Archives

The Surveyor’s office holds an archive of survey records, maps, and recorded plats dating back to 1847.

U.S. Public Land Survey Records

The original survey of the land in Washington County was performed by U.S. Deputy Surveyors (PDF) in 1847. Township lines were established at six-mile intervals; after which, each township was divided into one-mile squares making  36 sections (PDF). Wood posts were set to visibly mark the section corners, and maps were drawn at the  Surveyor General’s Office (PDF) in Dubuque, Iowa.

The original township plats and field notes are available on the MnGeo website.

Survey Record Books and Field Books

Washington County survey records begin in 1847 with Harvey Wilson, District Surveyor for St. Croix County, Wisconsin Territory.

NAD27 Worksheets

Section Worksheets on the outdated North American Datum of 1927 are legacy working drawings for survey control. Each worksheet shows 2 sections with section corners, coordinate values, monument type, section lines, government lots, survey control and a variety of evidence locations.

Recorded Plats

The first subdivision plats in Washington County were recorded in 1848. Subdivision Plats and Registered Land Surveys are available to view at our service counter. Scale copies can be purchased, or a scanned image (pdf) can be delivered by email.

Common Interest Community plats, known as CIC plats, include condominiums, planned communities, and cooperatives. Copies of CIC plats are available only from the County Recorder.

Certified Copies, and regular scale copies of subdivision plats, CIC plats and Registered Land Surveys are available from the County Recorder.

The County Recorder also offers a subscription service.

Right-of-Way Plats

Washington County Highway Right-of-Way Plats are on file beginning with Plat No. 1 recorded in 1970.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation Right-of-Way Plats are on file beginning with Plat No. 1 recorded in 1972.

Minnesota Highway Department roll maps (Circa 1920-1970) are on file for most state highways in Washington County.

Note: R/W plat numbers can be found on the Half-Section and Eighth-Section parcel maps available on the Data Map interface.

Railroad Maps

Railroad right-of-way and track maps, both active and abandoned, are on file for viewing. Most of these are old roll maps. Due to their fragile condition, copies are not available.

Street car maps between White Bear Lake, Mahtomedi, and Stillwater are also available. (Roll maps in fragile condition)

Certificates of Survey

The County Surveyor maintains a record of each survey of land that is filed by a licensed land surveyor. These land surveys are available for public view during office hours.

Certificates of Survey are mapped as a data layer on the  Data Map.

Copyright laws apply. Only those surveys made before March 1, 1989 can be photocopied. All other surveys are copyright protected.

Land Atlas and Plat Books

A Washington County land atlas and plat book typically contains township maps showing land ownership (farms), with acres and the owner's name. In time, a plat book becomes a historic record of land information. The older plat books often include civic information, commerce information, and local advertising. Copyright laws apply.

Help us enhance our collection of plat books. If you have an older Washington County Plat Book or Land Atlas, please consider donating it to our collection. It will be preserved forever.