Mining Indiana State Land Patents

Join Dr. Jim Odell for his presentation “Mining Indiana State Land Patents: What They Are and Where to Find Them” at the Frankfort Community Public Library’s lower level meeting room on Sept. 26 at 10:30 a.m. Historically, in addition to selling property through land offices, the federal government gave significant amounts of public land to the state of Indiana. Subsequently, Indiana sold or leased the land to finance internal improvements such as building canals, supporting education, and other purposes. State lands were distributed similarly to federal lands, but the records are in a different location. In this presentation, Odell will explain how to find and interpret these Indiana State land records. Odell has been researching family history for more than 30 years, and now that he is enjoying retirement has found even more time to hone his skillset. Those wishing to familiarize themselves with his presentation topic in advance can find a land patent article he published in the Fall/Winter 2023 issue of the Indiana Historical Society’s “The Hoosier Genealogist: Connections” magazine. This program will last 1.5 hours. The cost is $5, and registration is required. To register, call (765) 654-8746, visit myfcpl.org/calendar, or stop by the Library. For more information, contact Genealogy Manager Jill Garrison at (765) 654-8746, ext. 1137 or jgarrison@myfcpl.org.