Land Ownership - Jackson Co, Wisconsin

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Jackson, Wisconsin, United States

This page explores land ownership in Jackson County, Wisconsin, and includes, among other things, deeds, maps and surveys. Its express purpose, thus far, is to consider the land holdings of persons in Garfield Township, which, before its creation in 1781, was northern Northfield Township. Its express purpose, thus far, is to consider the land holdings of Andrew Johnson (father of Lucy (Johnson) Gilbertson and father-in-law of Ole Gilbertson), Ole and Lucy Gilbertson, and Julius Moe (son-in-law of Ole and Lucy and husband of their daughter, Myrtle Gilbertson).

An 1879 map of Jackson County purports to show land ownership at the time.^[1] From that map, land ownership in the northern part of what is today (and since 1881) Garfield Township, but what was in 1879 the far northern part of Northfield Township,^[2] looked like this (click twice on image to fully enlarge):

Attention is drawn to a couple parcels shown in that clip. To locate them, appreciate that the map is organized by 640-acre sections, starting with section one in the upper right-hand corner, and ending with section 18, in the lower left.^[3] As can be observed, the 80 acres comprising the western half of the southwest corner of section 2 was, in 1879, purportedly owned by Andrew Johnson, with his house shown as a little black box on the north half of the parcel, and a school house along his southern boundary, as well as a cross, which may be a cemetery. Also notable is the 340-acre parcel straddling sections 5 and 8, which, in 1879, was purportedly owned by Erland Olson Moe, with his house in the northwest corner.

An 1914 map of Jackson County also purports to show land ownership.^[4] From that map, land ownership in the northern part of Garfield Township looked like this that year (click on image to enlarge):

In section two, the 80-acre parcel purportedly owned by Andrew Johnson in 1879 is, in 1914, purportedly owned by John Carlson. In section 3, the northeast 160 acres (which in 1879 had been purportedly owned by a railway) is owned by Ole Gilbertson, with his house on the southern edge. The companion directory to the 1914 map confirms "Ole Gilbertson" has 160 acres on Route 2 in Section 3, that he's lived in the county for 37 years (i.e., since about 1877, the year before he married Lucy), that he's married to "Lucy," and that their children are "Myrtle, Mamie [Agatha], Wera [and] Beula," and that they've a grandchild ""Filis [Phyllis] Hurst," that being the daughter of their late child, Neva.^[5] As for the 340-acre parcel straddling sections 5 and 8, which, in 1879, had been purportedly owned by Erland Olson Moe, it, in 1914, had been reconfigured, according to the map, into a parcel of 320 acres (120 acres in section 5, 80 acres in section 6 and 120 acres in section 8) purportedly owned by Julius Moe, though with the house in the same location as 1879. The companion directory indicates "J.E. Moe" actually owned 288 acres (118 acres in section 5, 49 acres in section 6 and 120 acres in section 8), that he's lived in the county for 38 years (i.e., since about 1876), that he's married to "Myrtle," and that their children are "John, Margie, Erland, Benard, Geneva [and] Constance."^[6]

Sources

1. ↑ Tucker, M.G. 1879. Map of Jackson County, Wis. Milwaukee: Tucker, M.G. (J. Knauber & Co., lithographers). Available online without restriction from Wisconsin Historical Society, Digital Identifier http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/maps/id/1924/rec/18 GX9028 J1 1879 T]. Accessed 27 May 2020.
2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Garfield, Jackson County, Wisconsin," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Garfield,_Jackson_County,_Wisconsin&oldid=966409789 (accessed February 13, 2021).
3. ↑ Little black boxes are houses. County-owned land is reflected by the letter C, state-owned land by the letter S, and, presumably, federal land by the letter U.
4. ↑ Anderson Publishing Co. 1914. Atlas and Farm Directory with Complete Survey in Township Plats of Jackson County, Wisconsin. St. Paul, Minn: The Farmer; Webb Publishing Co. Page 9. Map of Garfield Township. Available online without restriction courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), Maps Collection, Digital Identifier: AGZ902J12W-6. Accessed 27 May 2020.
5. ↑ Anderson Publishing Co. 1914. Atlas and Farm Directory with Complete Survey in Township Plats of Jackson County, Wisconsin. St. Paul, Minn: The Farmer; Webb Publishing Co. Page 8. Farmers' Directory of Garfield Township. Available online without restriction courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), Maps Collection, Digital Identifier: AGZ902J12W-5.
6. ↑ Anderson Publishing Co. 1914. Atlas and Farm Directory with Complete Survey in Township Plats of Jackson County, Wisconsin. St. Paul, Minn: The Farmer; Webb Publishing Co. Page 30. Farmers' Directory of Garfield Township. Available online without restriction courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), Maps Collection, Digital Identifier: AGZ902J12W-26.