b'The Role of Bounty Land WarrantsGovernment for Veterans of the Without a central government, deci- American RevolutionAcreage by Rank*sions about land ownership could not have Major General. . . . . .1100 acreseasily been made. Americans wanted to Brigadier. . . . . . . . . . .850 acresown property. Good records needed to be Colonel. . . . . . . . . . . .500 acresestablished and maintained so any dis- Lieutenant Colonel. . .450 acresputes about land claims could be settled. Major . . . . . . . . . . . . . .400 acresBy creating the Public Land Act of 1785, Captain. . . . . . . . . . . .300 acresthe government made a way for people to Lieutenant. . . . . . . . . .200 acresown land and to know exactly what land Ensign . . . . . . . . . . . . .150 acresNon-Commissioned . . .100 acresthey owned. Today you can still see the Soldier. . . . . . . . . . . .100 acreseffects of this important act when you Surgeon. . . . . . . . . . .400 acreslook at a land deed for most parcels of Surgeons Mate . . . . . .300 acresland in Ohio.However, the new government had *Source: William Donohue Ellis, TheOrdinance of 1787: The Nation Begins,more work to do. After establishing the Dayton, Ohio: Landfall Press, 1987, p. 28method of surveying and mapping theNorthwest Territory, Congress next ritory and make a way for new states toneeded to set up ways to govern that ter- be created.Graphic (OO)Measuring from the meridian (the north-south line) and the base line (the east-west line),surveyors laid out ranges which were north-south rows of townships (from east to west ofthe meridian), and townships (from north to south of the base line). Each townshipconsisting of thirty-six square miles was divided into 36 sections of one square mile each.Surveyors numbered the units of land in order to provide accurate identification of ranges,townships, sections and subdivisions within a section.page 36'