Ancestry Message BoardBrowse the new Ancestry/RootsWeb message boards. For Deeds, Click on the Deed link. Alabama Land RecordsThe patentee was the first owner of property after the initial survey. Once the patent was issued, the land became private property and was then sold with a deed. The townships, the six-mile-square land blocks which were the original divisions of land from the federal land grants, were then divided into 36 one-mile squares. The township numbering was the north-south numbering, starting from the center line. The range numbering was the east-west numbering, starting from the center line. The section is the one-mile-square portion (approximately 640 acres) of a township. That was also generally divided into 36 equal squares (each of which might be divided another 36 times). (Requires Ancestry Membership) Get 14 Days Free Access!!! Bureau of Land ManagementDale Co, Alabama Land Patents IndexThe Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands – Research related to the Southern States, mid 1800s