any site in the country and its location can be pinpointed via satellite on a computer, which may be mobile. There is little doubt today about land location and ownership. If one has ever read any old property description, it boggles the mind to understand how anyone knew location and ownership of land lying in Colonial Virginia or Kentucky. The boundaries were often described in relation to specific tree, rocks, and streams. All of which might have been misattributed because of incorrect identification, or because of movement or disappearance of said reference point.

I don't want to present a lecture on this subject, but someone may be interested to know why the information below is necessary. I have not obtained files from the Commonwealth of Kentucky, based on the land grant in formation. If one is interested in obtaining the information contained in the original land grant, the office of the Secretary of State of Kentucky will supply to information based on the size of the file.

Kentucky land grant include the following groups:

Virginia Land Grants

Old Kentucky Grants

Grants South of Green River

Tellico Grants

Kentucky Land Warrants

Grants West of Tennessee River

Grants South of Walker's Line

Warrants For Headright

Kentucky County Court Orders

A comprehensive listing of these Land Grants was originally compiled by Willard Rouse Jillson and published by the Filson Club in 1925. The book was titled, The Kentucky Land Grants.

Virginia Grants:

According to Jillson, these "were issued by the Commonwealth of Virginia based upon warrants given in some cases as consideration for military service in the French and Indian War and later in the Revolution." Those grants were dated from 1782 to 1792 and are recorded in 16 books containing 8,909 pages. There are more than 9,000 of this type of grant recorded for Kentucky lands.

Grantee	Acres	Book	Page	Date/Survey	County	Watercourse
Hall, Elizabeth and Sarah	200	10	11	11-22-1783	Fayette	Small Br.Licking
Hall, John	300	16	327	9--12-1791	Military	Bayers Creek
Hall, Leonard	1,000	3	101	7-18-1783	Fayette	Elkhorn
Hall, Leonard	400	3	116	1-28-1783	Fayette	N. F. Elkhorn
Hall, Leonard	1,000	6	417	5-6-1784	Fayette	None
Hall, Leonard	400	9	353	5-6-1784	Fayette	F. of Stoners Fk.
Hall, Martin	500	2	193	3-3-1784	Jefferson	Beech Fk Salt R.
Hall, Moses and Edward	1880	10	317	7-27-1784	Fayette	None

Old Kentucky Grants

When the Commonwealth of Kentucky achieved statehood, she began distributing the unclaimed land within her sovereignty. This category of land grant was continued from 1793 until 1856. This group of grants includes over 9,000 entries.

Hall, John	1,333	5	387	11-9-1794	Military	Blue Spr. Grove
Hall, John	200	5	389	2-28-1795	Military	Highland Cr.
Hall, Theo	250	12	119	8-3-1798	Fayette	Cain Creek
Hall, Theo	250	12	120	8-3-1798	Fayette	Cain Creek
Hall, John	100	16	249	8-1-1795	Military	Russells Creek

Grants South of Green River

These grants were issued from 1797 until 1866. They include more than 15,000 separate land transfers. These grants are also known as "Headrights Claims." Prior to Kentucky statehood, Virginia had reserved all the land south of the Green River as bounty land to be awarded to soldiers. Until 1797, no survey could be entered based on this land except by a soldier. New legislation passed in 1795 by the Kentucky legislature made this land available to anyone over 21 years of age, and having a family. Claimants must have lived on the land for over one year before filing a survey. The individual could claim from 100 to 200 acres.

Grantee	Acres	Book	Page	Date	County	watercourse

Hall, Adam	109	14	395	11-25-1806	Adair	Wolf Creek
Hall, Anthony	69	13	515	3-16-1813	Pulaski	Puncheon Creek
Hall, Caleb	200	7	487	8-4-1799	Henderson	Richland Creek
Hall, Caleb	600	11	96	6-7-1800	Henderson	Lick F. Clear
Hall, Caleb	200	17	409	6-26-1800	Henderson	Stewart Creek
Hall, Caleb Jr.	200	5	104	8-8-1800	Henderson	Clear Creek
Hall, Cornelius	100	4	160	9-13-1807	Barren	Barren Creek
Hall, Edmond	200	1	192	10-3-1796	Logan	Sinking Cr.
Hall, Edward	192	10	10	5-20-1805	Logan	Sinking/Drake R
Hall, Henry	120	22	353	4-19-1805	Logan	Elk Lick Creek
Hall, Hetty	200	26	14	8-27-1818	Rockcastle	Round Stone Fk
Hall, James	170	1	98	8-12-1796	Logan	Gasper River
Hall, James	30	13	17	2-3-1806	Logan	Deer Lick Creek
Hall, James	400	23	592	7-2-1818	Barren	None
Hall, James P.	200	29	48	9-20-1804	Adair	Short Creek
Hall, John	200	3	440	8-11-1799	Barren	Beaver&Sinking
Hall, John	24	9	450	3-26-1808	Logan	Red River
Hall, John	40	11	137	9-30-1806	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, John	30	13	23	12-20-1809	Logan	Red River
Hall, John	280	19	424	1-28-1806	Lincoln	Logans Creek
Hall, John	271	23	110	7-29-1807	Wayne	Otter Creek
Hall, John	170	26	328	7-30-1807	Wayne	Otter Creek
Hall, John	200	28	489	7-24-1836	Wayne	Beaver Creek
Hall, John Jr.	300	29	46	10-29-1836	Cumberland	Indian Creek
Hall, Joseph	200	2	185	9-13-1798	Green	Cumberland R.
Hall, Joseph	200	2	303	12-15-1798	Green	Cumberland R.
Hall, Joseph	30	19	423	6-6-1816	Lincoln	Sugar Loaf Knob
Hall, Joseph	245	24	312	2-14-1807	Lincoln	Buck Creek
Hall, Joshua	200	1	74	9-3-1796	Green	Russell Creek
Hall, Lander	150	10	367	10-24-1807	Livingston	Clay Lick Creek
Hall, Lewis	39	8	294	3-26-1809	Warren	None
Hall, Lowder	84	26	225	1-29-1819	Livingston	Clay Lick Creek
Hall, Lowdy	200	5	276	10-23-1799	Christian	Clay Lick
Hall, Mahlon	200	23	385	10-12-1816	Barren	Blue Spr. Creek
Hall, Mahlon	110	23	417	7-17-1816	Barren	Blue Spr. Creek
Hall, Matthew	100	7	219	8-12-1800	Warren	Gasper River
Hall, Mayland	200	10	86	7-24-1799	Henderson	Richland Creek
Hall, Micajah	100	5	187	10-23-1804	Logan	Clifty Creek
Hall, Michael	200	2	219	8-4-1799	Barren	Barren&Sinking C
Hall, Palmer	200	3	5	7-24-1799	Barren	Beaver Creek
Hall, Palmer	200	3	7	7-24-1799	Barren	None
Hall, Philip	60	11	135	12-2-1806	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, Philip	100	25	121	5-10-1807	Wayne	Otter Creek
Hall, Ronson	150	10	8	5-20-1805	Logan	Sinking/Drake R
Hall, Thomas	200	1	72	7-30-1796	Green	Russell Creek
Hall, Thomas	200	1	77	10-1-1796	Green	Russell Creek
Hall, Thomas	200	2	101	5-15-1800	Barren	Little Barren R.
Hall, Thomas	50	8	266	5-29-1804	Barren	Barren Spring
Hall, Thomas	46	8	267	2-22-1810	Barren	Barren Spring
Hall, Thomas	80	8	268	2-22-1810	Barren	None
Hall, William	200	2	292	Not recorded	Logan	L. Whipporwill
Hall, William	200	5	22	7-12-1799	Warren	W.Drakes Creek
Hall, William	170	12	308	9-12-1808	Cumberland	None
Hall, William	45	13	134	6-18-1805	Logan	Drake Creek
Hall, William	192	14	395	9-15-1798	Green	Cumberland R.
Hall, William Sr	214	17	14	8-1-1807	Wayne	Otter Creek

Tellico Land Grants

This group of land grants was issued between 1799 and 1825, upon warrants issued from the Register of the Land Office. They apply to lands cede by the Cherokee Indians. Only two Halls were issued these grants.

Hall, James	85	1	221	9-12-1805	Cumberland	Cumberland R.
Hall, Randolph	200	1	117	1-24-1805	Pulaski	King Creek

Kentucky Land Warrants

A large amount of Kentucky land was given title as a result of an act of the 1815 Kentucky State Legislature. From 1816 to 1873, this act allowed residents of Kentucky to purchase a grant for $20.00 from the State Treasurer and convert the receipt into a land office warrant. This authorized the holder to locate and survey unpatented (untitled) land. When the survey was returned to the land office, a land patent was issued to the owner. This act did not apply to land west of the Tennessee River. Quite a number of Halls obtained land in Kentucky by this method.

After much consideration and typing, I have decided to limit the information in this section to include the name, date and location of the grant. If a copy of the grant is desired, this should be enough information for the Secretary of State to find the grant.

Grantee Name/Acres	Date of Survey	County	Watercourse
Hall, Anthony/50	8-18-1827	Perry	Mid. Fork Kentucky R.
Hall, Arthur/50	10-19-1833	Montgomery	Mid fork Red River
Hall, Benjamin/50	9-28-1820	Union	Cypress Creek
Hall, Benjamin/98	10-5-1816	Henderson	Canoe Creek
Hall, Carter/50	2-27-1827	Washington	Beech Fork
Hall, Charles N./50	3-6-1830	Adair	Russells Creek
Hall, Charles N/12	3-11-1830	Adair	Russells Creek
Hall, David/63	12-20-1843	Bullitt	Floyds Fork Salt River
Hall, Edward/50	8-16-1832	Montgomery	Peter Trace Fork
Hall, Edward/50	10-20-1832	Montgomery	Peter Trace Fork
Hall, Eli/50	9-23-1835	Perry	Defield Brance
Hall, Elias & Sam/50	11-22-1822	Pike	Roberson Creek
Hall, Henry/10	6-23-1854	Pulaski	Line Creek
Hall, Hiram T/50	6-23-1836	Wayne	Otter Creek
Hall, Isaac/50	9-14-1831	Perry	Puncheon Camp Fork
Hall, James/100	11-5-1831	Montgomery	Fork of Slate Creek
Hall, James/100	3-20-1837	Perry	Rockhouse F. Kentucky
Hall, James/15	11-27-1817	Cumberland	Cumberland River
Hall, James/31	6-16-1822	Monroe	Cumberland River
Hall, Jesse/100	6-5-1822	Perry	Frk Troublesome Creek
Hall, Jesse/50	8-15-1823	Wayne&Cumberland	Indian Creek
Hall, John Jr./100	3-3-1825	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, John Jr./50	9-11-1821	Cumberland	Indian Creek
Hall, John Jr./50	2-15-1822	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, John Jr./50	5-26-1826	Cumberland	Indian Creek
Hall, John Sr./50	3-4-1825	Wayne&Cumberland	None
Hall, John/100	6-5-1829	Wayne	Otter Creek
Hall, John/116	6-7-1839	Edmondson	Nolin
Hall, John/25	5-9-1817	Barren	Little Barren Creek
Hall, John/50	3-27-1823	Clay	Goose Creek
Hall, John/50	9-13-1816	Cumberland	Indian Creek
Hall, John/50	4-12-1822	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, John/50	9-19-1821	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, John/50	9-10-1821	Wayne	Indian Creek
Hall, John/50	12-4-1834	Lawrence	Flat Lick Fork
Hall, Jonathan/50	9-14-1834	Floyd	Left Beaver Creek
Hall, Joseph/105	4-12-1816	Lincoln	Dix River
Hall, Joseph/50	7-12-1819	Cumberland	Cumberland River
Hall, Mahlan/200	7-17-1816	Barren	Blue Spring
Hall, Mahlon/50	10-12-1816	Barren	Blue Spring Creek
Hall, Matthew/150	12-19-1815	Pulaski	Clifty Creek
Hall, Matthew/50	3-7-1833	Pulaski	Clifty Creek
Hall, Micajah/120	1-18-1821	Todd	Clifty Creek
Hall, Micajah/140	3-16-1821	Todd	Clifty Creek
Hall, Micajah/226	4-3-1821	Todd	Pond River
Hall, Micajah/50	7-18-1818	Logan	Clifty Creek
Hall, Micajah/50	3-16-1820	Todd	Clifty Creek
Hall, Micajah/64	3-7-1821	Todd	Clifty Creek
Hall, Michael/45	10-11-1820	Hart	None
Hall, Michael/55	10-11-1820	Hart	None
Hall, Peter A./400	4-25-1820	Green	Greasy Creek
Hall, Reuben/50	3-20-1837	Perry	Rockhouse Fork Ky. R.
Hall, Richard/100	1-12-1835	Pike	Long Fork
Hall, Richard/50	10-2-1838	Perry	Indian Creek
Hall, Riley/50	10-19-1834	Floyd	Mud Creek
Hall, Riley/50	7-28-1854	Floyd	Left Beaver Creek
Hall, Robert C./150	6-6-1832	Nicholas	Indian Creek
Hall, Robert R/11	2-4-1833	Lincoln	Logans Creek
Hall, Robert/10	2-6-1832	Simpson	Spring Creek
Hall, Samuel/100	1-7-1835	Pike	Indian Creek
Hall, Thomas/100	10-22-1844	Ohio	Adams Fork
Hall, Thomas/100	10-25-1844	Ohio	Adams Fork
Hall, Thomas/33	2-4-1826	Franklin	Kentucky River
Hall, William/15	11-7-1822	Simpson	Fork Drakes Creek
Hall, William/150	5-3-1817	Union	Cypress
Hall, William/16	11-7-1822	Simpson	Fork Drakes Creek
Hall, William/50	2-3-1826	Wayne	Otter Creek
Hall, William/57	4-15-1817	Barren	None
Hall, Young P./50	8-26-1816	Wayne&Cumberland	Indian Creek
Hall,Eli/50	8-28-1841	Perry	Defeated Branch
Hall,James/50	5-21-1834	Perry	Big Branch
Hall,John/94	3-10-1841	Pulaski	Clifty Creek

Land Grants West of the Tennessee River

Andrew Jackson and Isaac Shelby were instrumental in establishing a treaty with the Chickasaw Indians in 1818, which was approved by Congress in 1819. The land south of the Tennessee River and east of the Mississippi River, the Kentucky part of which was known as the "Jackson Purchase," This land was open for settlement in 1822. I do not know the restriction on the settlers. The following Halls settled in this area between 1822 and 1858.

Grantee	Size of grant	Name	Size of grant	Name	Size of grant
Hall, Charles M.	160	Hall, James J.	160	Hall, Richard	160
Hall, Hiram	160	Hall, Hiram	160	Hall, William	70
Hall, Hiram	160	Hall, Hiram	160
Hall, Isaac	160	Hall, William	60	Hall, William	60
Hall, Ivan	160	Hall, Samuel	160	Hall, Samuel	160
Hall, William	114	Hall, Isaac	160	Hall, James	160
Hall, William	112	Hall, William	160	Hall, William	160

Land Grants South of Walker's Line

This includes land lying north of Walker's line (parallel 36 degree 30 minutes) and east of the Tennessee River. This land appears to be in Tennessee, but Kentucky was given the right to issue the grants as part of the settlement of its southern border with Tennessee in 1820.

Grantee	Acreage	Date of Survey	County	Watercourse
Hall, Doke	50	11-8-1827	Smith	Line Creek
Hall, James	100	1-3-1833	Sumner	Red River
Hall, John	95	3-14-1837	Smith	Salt Lick Creek
Hall, Joshua	100	2-24-1827	Smith	Line Creek
Hall, Joshua	33	3-9-1850	Macon	Salt Lick Creek
Hall, Richard	50	12-25-1828	Jackson	Big Trace Creek
Hall, Richard	25	9-17-1834	Jackson	Line Creek
Hall, Richard	60	12-3-1835	Smith	Line Creek
Hall, Richard	45	3-18-1840	Smith	Line Creek
Hall, Robert D.	70	3-9-1850	Macon	Salt Lick Creek
Hall, Wesley	25	1-14-1845	Jackson	Jennings Creek

Related Family Land Grants

Kentucky Census Records

Hall Family Home Page