Section Lines: Public Land Survey System (PLSS) Section Township Range
The Public Land Survey System (PLSS) consists of Sections, Townships and Ranges.
TopoDepot contains section lines for most of the country from three different government
sources. These sources are the USGS 24K DLG Section Lines,
the USGS 100K DLG Section Lines, and the new BLM
GCDB Section Line data.
Click HERE for some background information
on the PLSS, written by the USGS
USGS 24K DLG Section Lines
The USGS has released some 24K Public Land Survey System (PLSS) from their 24K DLG
series. This data shows section, township, and range lines. We have extracted the
Township numbers from the DLG file and display them in the center of the section.
Datum: The original data was in NAD27, UTM coordinates; therefore, some over/undershoot
from the borders is to be expected if you use NAD83 as your output datum. However,
the coordinates of the lines are accurate.
Accuracy: Map accuracy for these maps correspond to National Map Accuracy standards
for the original data from the US Government. The DLG files have a stated accuracy
of approximately +-33 feet.
Coverage: The USGS has not completed the entire US with this data.
Click here to show a status map of the TopoDepot coverage
USGS 100K PLSS Data
The USGS released the 100K Public Land Survey System (PLSS) series in 1986 showing
section, township, and range lines for most areas in the United States where they
are used. We have extracted the Township numbers from the DLG file and display them
in the center of the section.
Datum: The original data was in NAD27, UTM coordinates; therefore some over/undershoot
from the borders is to be expected if you use NAD83 as your output datum. However,
the coordinates of the lines are accurate.
Accuracy: Map accuracy for these maps correspond to National Map Accuracy Standards
for the original data from the US Government. The DLG files have a stated accuracy
of approximately +-166 feet
Coverage: The USGS has not completed the entire US with this data.
BLM PLSS Data
The BLM recently released section, township, and range lines for many areas in the
United States where they are used.
Accuracy: Map accuracy for these maps correspond to National Map Accuracy Standards
for the original data from the Bureau of Land Management.
Coverage: Click here for a status map
showing the BLM PLSS coverage
The TopoDepot Decision Tree for determining the default selection is:
