Oklahoma School Lands
A Touch of History

Excepts from Chronicles of Oklahoma Volume 13, No. 4
Page 381-390 December, 1935

FROM YOUR OLTA EDUCATION COMMITTEE
by Joy J. Scheller, Member

HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA'S SCHOOL ENDOWMENT — D.W.P.

"In 1875, during the period our government was under the articles of confederation, the rectangular system of lands surveys was adopted for the Northwest Territory and, at the suggestion of Thomas Jefferson, one section in each township was set apart for public schools. This system of surveys is still maintained but, in 1850, the government adopted the plan of giving two sections of the public domain, 16 and 36, in each township to the public schools of the state as admitted. "Accordingly, as the Indian reservations composing that portion of the state of Oklahoma, which was formerly known as Oklahoma Territory, were ceded and relinquished by the tribes to the government and by it opened to homestead settlement, reservations of Sections 16 and 36 in each township, where said sections were not otherwise appropriated, were made for the benefit of the public schools both by act of Congress providing for the opening thereof and by the President's proclamation opening the same to settlement.

"From time to time it was found that prior to the opening of these lands, sections 16 and 36 or parts thereof were otherwise appropriated, as in cases wherein Indian allotments had been selected or a number of such sections were included in unceded or unrelinquished Indian reservations. To prevent this loss to the public schools, Congress, in Section 18 of the Organic Act of Oklahoma Territory, approved May 2, 1890, providing for the selection of other lands in equal amounts in lieu thereof in cases where sections 16 and 36 had been otherwise appropriated.

"The lands so acquired are known as 'common school indemnity lands,' sections 16 and 36, and said indemnity lands constitute the public school lands of the state of Oklahoma and the funds derived from their sale, together with $5,000,000 donated by the government at statehood, in lieu of sections 16 and 36 in the Indian Territory side of the state, constitute mainly the permanent common school fund of Oklahoma. The following is excerpted from a 1935 report contained in the article: "The present records of the State School Land Department disclose that its original permanent fund at Statehood consisted of a total grant of 3,177,480 acres of land from all sources, which land was valued by the United States Government at $11,216,504.00, and an additional grant of cash was appropriated by the Congress of the United States in Section 7 of the Enabling Act in the sum of $5,000,000.00 for the use and benefit of the common schools of the State in lieu of any lands in the Indian Territory; this made the total permanent fund of the State School Land Department at Statehood, $16,216,504.

"At Statehood, November 16, 1907, the Commissioners of the Land Office, took over from the Territorial Board for the leasing of school land, the supervision of all granted lands, and $320,373.31 in cash representing undistributed rental collections and $218,286.29 in notes representing agricultural rentals accruing prior to Statehood. None of the higher educational institutions funds had any cash available for investment during the first two years following Statehood, as practically all their receipts consisted of income from the granted lands, fees, etc., which were available only for the support and maintenance of the institutions."

(Note: Deleted portions includes discussion on tribal lands and taking in Sections 13 and 33 for higher education, etc. For the full article go to: digital.library.okstate.educ/chronicle/v013/v013p381.html