Townships are the first level of a hierarchical break down of the Public Land Survey System Rectangular surveys. This data set represents the GIS Version of the Public Land Survey System version 2.3 2020 of the Utah GCDB. Updates are expected annually as horizontal control positions from published sources and global positioning system (GPS) observations are added. The primary source for the data is cadastral survey records housed by the BLM supplemented with local records and geographic control coordinates from states, counties as well as other federal agencies such as the USGS and USFS. This data was originally published on 1/3/2017.

PLSS Townships GCDB is a polygon dataset. In the Public Land Survey System, a township refers to a unit of land, nominally 6 miles per side, usually containing 36 sections. This layer is based on Geographic Coordinate Data Base (GCDB) coordinate data. The locations of Public Land Survey System (PLSS) corners, as represented in geographic coordinate pairs, were derived from a variety of source documents, which include U.S. General Land Office and BLM survey plats/notes, as well as survey data obtained from other U.S. Government agencies, private sector survey firms, and local governments. The attributes assigned to PLSS polygons were taken from the BLM's Legal Land Description (LLD) data set, contained within the Legacy Rehost for the year 2000 (LR2000) automated records system. The coordinate data was produced by using control stations of known location, with varying degrees of accuracy, from various sources which include but are not limited to; U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) topological quadrangles and other sources, National Geodetic Survey (NGS) and US Coast & Geodetic Survey (USC&GS) Cooperative Base Network (CBN) control, Federal Base Network control (FBN), and Continuous Operating Reference Stations (CORS), and Global Positioning System (GPS) data, which is then analyzed and adjusted in concert with official survey data for any given geographic area. This data is a useful representation of the geometry and topology of parcels contained within the PLSS, but its application is intended for mapping purposes only. The GCDB data is not a substitute for a legal land survey.

The native spatial reference for this dataset is UTM Zone 12N, NAD83 (0.01 meter x,y coordinate precision; 0.001 mile m coordinate precision). There are no constraints or warranties with regard to the use of this dataset. Users are encouraged to attribute content to UGRC. This statewide dataset is maintained by UGRC in partnership with the BLM and SITLA. The geographic coordinates and their associated products are NOT legal land survey records. The coordinates can NOT be used as a substitute for a legal land survey. They can be used for record keeping, mapping, graphics and planning purposes only. No warranty is made by the Bureau of Land Management for use of the data for purposes not intended by BLM.

(5 characters each)

• 3 digits for Township or Range number
• 1 digit for fraction (0 for no fraction, 1 for 1/4 township, 2 for 1/2 township, 3 for 3/4 township)
• 1 letter for direction