Soulard organized the office and in the following years appointed deputy surveyors for the districts. As surveys were performed, he collected the field notes, plots and remarks into books, one for each district, marking them with letters of the alphabet, A, B, C, etc. These books were referred to as a “Registre d’Arpentage,” meaning Record, or Archive, of Surveys, a Survey Record Book, if you will. This Archive of Surveys was not regarded as an official register of titles, but rather an organized collection of survey information used by Soulard in the execution of his duties (Territorial Papers, Vol. 14, pg 30).
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| This plat of survey of 919 Arpents made for Hyacinthe St. Cyr is an example of the surveys recorded by Antoine Soulard prior to March 10, 1804. The survey was performed on February 3, 1798 and was recorded April 5, 1798. Note that the text is in French. (Courtesy of the Missouri State Archives, Missouri Digital Heritage) |
After the United States took possession of Upper Louisiana on March 10, 1804, it is presumed that Soulard’s role as Surveyor General of the Province was no longer operative. Captain Amos Stoddard, exercising the functions of civil commandant, chose to retain Soulard, however, as the temporary depository of the Survey Archives (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 533 & Vol. 14, pg 32).
Upper Louisiana became the district of Louisiana by the act of March 26, 1804, chapter 38, An Act erecting Louisiana into two territories, and providing for the temporary government thereof (U.S. Statutes at Large, Vol. 2, pg 283) and was placed under the administration of the Indiana Territory, where William Henry Harrison was Territorial Governor. Section 14 of this act made it unlawful for any person to attempt a new settlement on or to make a boundary survey of the lands of the United States within the limits of the former Province of Louisiana.
The act took effect on October 1, 1804 and on that date Governor Harrison commissioned Antoine Soulard to continue in the capacity of Surveyor General for the district of Louisiana. For those that requested it, Soulard was to continue to survey claims of land that had been conceded by the Spanish government prior to the Treaty of San Ildefonso of October 1, 1800. The fees that the Surveyor General received under the Spanish government were represented as being exorbitant, so Governor Harrison chose to reduce them by one half (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 71, 81). The new fees were as follows:
- two dollars ($2) for every 100 arpents of surface area
- two dollars ($2) for each day’s travel, when the distance exceeded 12 miles from the seat of justice of the district
- when several tracts were surveyed at one time, the travel expense was to be equally divided among the proprietors
- one dollar ($1) for each plat and certificate
- one dollar ($1) for registering the plat and certificate in the Surveyor’s Office
The process of examining claims to land was initiated with the act of March 2, 1805, chapter 26, An act for ascertaining and adjusting the titles and claims to land, within the territory of Orleans, and the district of Louisiana (U. S. Statutes at Large, Vol. 2, pg 324). Section four of this act directed every person claiming lands by virtue of a French or Spanish grant to file a notice in writing and a plat of survey with the recorder of land titles before March 1, 1806 along with all available written evidence of his claim.
The district of Louisiana was upgraded to the Territory of Louisiana and a territorial government was authorized by the act of March 3, 1805, chapter 31, An Act further providing for the government of the district of Louisiana (U.S. Statutes at Large, Vol. 2, pg 331). General James Wilkinson of Maryland was appointed Governor of the Territory on March 11, 1805 and commenced his duties on July 4, 1805 (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 98).
In a letter, dated July 28, 1805, Governor Wilkinson continued Antoine Soulard in the office to which he had been appointed by Governor Harrison and instructed him to have his deputies survey the claims of all persons claiming land under the first and second sections of the Act of March 2, 1805, chapter 26, so that they could file a plat with the recorder of land titles as required by the fourth section of that act (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 175). In November 1805 Governor Wilkinson gave Soulard a list of rules and regulations to govern the conduct of the surveys to be performed (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 437).
Governor Wilkinson’s Regulations for Surveying, November 2, 1805:
1st - The Surveyor General shall appoint as many Deputies, as may be found necessary, to perform all the surveying, which may be required, within the territory, anterior to the 1st day of March ensuing. --
2nd - The Deputies so appointed, before entering on their duties, shall take the following oath, or affirmation, before a justice of the peace, and shall transmit the same, to the Office of the Secretary of the Territory, viz
“I, A. B., do swear or affirm, that I will diligently & faithfully, to the best of my skill & judgement, perform the duties appertaining to the office of a deputy surveyor; that I will strictly observe all rules, regulations, & instructions, which may be established (or given me) for my government, & that I will not survey, any land, in which I have or hold or expect to have or hold any interest, directly or indirectly.”
3rd - All Persons employed as chain carriers, shall be of the age of sixteen or upwards, & anterior to the commencement of their duties, shall take the following oath or affirmation, before the Surveyor General or a Deputy, who are hereby authorized to administer the same viz. - “I, A. B., do swear or affirm, that I will true measurement make, of the tract of Land now to be surveyed, & will faithfully report the same to C. D., my employer.” --
4th - The Surveyor General or his Deputies are authorized to survey all such titles & claims to Land, as are recognised by the law of Congress, “for ascertaining & adjusting the same, within this Territory,” & they are in all their works carefully to avoid, the interfering of claims & the clashing of Titles.--
5th - In surveying the settlement rights, recognised in the 2nd section of the Act of Congress of the 2nd of March, the improvements are to be left, as near the centre of each survey as possible, & the form of the plot, shall be as nearly square, as the adjacent claims, & the nature of the ground may permit; except when such rights front on Rivers, Lakes, or Bayous, in which cases the ancient regulations of the Country are to be strictly regarded.
6th - Whenever it may happen, that settlements on which Head rights depend, are too much crowded to satisfy the claims of the settlers, by adhering strictly to the forms herein prescribed, The Deputies are to adopt such plan as may be most agreable, to the parties interested, and most equitable in relation to the Public, & in all cases of conflict, the senior claim is to have the preference of Survey, for which the Surveyor, will be held strictly responsible. --
7th - When a Deputy shall have made a survey he shall, without delay, transmit a certified duplicate of his field notes and plat, to the Surveyor General for record.
8th - The following shall be the prices to be charged, for the services of the Surveyor & his Deputies. – vizt.
For the first thousand acres surveyed or any quantity under
..................................................................................... 2 cents per Acre
For the next five hundred acres ................................... 1 1/2 cents per Acre
For all above to 3000 acres ................................................ 1 cent per Acre
For all above 3000 acres ................................................. 1/2 cent per Acre
To include all expenses
..................................................................................... 2 cents per Acre
For the next five hundred acres ................................... 1 1/2 cents per Acre
For all above to 3000 acres ................................................ 1 cent per Acre
For all above 3000 acres ................................................. 1/2 cent per Acre
To include all expenses
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| This plat of survey of 735 Arpents made for John Wilson is an example of a settlement claim made by virtue of the 2nd section of the Act of March 2, 1805. It is representative of the surveys performed under the November 1805 instructions of Governor James Wilkinson. The survey was performed on January 14, 1806 and was recorded on February 24, 1806. (Courtesy of the Missouri State Archives, Missouri Digital Heritage) |
Soulard’s appointment by Governor Harrison and his continuance by Governor Wilkinson were eventually questioned as having been done without any authority provided by law, since the acts of Congress did not provide for such a position and there was no territorial law that addressed it. In addition, the Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin, was concerned about the Archive of Surveys that was still in Soulard’s custody. Because other Spanish officers had absconded with valuable records, Mr. Gallatin urgently wanted to replace Soulard and to recover the records in his possession (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 432-437).
Congress responded to these and other surveying concerns by passing the act of February 28, 1806, chapter 11, An Act extending the powers of the Surveyor-general to the territory of Louisiana; and for other purposes (U.S. Statutes at Large, Vol. 2, pg 352). This act provided for a principal deputy surveyor to reside in the territory of Louisiana and to operate under the superintendence of the surveyor-general of the United States. The principal deputy surveyor was to execute, or cause to be executed by deputies, surveys as may be authorized by law or as requested by the Board of Commissioners. He was also to take possession of all of the records of the Surveyor General of the Spanish Province of Upper Louisiana.
In a letter, dated March 25, 1806, Mr. Gallatin urged Jared Mansfield, Surveyor General of the United States, to immediately appoint a principal deputy surveyor for the Territory of Louisiana. Mr. Gallatin wanted the new appointee to proceed to St. Louis without delay so as to recover the records from Antoine Soulard as soon as possible (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 461). The appointment was not immediate, however, and some time passed before the new principal deputy surveyor was able to assume his duties in St. Louis.
Meanwhile, the work of the Board of Commissioners progressed and it wasn’t long before they found evidence of “ante-dating,” not only in the concessions, but also in the surveys that had been certified by Antoine Soulard as Surveyor General of the Spanish Province of Upper Louisiana (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 446). By May 2, 1806, Antoine Soulard was in the hot seat, refusing to answer questions pertaining to “ante-dating” or the conduct of the Spanish government (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 533-535; ASP:PL, Vol. 2, pg 559). On May 3, 1806, Governor Wilkinson ordered Soulard to cease operation as Surveyor General of the Territory of Louisiana (ASP:PL, Vol. 8, pg 866). The records in his possession were surrendered to the Board of Commissioners (Territorial Papers, Vol. 14, pg 30).
In an effort to redeem himself, Soulard addressed a letter to the Board of Commissioners, dated July 24, 1806, in which he explained why some of the surveys that he certified may not be dated at the time that they were performed. Because of the demand for surveys and the small number of competent surveyors in Upper Louisiana, months or years may pass before a survey could be completed. Once completed, Soulard often dated the surveys as if they had been performed at the time of the petition, concession and order for a boundary survey. This practice was of no concern to the Spanish Government and caused no problems with the final confirmation of title by the appropriate authority in New Orleans (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 534).
Secretary of the Treasury Gallatin, however, wanted to apply a higher standard than existed at the time of execution of the surveys, because he considered the surveys the only available means to be able to detect fraudulently antedated concessions. Without the surveys as a check on the concessions, efforts to detect fraudulent concessions were stymied (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 433 & Vol. 14, pg 71). Mr. Gallatin took a hard-line view that was exemplified in his statement to the President of the United States in a January 1806 correspondence in which he stated that “The Spanish Govt was both despotic & lax, neither respecting individual rights, nor protecting its own. The sooner the inhabitants are taught that our principles are the reverse, the better” (Territorial Papers, Vol. 13, pg 383).
So, although Antoine Soulard may have been highly regarded by his peers, his countrymen and successive local leaders for the United States, he was cast out as Surveyor General for the Territory of Louisiana under a cloud of suspicion and the implication of impropriety.
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| The mark of Antoine Soulard (Courtesy of the Missouri State Archives, Missouri Digital Heritage) |
SOURCES
Stoddard, Major Amos, Sketches, Historical and Descriptive, of Louisiana, 1812
American State Papers: Public Lands (ASP:PL)
The Territorial Papers of the United States, compiled by Clarence Edwin Carter, 1948
U. S. Statutes at Large
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original composition by Steven E. Weible
