Note the Warrant Registers frequently refer to the location with the place name Minisink, Minisinks, or Minesincks, citing the original application and warrant, but this would rarely carry over onto the survey. The State's surveys were sometimes commissioned many years after the grant of land and may refer to the township and county of the later period. Present day townships may be jotted in the corner or noted on the reverse of the survey and are also found in the compilation of surveys in the Township Warrantee Maps.
Surname variants may appear on the Application, the Warrant and the Survey. Patentees which differ refer to a later sale or heir to the tract. Acreage listed in the Warrant may differ slightly after the more precise survey was conducted.
Click on the link to see the Register page or Survey. Highlighted names will open a link to the Family Search Warrants 1734 - 1769 in the Pennsylvania Probate Records. The remaining warrants can be found on Ancestry.com (subscription) under Pennsylvania Land Warrants & Applications. Tract, actual warrant descriptions and place names as cited are in italics, the present day township as found on the Warrantee maps are in parentheses ( ):
10 April 1740, Register, John Van Campen, 100 acres, Survey. Note additional settlers on this Register page include: John Van Etten (1750), Gilbert Vangarder (1750), Gilbert Vancamp (1750), Cornelius Vanakin (1750.)
2 October 1742, Register, Lenor ( ?) Cuykendall, 188 acres, Survey. Land situate below Walpack Ferry in Smithfield Township.
24 May 1742, Register, Samuel DePue, 100 acres, Survey, Minisink, situate on the Bushkill (Lehman Twp.) Note additional Minisink settlers on this Register page include: Samuel DePuey [DePue] (1738), Moses DePue (1743), Andrew Dingman, (1744 - Delaware Twp), Christopher Denmark (1745 - Delaware Twp.)
30 Nov 1744 Register, Simon Westfall, Survey to Cornelius DeWytt [DeWitt] in right of Simon Westfall,122 acres, (Milford/Westfall Twp.)
12 June 1749 Register, Cornelius Dewytt, [Dewitt], 100 acres, Survey, Smithfield, (Westfall Twp.)
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| Westfall Township Warrantee Map for Cornelius DeWytt [DeWitt] tract of 1749. |
4 Mar 1750 Register, Peter Robeson [Robinson], Survey 118 acres, Flemings Valley, Remmonds [Raymondskill] Creek, Minisinks. Peter Robinson, adjoining Brewer Dacker [Broer Decker] and Guisbard [Guisbert or Gilbert] Van Camp (Dingman Twp).
11 Mar 1750 Register, Tunis Middagg, [Middaugh], Survey 91 acres, Upper Smithfield (Milford/Westfall Twp.)
11 Mar 1750 Register, Thomas Quick, Survey 103 acres, above the Minesinks (Milford Twp.)
11 Mar 1750 Register, John Williams, Survey 63 acres, Upper Smithfield (Lehman Twp)
20 Dec 1750 Register, Henry J Cortrach [Cortright], Survey, 12 acres, Upper Smithfield (Dingman Twp.)
20 Dec 1750 Register, Brewer [Broer] Decker, 100 acres, multiple surveys, Minisincks (Lehman/Delaware Twp.)
20 Dec 1750 Register, Andrew Dingman, 30 acres, Survey, Minisincks (Delaware Twp.)
20 Dec 1750 Register, Herman Rosencrans, Survey, 62 acres, Minisinks (Westfall Township)
21 May 1751 Register, Garret Brink, Survey, 54 acres, Brinks Creek, at the Minesinks (Delaware Twp.)
The PA State Archives' Warrantees of Land in the Several Counties of the State of Pennsylvania, 1730-1898, edited by William Henry Egle, 1898, also lists Bucks County Warrants, arranged by first initial of the surname (variants), then date.
Each of the Surveys cited in this article can be found on the Warrantee Maps, present day townships:
Pike County Township Warrantee maps, Pennsylvania Historic & Museum Commission
- Blooming Grove, Delaware, Dingman, Greene, Lackawaxen (North), Lackawaxen (South), Lehman, Milford, Palmyra, Porter, Shohola, Westfall.
- Berlin, Buckingham, Canaan, Cherry Ridge, Clinton, Damascus, Dreher, Dyberry, Lake, Lebanon, Lehigh, Manchester, Mount Pleasant, Oregon, Palmyra, Paupack, Preston, Salem, Scott, South Canaan, Sterling, Texas.
- Coolbaugh A Index, Coolbaugh B Map
See also MVG's collection Historical Maps of the Minisink 1755 - 1875.
UPDATE: An automated, fully-word-searchable transcription of the Northampton County Warrant Register, transcribed by volunteer Marie Robinson, is now available online.
An excerpt from the quite useful Land Records Guide of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania:
"...During William Penn’s proprietorship, much of the land settlement was never recorded formally so squatting on land was common practice. Land that had been settled under this policy was considered improved land. All other lands vacant were considered unimproved lands. In order to regulate the settling of their lands and to retrieve payment from squatters who settled before 1754, the Penns [heirs of William] further updated the application system, which consisted of a series of documents including application, warrant, survey, and patent...."
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| 1766 Applications for Warrant |
Identified place names:
Deckers Creek - present day Hornsbeck Creek
Remmonds or Rimmonds Creek - present day Raymondskill Creek
Swartwood Creek or Swartwoods Mill Creek - present day Toms Creek
Unidentified place names:
Brink's Creek - ?
UPDATE: Pennsylvania Residents have FREE access to PA Land Records on Ancestry providing they also have a free Ancestry account: Click the PA State Portal page for more information.