Online Resources
GLO (Public Land Survey System, or PLSS)
Overview
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Overview, Oregon -- see Loy et al. (2001), Atlas of Oregon : 18-19. [Not available digitally].
Survey Notes and Plat Maps
- Oregon and Washington -- BLM
- Other states -- BLM
- Oregon Plat and DLC maps -- University of Oregon Library
- USGS quad maps with GLO annotations for Klamath region -- Oregon Institute of Technology
U.S. Coast Survey
Topographic maps ("T-sheets") of the U.S. Coast Survey (later called U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, and more recently the National Geodetic Survey) have been integrated whenever possible with GLO data because of the data-rich detail they impart to map products. They were based on meticulous field mapping conducted between 1852 and 1889. Cartography of the Coast Survey maps was superior to that of the GLO township plat maps, and when geo-referenced, is substituted for linework shown in the plat maps.
The Coast Survey maps provide highly accurate delineations of small-patch vegetation and stream alignments at a level of detail not possible from GLO data, while the GLO data provide information on vegetation, streams, and cultural features that are not available from Coast Survey data. When combined, the two sources of information provide high-quality cartography on the composition and extent of various vegetation types at the time of survey.
Land cover symbology used in the Coast Survey maps was interpreted by Shalowitz (1964) and Graves et al. (1995), and provides important detail in vegetation structure and hydrology.
Oregon
- Lower Columbia River (University of Washington)
Washington
- Lower Columbia River (University of Washington). Geo-referenced T-sheets and landcover maps digitized from T-sheets.
- San Juan Islands (Tom Schroeder)
Regional GLO and Other Historical Vegetation Websites
Oregon
- Blue Mountains (David Powell, U.S. Forest Service, Umatilla National Forest)
Washington
- Blue Mountains (David Powell, U.S. Forest Service, Umatilla National Forest)
- San Juan Islands (Tom Schroeder)
History of Surveying
- Virtual Museum of Surveying
- Washington -- Olson Engineering
- BLM National Office -- Cadastral History
- Principal Meridian Project
- University of Oregon Map Library -- GLO Resources
- Surveyors Historical Society
Professional Surveyors Associations in Pacific Northwest
- Idaho -- Idaho Society of Professional Land Surveyors
- Oregon -- Professional Land Surveyors of Oregon
- Washington -- Land Surveyors' Association of Washington
- British Columbia -- Association of British Columbia Land Surveyors
References
- Shalowitz, Aaron L., and Michael W. Reed. Shore and Sea Boundaries. Office of Coast Survey, 1964.
- Graves, Jon K., John A. Christy, Patrick A. Clinton, Peter L. Britz. Historic Habitats of the Lower Columbia River. Astoria: Columbia River Estuary Study Taskforce, 1995.