Woodhurst Records from the
South Dakota Land Patents Database

This file is a part of the Bureau of Land Management Database for the states of 
Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. 
Data edited and prepared by Joy Fisher, jfisher@ucla.edu.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) inherited the functions of the General Land Office when it was established by 
Congress in 1946. The South Dakota Land Patents Database, derived from General Land Office and BLM information, 
contains deeds (primarily patents) issued by the United States in the region now known as the State of South Dakota 
between 1859 and 1995. While BLM has been referred to as "the Nations record keeper", it is the National Archives that
actually keeps the files. The BLM maintains diagrammatic plats known as Master Title Plats, which depict lands which
are owned by the United States and lands which are patented. However, these plats do not have any information about 
who the lands were patented to. That information, which has been available only after tedious research, is available 
now in this database.

The South Dakota Land Patents Database contains the following information for each land transaction: date, location 
(township, range, section, meridian), name of person the land was patented to, case type, conveyance type, county, and
the patent document identification number.   

Using this information you can obtain copies of the patent file for $10 from the National Archives at the following address:

                Reference Branch (Lands)
                National Archives
                Washington, DC 20408
                (202) 501-5428 

The record for Stephen above pertains to Stephen Woodhurst. The two records for William above pertain to the son William (5) of Stephen's deceased brother William (4) Woodhurst.