With the Search Buttons, users can find a land or mineral use authorization or a mining claim without knowing its physical location. The search criteria are selected fields from the record data. Each search will bring back a list of records meeting the criteria. To choose a search option, such as "Mining Claims," click on the pull down menu (Figure 1). Select Mining Claims from the pull down. A "Mining Claims" icon will appear in the Search Tools (Figure 2).

Search tools

Figure 2: Search Tools

Clicking on a search option such as Place Name, Township, Lat/long, Record Search or Mining Claims will open a new window. From this window, users can fill in the search fields. You must allow pop-ups to use the search and identify tools.

 
The search options include the following:

1. Place Name
2. Township
3. Record Search
4. Latitude/longitude Search
5. Mining Claims
6. Oil and Gas
7. Rangeland
8. USFS

Search Results gives explanation of the general Search Results window.
 
1. Search by Place Name

Click on the "Place Name" button to search by place name. Then simply type in the city. Cities meeting the search criteria will be listed below in the results window. Clicking on the name of a place will zoom to that area on the map.
For example, search for "denver" to get:

 
2. Search by Township

Click on the "Township" button on the map to search by township. Once the Township Search Window appears, select a state from the pull-down menu. Then, select a Principal Meridian. Enter Township and Range criteria to further specify the search. After clicking the "Search" button, all the search results will appear at the bottom of the search window. To zoom the map to a specific result, click on "zoom" next to the result's title. To highlight the parcel on the map check the box next to its title. There are two Township Geographic Reports one for mining claims (LR2000 Mining Claim Geo Report) and one for case recordation (LR2000 CR Geo Report). Both of the reports provide a listing of all the cases by serial number, legal land description, type of case, and disposition of a case within a specific legal land description (state, meridian, township, range, and/or section). This is a good way to verify if there are mining claims or other cases in your area of interest.

Users can search for a mining claim by entering information into one or more of the search field boxes. Search options include the Claim Name, Case ID, Serial Number, the disposition of the case (active, closed, etc.), type of claim (lode, placer, etc.), date of location (using a range of dates), and the date the claim was recorded. To choose a date for the date entry fields, users can click on the calendar icon ( ). A partial serial number or case id may be used when searching by serial number or case id.

Once search criteria have been entered, click on the "Search" button to begin the search. Or, click on the "Clear" button to erase the contents of all the search fields. The search results give the LR2000 Serial Register Page (SRP) Report, Case ID, Serial Number, Claim Name, Type, Disposition and Commodity for each mining claim. For information on reading Search Results, click here.

Enter one or more of the search criteria into the appropriate boxes. The search fields with a star in front of them indicate a wildcard search. Which means that you can search by a partial name or number. Once done filling out the fields click "Search" to begin the search. To clear all the search fields, click on the "Clear" button. The form will reset. For information on reading Search Results, click here.

 
7. Rangeland

Make sure the "Select Map" scroll bar in the right corner of the map viewer is on "Rangeland". Click on the "Rangeland" search button to search by Rangeland. Rangeland includes any allotments or pastures. Users can search by rangeland by entering information into one or more of the search boxes. In the Admin State search box enter the state's abbreviation rather than the entire name. A partial number will work for the Allotment Number search box.

Once done filling out the fields click "Search" to begin the search. To clear all the search fields, click on the "Clear" button. The form will reset. Allotments or pastures meeting the search criteria will be listed below in the results window. Clicking on "zoom" will zoom to that area on the map. Checking the box next to the title will highlight the allotment or pasture on the map. For each parcel that fits the search criteria, there will be a RAS (Rangeland Administration System) Report, the Allotment Name, the Allotment Number, the Admin DO (District Office) and the Admin FO (Field Office). Clicking on the column title will reveal and arrow. Click on the arrow to sort data in either ascending or descending order.

Figure 9: Range Allotment Search

 
8. USFS (U.S. Forest Service)

Make sure the "Select Map" scroll bar in the right corner of the map viewer is on "USFS Rural Schools." Click on the "USFS" search button to search by USFS Parcels. These USFS parcels are potentially eligible for sale under the Rural Schools initiative. Users can search U.S. Forest Service parcels by choosing a state from the scroll down menu and choosing a forest from the text box below. To zoom to the state or forest on the map simply click the "Zoom to State" or "Zoom to Forest" link.

Once done choosing a state and forest click "Search" to begin the search. To clear all the search fields, click on the "Clear" button. The form will reset. USFS parcels meeting the search criteria will be listed below in the results window. Clicking on "zoom" will zoom to that area on the map. Checking the box next to the title will highlight the parcel on the map. Each parcel that fits the search criteria will have its Forest, Township, Section, Description, Acres, County, Region, Meridian and Meridian Name. Clicking on the column title will reveal and arrow. Click on the arrow to sort data in either ascending or descending order.

Figure 10: USFS Rural Schools - Parcel Search

 
Search Results

Search results will appear below the search form, in the same window. All features fitting the search criteria will be listed with the respective attributes. The information shown is a subset of data from BLM's LR2000 system, which is the definitive source of Mining Claims, Oil and Gas and Rangeland information. Following, is an explanation of the search result functions, including a graphic of the Mining Claims Search window.

1. Clicking on "zoom" will zoom the viewer map to the parcels location.
2. Checking the select box will label and highlight the location in yellow on the map. Users can click the clear button on the Map Tools toolbar to remove all labels. The search results page will automatically close.
3. Users can click on the "LR2000 SRP" or "LR2000 CR" link to get a detailed LR2000 report. The Serial Register Page (SRP) and the Case Recordation (CR) is an abstract of a Land and/or Mineral Case. The abstract includes the serial number, the type of case, the legal land description, customer name, and various action records with dates. Examples of action records are dates tied to events such as application received, lease issued, effective date, rental paid, lease expired, etc.
4. Clicking on a column title will reveal an arrow. The arrows will sort the data in either ascending or descending order. For example, to sort the data by Claim Name, users can click on Claim Name. This will alphabetically arrange all the data.