Question: I am researching some land the boss bought down in Grant county, near Moses Lake. Not to much trouble following the legal description except, what the heck is a Farm Unit? Irrigation Block?
Description starts out: Parcel-1, Farm Unit 181, Irrigation Block 89, Columbia Basin Project, Grant County, Washington.
The rest of it is easy enough to follow, but the aforementioned has me somewhat baffled (for lack of a better word! :-S
TYIA
-JD-
Probably the irrigation district... Just my WAG. I am not licensed in WA.
Not an expert in this arena, but it appears to be chunks of land the government reclaimed and sold off.
Google "irrigation block" Bureau of Reclamation has links to the different blocks.
Geezer;-)
What is the Section, Township & Range and I will see what is available.
I have NO experience, surveying in that part of the state; but I think it may just be a fancy way of saying 'This is how we Divvied it up'.
A quick serch brings up This Case. This is from the link:
> Baseline acquired title to a property described as “Farm Unit 182, Irrigation Block 73, Columbia Basin Project, Grant County, Washington, according to the plat thereof filed November 29, 1951.” Clerk's Papers (CP) at 88. Farm Unit 182, Irrigation Block 73 (FU 182, Block 73), consists of approximately 43 acres. CP at 69.
Which has similar language as yours, except that it calls it a plat.
Give Dan Beardslee a call; I believe he still works for Erlandsen:
250 Simon St SE, East Wenatchee, WA 98802
(509) 884-2562
He will know a lot more than most.
Dugger
Bureau of Reclamation created the Farm Units, I wanta say in the Grand Coulee Dam era, like 1930'sh, plus or minus 10 years. They broke down whole Townships. The Farm Units are formal Plats, just incredibly accurate work for the era, huge number 10'sh rebars for lot corners sometimes a couple feet deep. Used to get the maps & notes at the BOR office in Eurphata, WA & they still had field crews working there 20 years ago, really great surveyors to follow & great guys for research help, at least back then.
Sheet 29 of Block 89 has a 161 number. Appears to be the NW4 of Sec. 19-19-27 (Maybe)
Not a Washington LS, but worked for the BLM as a land surveyor. BOR surveys for the columbia basin employed some very suspect methods of reestablishing PLSS corners. I think there is a memo concerning BOR surveys from the BLM solicitor. I can't remember if GCDB did work in the area, to see if BOR surveys were used, but it would be a good place to start.
Good Luck
Farm unit maps are available from usbr. Call them, and ask for mapping department. You will likely get bumped around to a few different people before someone will take your email and tell you they will send you digitized copies.
Write down The names and direct line numbers of the person you talk to, as I usually have to ask at least twice, before I receive anything.