Provisional Land Claims

GFO members may view the book of abstracts in the GFO MemberSpace
Digital Collections > eBooks > Genealogical Material in Oregon Provisional Land Claims

In the spring of 1843, the American inhabitants of the Willamette Valley organized a provisional government. A legislative committee was appointed on May 2, 1843, and on July 5, 1843,  the original constitution prepared by this legislative body was approved by the people, agreeing to adopt the laws and regulations until such time as the United States of America extend their jurisdiction over the Willamette Valley area. This was done to enable any person holding land at the time and wishing to establish or claim ownership could do so. The claimants had six months to make permanent improvements to establish the claim, and the individuals included in this index filed papers to do so.

Our volunteers have indexed 4,137 claims from Genealogical Material in the Oregon Provisional Land Claims, which were abstracted from the original applications filed 1845-1849.  A copy of the book may be purchased in our store here.

A copy of the page with the abstract from the Oregon Provisional Land Claims may be purchased using this form, or you can take this opportunity to visit us and see the abstract of the application information.  Please note that we do not have copies of the original applications. Digital images of an abstract may be ordered for $7 per page; hard copies are $15 per page. Order one or more abstracts with the form and be sure to indicate the name and page number for each on your order. 

You may also order by sending your return address, name and page number, and $7 with your email address (for a digital copy) or $15 per page with your shipping address (for a hard copy) to us at:

GFO - Provisional Land Claim
2505 S.E. 11th Ave., Suite B018
Portland, OR 97202-1093

The link below is the index for the Oregon Provisional Land Claims.