Section, township and range in Iowa

Land in Iowa is described by the Public Land Survey System. Type a township, range and section to see the land on the map with its property lines.

Reading a legal description

Thirty states describe rural land with the Public Land Survey System (PLSS). The land is divided into townships, squares about six miles on a side, numbered north or south of a baseline and east or west of a principal meridian.

Each township holds 36 sections of about one square mile, or 640 acres, numbered from 1 in the northeast corner back and forth to 36 in the southeast. A legal description such as "NW 1/4 of Section 12, T45N, R21W" names a quarter of one section in one township.

Iowa property lines by county

More land records

Questions

How do I read section, township and range?

A description like "Section 12, T45N, R21W" means section 12 of the township 45 rows north of the baseline and 21 columns west of the principal meridian. Type those three numbers and their directions above.

How big is a section?

One square mile, or 640 acres. A quarter section is 160 acres and a quarter-quarter is 40, which is why so much rural land is sold in 40, 80 and 160-acre pieces.

Which states use section, township and range?

Thirty states surveyed under the Public Land Survey System, most of the country west of Ohio, plus Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and the Great Lakes states. The original colonies, Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas and Hawaii use metes and bounds instead.

What section am I in?

Press "What section am I in?" above and allow your location. The finder names the section and township under you and opens the map there.

See the land and its lines

Every parcel on the map shows its owner and its boundaries, free.

Open the map