List of Commissioners of the General Land Office
Encyclopedia
The General Land Office
was an independent agency of the United States government
responsible for public domain
lands in the United States
. It was created in 1812, and it merged with the United States Grazing Service
in 1946 to become the Bureau of Land Management
. The official in charge of the agency was called the Commissioner of the General Land Office, appointed by the President
and confirmed by the Senate
.
(This list is incomplete. Please add.)
General Land Office
The General Land Office was an independent agency of the United States government responsible for public domain lands in the United States. It was created in 1812 to take over functions previously conducted by the United States Department of the Treasury...
was an independent agency of the United States government
Independent agencies of the United States government
Independent agencies of the United States federal government are those agencies that exist outside of the federal executive departments...
responsible for public domain
Public domain (land)
Public domain is a term used to describe lands that were not under private or state ownership during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United States, as the country was expanding. These lands were obtained from the 13 original colonies, from Native American tribes, or from purchase from other...
lands in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was created in 1812, and it merged with the United States Grazing Service
United States Grazing Service
The United States Grazing Service was a part of the United States Department of the Interior that managed grazing lands and carried out the Taylor Grazing Act, which leased public land for grazing...
in 1946 to become the Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
. The official in charge of the agency was called the Commissioner of the General Land Office, appointed by the President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
and confirmed by the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
.
(This list is incomplete. Please add.)
| Commissioner | Term | Residence | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edward Tiffin Edward Tiffin Edward Tiffin was a Democratic-Republican politician from Ohio, and first Governor of the state.-Biography:Sources indicate that he was born in Carlisle; however he may have been born in or near Workington — also in the then county of Cumberland, England... |
1812 1814 | Ohio Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... |
|
| Josiah Meigs Josiah Meigs Josiah Meigs was an American academic, journalist and government official.-History:Meigs was the 13th and last child of Jonathan Meigs and Elizabeth Hamlin Meigs. His older brother was Return J. Meigs, Sr., whose son was Return J... |
1814 1822 | Georgia Georgia (U.S. state) Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788... |
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| John McLean John McLean John McLean was an American jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U.S. Postmaster General, and as a justice on the Ohio and U.S... |
1822 1823 | Ohio Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... |
|
| George Graham George Graham (soldier) Captain George Graham served as acting U.S. Secretary of War under two U.S. Presidential administrations from 1816 to 1817. Outside of his Cabinet service, he is best known for a mission to Galveston Island, Texas to persuade the small Bonapartist colony of Champ d'Asile to accept American... |
1823 1830 | District of Columbia | |
| Elijah Hayward Elijah Hayward Elijah Hayward was a lawyer in the U.S. State of Ohio who represented his county in the Ohio House of Representatives, sat on the Ohio Supreme Court for a short time, and was Commissioner of the General Land Office... |
1830 1835 | Ohio Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... |
|
| Ethan Allen Brown Ethan Allen Brown Ethan Allen Brown was a Democratic-Republican politician. He served as the seventh Governor of Ohio.Brown was born in Darien, Connecticut to a Revolutionary War veteran. He moved near Cincinnati, Ohio in 1803. He was appointed to the Ohio Supreme Court in 1810 and was re-elected in 1817... |
1835 1836 | Ohio Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... |
|
| James Whitcomb James Whitcomb James Whitcomb was a Democratic United States Senator and the eighth Governor of Indiana. As governor during the Mexican-American War, he oversaw the formation and deployment of the state's levies... |
1836 1841 | Indiana Indiana Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is... |
|
| Elisha Mills Huntington Elisha Mills Huntington Elisha Mills Huntington was an American lawyer, politician, prosecutor, judge and federal jurist.Born in Butternuts, New York, Huntington moved to Terre Haute, Indiana to join his older brother Nathaniel Huntington. He read law and was admitted to the Indiana bar in 1827 on his 21st birthday... |
1841 1842 | New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east... |
|
| Thomas H. Blake Thomas H. Blake Thomas Holdsworth Blake was a U.S. Representative from Indiana.Born in Calvert County, Maryland, Blake attended the public schools.He studied law in Washington, D.C..... |
1842 1845 | Indiana Indiana Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is... |
|
| James Shields James Shields James Shields was an American politician and United States Army officer who was born in Altmore, County Tyrone, Ireland. Shields, a Democrat, is the only person in United States history to serve as a U.S. Senator for three different states... |
1845 1847 | Illinois Illinois Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,... |
|
| Richard M. Young Richard M. Young Richard Montgomery Young was a U.S. Senator from Illinois.Young was born in Fayette County, Kentucky and was admitted to the bar in 1814. In 1817, he moved his law practices to Jonesboro, Illinois and was appointed a Captain in the State Militia. He served in the Illinois state house from... |
1847 1849 | Illinois Illinois Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,... |
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| Justin Butterfield | 1849 1852 | Illinois Illinois Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,... |
|
| John Wilson John Wilson (bureaucrat) John Wilson was an immigrant from Ireland to the United States who held positions in the United States Department of the Treasury and United States Department of the Interior.-Biography:... |
1852 1855 | District of Columbia | |
| Thomas A. Hendricks Thomas A. Hendricks Thomas Andrews Hendricks was an American politician who served as a Representative and a Senator from Indiana, the 16th Governor of Indiana , and the 21st Vice President of the United States... |
1855 1859 | Indiana Indiana Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is... |
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| Samuel Axley Smith Samuel Axley Smith Samuel Axley Smith was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 3rd congressional district of Tennessee. He was born in Monroe County, Tennessee on June 26, 1822. He received a limited education, taught school, and studied law. He was admitted to the... |
1859 1860 | Tennessee Tennessee Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area... |
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| Joseph S. Wilson Joseph S. Wilson Joseph S. Wilson was an immigrant from Ireland to the United States who held positions in the United States Department of the Treasury and United States Department of the Interior.-Biography:... |
1860 1861 | District of Columbia | |
| James M. Edmunds James M. Edmunds James M. Edmunds was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan.-Biography:Edmunds was born in Niagara County, New York, received a common school and academic education and taught school from 1826 to 1831.... |
1861 1866 | Michigan Michigan Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake".... |
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| Joseph S. Wilson Joseph S. Wilson Joseph S. Wilson was an immigrant from Ireland to the United States who held positions in the United States Department of the Treasury and United States Department of the Interior.-Biography:... |
1866 1871 | District of Columbia | |
| Willis Drummond | 1871 1874 | Iowa Iowa Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New... |
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| Samuel S. Burdett Samuel Swinfin Burdett Samuel Swinfin Burdett was a U.S. Representative from Missouri.Born in the The Old Manse, Broughton Astley, bordering Sutton-in-the-Elms, Leicestershire, England When twelve years of age he emigrated to the United States.He worked on a farm in Lorain County, Ohio, and attended the common... |
1874 1876 | Missouri Missouri Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It... |
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| James A. Williamson James Alexander Williamson James A. Williamson was a politician, and lawyer who served in the Union army during the American Civil War, rising to the rank of brigadier general. He received the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou.-Biography:Williamson was born in Columbia, Kentucky in 1829... |
1876 1881 | Iowa Iowa Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New... |
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| Noah C. McFarland Noah C. McFarland Noah C. McFarland was a state senator in multiple U. S. States and was Commissioner of the federal General Land Office from 1881-1885.-Biography:... |
1881 1885 | Kansas Kansas Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south... |
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| William A. J. Sparks William A. J. Sparks William Andrew Jackson Sparks was a U.S. Representative from Illinois.Born near New Albany, Indiana, Sparks moved with his parents to Illinois in 1836.He attended the public schools.He taught school for a time... |
1885 1888 | Illinois Illinois Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,... |
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| William M. Stone William M. Stone William Milo Stone was the sixth Governor of Iowa .- Biography :... |
unknown | Iowa Iowa Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New... |
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| Thomas Henry Carter Thomas Henry Carter Thomas Henry Carter was a delegate, a United States Representative, and a U.S. Senator from Montana.-Early life:... |
1891 1892 | Montana Montana Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,... |
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| Binger Hermann Binger Hermann Binger Hermann was an American attorney and politician in Oregon. A native of Maryland, he immigrated to the Oregon Territory with his parents as part of the Baltimore Colony. Hermann would serve in both houses of the Oregon Legislative Assembly and as a Republican in the United States Congress... |
1896 1903 | Oregon Oregon Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern... |
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| William A. Richards William A. Richards William Alford Richards was an American surveyor, rancher and politician. He was the fourth Governor of Wyoming from 1895-01-07 until 1899-01-01.... |
1903 1907 | Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High... |
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| Richard Achilles Ballinger Richard Achilles Ballinger Richard Achilles Ballinger was mayor of Seattle, Washington, from 1904–1906 and U.S. Secretary of the Interior from 1909–1911.Ballinger was born in Boonesboro, Iowa... |
1907 1908 | Washington |