DEEDS AND DRAFTS

The Society’s Deeds and Drafts collection contains over 2,800 records pertaining to land ownership, mostly in Columbia County , dating from 1768 to the present. The great majority of these documents are from the files of the surveying firm of Solomon and Samuel Neyhard in Bloomsburg , PA (circa 1840 to 1914).

To find a particular deed or draft in this database, type one of the following in the applicable box on the search screen. The search can be further refined if needed by consulting the Remarks box in the search results.

• Grantor – the Owner or Seller of real property
• Grantee – the Buyer or recipient of real property
• Township / Borough
• Type – See Type of Document below for examples
• Date of Document

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The Type of Document in the Deeds and Draft collection may be any of the following:

• Deed – a formal record of land ownership
• Deed - Abstract of a Deed or Brief of Title (succession of owners)
• Draft (Draught) – a surveyor’s sketch of a tract of land, with “ Metes and Bounds ”
• Warrant – Permit to survey a tract of public land to apply for a Patent
• Patent – Record of land grant by Pennsylvania to an individual or firm
• Calculation - surveyor’s table to calculate the Area of a surveyed tract
• Mortgage
• Will - Copy of a will disposing of real property
• Letter appointing someone as a legal representative or “attorney”
• Business letter, memorandum, etc.
• Order for a survey, from the Pennsylvania Property Board
• Certificate or commission appointing someone to a public office
• Other - Agreement, Bond, Indenture of an apprentice, Minutes, Receipt, etc.