Thank you to Elizabeth, Judy and Angela for pointing me in the correct direction for defining pre-emption in 1839 in Michigan. It appears as though the law in 1838 that Elizabeth referred to was a two year extension of the law from 1830 which stated that the person purchasing the land had to provide "proof of settlement or improvement," which was not further defined in the 1830 act. However, in the 1838 act, settlers of public lands were further defined as being "the head of a family, or over twenty-one years of age, who was in possession of a housekeeper, by personal residence theron, at the time of the passage of this act, and for four months next preceding, shall be entitled to all the benefits and privileges of an act entitled 'An act to grant pre-emption rights to settles on the public lands.'" I am attempting to sort out a "one name, two men" situation in a county in which the courthouse burned in 1860 (not just a problem in the south, unfortunately!). I have been unable to find any documents that have both men named, whom I believe were father and son. If I assume that it would take someone at least a year to settle or improve land, I think I have good evidence in this land patent that there were two men, as the younger of the two men was only 11 years old in 1839 (give or take a year as an exact birthdate has not been proved). It seems highly improbable that a 10 year old was settling and improving land in the wilds of Michigan in 1838. There is also the age restriction of needing to be 21, as stated in the 1838 statute. Even if he looked old for his age, or the birthdate is off by a few years, I don't think anyone would mistake him for a 21 year old. However, the younger man sold this same piece of land in 1849, presumably after the death of the older man/his father (his wife is mentioned in the sale deed, so I know which man is selling the land). I am attempting to prove that the land was purchased by the older man/father and sold by the younger man/son, and this is very helpful. Thank you again! Bethany Waterbury

Good work, Bethany! Elizabeth -----Original Message----- From: transitional-genealogists-forum-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:transitional-genealogists-forum-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Bethany Waterbury Sent: Thursday, February 07, 2013 8:38 AM To: transitional-genealogists-forum@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [TGF] Preemptive Land Patent Thank you to Elizabeth, Judy and Angela for pointing me in the correct direction for defining pre-emption in 1839 in Michigan. It appears as though the law in 1838 that Elizabeth referred to was a two year extension of the law from 1830 which stated that the person purchasing the land had to provide "proof of settlement or improvement," which was not further defined in the 1830 act. However, in the 1838 act, settlers of public lands were further defined as being "the head of a family, or over twenty-one years of age, who was in possession of a housekeeper, by personal residence theron, at the time of the passage of this act, and for four months next preceding, shall be entitled to all the benefits and privileges of an act entitled 'An act to grant pre-emption rights to settles on the public lands.'" I am attempting to sort out a "one name, two men" situation in a county in which the courthouse burned in 1860 (not just a problem in the south, unfortunately!). I have been unable to find any documents that have both men named, whom I believe were father and son. If I assume that it would take someone at least a year to settle or improve land, I think I have good evidence in this land patent that there were two men, as the younger of the two men was only 11 years old in 1839 (give or take a year as an exact birthdate has not been proved). It seems highly improbable that a 10 year old was settling and improving land in the wilds of Michigan in 1838. There is also the age restriction of needing to be 21, as stated in the 1838 statute. Even if he looked old for his age, or the birthdate is off by a few years, I don't think anyone would mistake him for a 21 year old. However, the younger man sold this same piece of land in 1849, presumably after the death of the older man/his father (his wife is mentioned in the sale deed, so I know which man is selling the land). I am attempting to prove that the land was purchased by the older man/father and sold by the younger man/son, and this is very helpful. Thank you again! Bethany Waterbury The Transitional Genealogists List was created to provide a supportive environment for genealogists to learn best practices as they transition to professional level work. Please respect the kind intentions of this list. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to TRANSITIONAL-GENEALOGISTS-FORUM-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message