VPRS 13521 Register of Applications, Hamilton, Section 29 Land Act 1898 and Section 35 Land Act 1901 (Occupation Branch)

This series was created by the 'Hamilton District Office' at the Occupation Branch of the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538). It is duplicated by Register of Applications, Hamilton Section 29 Land Act 1898 and Section 35 Land Act 1901(VPRS 13522) which is the register created by the District Survey Office in Hamilton.VPRS 13521 / P1 was previously registered as Units 208, 176 and 142 of VPRS 458 / P Application Registers, Land Act Unknown.Section 29 of the Land Act 1898 (later Section 35 under the consolidated Land Act 1901) succeeded Section 32, Land Act 1884 as the means whereby grazing areas could be leased from the Crown. Land was able to be leased for any term until 29 December 1920 when the land would revert to the Crown. Land was divided into classes for the purpose of the lease. Two hundred acres of first-class land might be leased, 640 acres of second-class land, 1280 acres of third-class land and 1920 acres of fourth-class land. A permanent agricultural allotment could be selected from leaseholds of first and second-class land and a grazing allotment from third and fourth-class land.When an application to select Crown land was received by the Department it would be registered in a register of applications. The contents of registers of applications were arranged alphabetically and application numbers were allocated consecutively in blocks for each letter of the alphabet.Separate registers of applications were usually created for each section of the Land Act under which individuals could apply to select land. For example, all applications received under section 29 of the Land Act 1898 were recorded in the same register. Sections of an Act that were less common, however, were often recorded together in the one register.In an attempt to try and rationalise the way the Department managed Crown land, the Occupation Branch was established in 1874 under the influence of H Byron Moore, Assistant Surveyor General. The Occupation Branch was to deal with all matters relating to the occupation of Crown land.The State was divided into fifteen Land Districts, these being Ararat, Ballarat, Beechworth, Benalla, Castlemaine and Dunolly, Echuca, Geelong Warrnambool and Camperdown, Hamilton, Horsham, Melbourne, Sale and Bairnsdale, Sandhurst (Bendigo), Seymour and St Arnaud. Each District was represented at the Occupation Branch in Melbourne by a 'District Land Office'.Each District Land Office consisted of a double table or desk at which both a clerk and draughtsman sat. Everything in the way of files, maps and plans were at convenient reach. The same officers dealt with the sale of Crown land from its 'inception to its disposition'. The District Offices' staff consisted essentially of a clerical officer and a draughtsman who dealt solely with that Land District. It was their business to know the District and to deal with all land business related to it. By 1877 each District Land Office, consisted of a District Officer, a rental clerk, a draughtsman and several general clerks.After the establishment of the Occupation Branch in 1874 and the division of the State into Land Districts, applications were registered by District. Each 'District Land Office' created and maintained their own series of registers of applications. Any new applications received by the Department after 1874 were registered in separate District registers with applications numbers that were allocated from the number one onwards. The same application number could be allocated for selections in different Districts. For example the application number 1021/32 could exist in both the Ballarat and Bendigo Land Districts. It is the District name plus the accompanying file number that is the unique identifier.Applicants completed an application form at District Survey Offices. Most Land Districts had a District Survey Office. The District Surveyor would enter the applicants' details in a register of applications kept at the District Survey Office. The register of applications allocated a number to each applicant. The application number was written on the application to select and subsequently became their land selection file number if their application was approved.The District Surveyor would enter into the register of applications the application number, the date the application was received, the applicants' name, occupation and parish, the allotment number and size (acres, roods and perches) applied for. The application was then forwarded to the appropriate District Land Office at the Occupation Branch in Melbourne. It was then entered in a duplicate register of applications there against the same application number. The District Surveyor also forwarded a tracing of the allotment applied for.The location of the allotment applied for was immediately charted on a working plan in pencil. The tracing was then sent to the Department of Mines and Water Supply (VA 2720) for a report on any mining objections. If there were no mining objections the application would be heard before a Local Land Board. Local Land Boards were made up of representatives from the local community and the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538). The Boards would hear from all applicants for an allotment and would decide who was to be granted the licence or lease. The schedule documenting the decisions of the Local Land Board was forwarded to the appropriate District Land Office at the Occupation Branch and the decision was entered into the register of applications.The Board of Land and Works (VA 744), the statutory authority for the management of Crown land, would give final approval for land selection, acting on the recommendation of the Local Land Board. The decision of the Board of Lands and Works (VA 744) was then recorded in the register of applications. The registers also record the date of the licence or lease issued and any subsequent action in relation to that file. The selectors granted each allotment would then be recorded on the working plan by the District Land Office draughtsman at the Occupation Branch. The tracing of the allotment was then sent to the Crown Land Bailiff responsible for that Land District.Registers of applications control selection and occupation files. If an application to select Crown land was successful, the application number would become the file number. For example if an application to select under section 29 of the Land Act 1898 was registered as application number 324 then the selection or occupation file number would be 324/29.The application number remained the selection file number for a particular piece of land if all terms and conditions were met. Many selectors forfeited or abandoned their licence or lease. If this were the case then the land was re-opened up for selection. Any new applicants were registered in a register of applications under a new application number. The original applicants file would be attached to the new selectors file. The new file number was annotated in the register against the original selectors' entry.Even if the same selector applied for a licence on land he had previously forfeited a new application number would be allocated and the file would have a new selection file number.

本系列由皇家土地与测量部（Department of Crown Lands and Survey，VA 538）占用处的“汉密尔顿地区办公室”编制。其副本为《申请登记簿：汉密尔顿1898年土地法第29条及1901年土地法第35条》（VPRS 13522），该登记簿由汉密尔顿地区测量办公室编制。VPRS 13521/P1此前被登记为VPRS458/P《申请登记簿》（土地法未知）的第208、176和142单元。

1898年《土地法》第29条（后在1901年综合《土地法》中改为第35条）取代1884年《土地法》第32条，成为从皇室租赁牧场（grazing areas）的依据。土地可租赁任意期限，直至1920年12月29日归还皇室。为租赁目的，土地被划分为不同等级：一等土地可租赁200英亩，二等640英亩，三等1280英亩，四等1920英亩。永久农业地块可从一等和二等租赁土地中选取，放牧地块则从三等和四等土地中选取。

当该部收到皇室土地选取申请时，会将其登记在申请登记簿中。申请登记簿内容按字母顺序排列，申请编号按字母分块连续分配。

通常为《土地法》中个人可申请选取土地的各条款单独设立申请登记簿。例如，所有根据1898年《土地法》第29条收到的申请均记录在同一登记簿中。不过，法案中较不常用的条款相关申请往往合并记录在同一登记簿内。

为理顺该部对皇室土地的管理方式，1874年在助理测量总监H·拜伦·摩尔（H Byron Moore）的推动下设立了占用处。占用处负责处理所有与皇室土地占用相关的事务。

该州被划分为15个土地区，包括阿拉拉特、巴拉瑞特、比奇沃思、贝纳拉、卡斯尔梅恩与杜诺利、埃丘卡、吉朗-沃南布尔与坎珀当、汉密尔顿、霍舍姆、墨尔本、塞尔与拜恩斯代尔、桑德赫斯特（本迪戈）、西摩与圣阿诺德。每个地区在墨尔本占用处均设有“地区土地办公室”作为代表机构。

每个地区土地办公室设有一张双人桌，文员和绘图员并排就座。文件、地图和规划图等资料均触手可及。同一批官员负责皇室土地出售的“从立项到处置”全过程。地区办公室的工作人员主要包括一名文书官员和一名仅负责该土地区的绘图员，他们需熟悉该区情况并处理所有相关土地事务。到1877年，每个地区土地办公室已配备一名地区官员、一名租赁文员、一名绘图员及数名普通文员。

1874年占用处设立及州划分为土地区后，申请按地区登记。每个“地区土地办公室”编制并维护各自的申请登记簿系列。1874年后该部收到的所有新申请均登记在各地区单独的登记簿中，申请编号从1开始连续分配。不同地区的选取申请可能使用相同编号，例如1021/32号申请可能同时存在于巴拉瑞特和本迪戈土地区。唯一标识符为地区名称加上对应的文件编号。

申请人在地区测量办公室填写申请表。大多数土地区均设有地区测量办公室。地区测量员会将申请人详情录入地区测量办公室保存的申请登记簿中。申请登记簿为每位申请人分配编号，该编号会写在选取申请表上，若申请获批，则成为其土地选取文件编号。

地区测量员会在申请登记簿中录入申请编号、收到申请的日期、申请人姓名、职业与教区、申请的地块编号及面积（英亩、路得与珀奇）。申请随后被转至墨尔本占用处相应的地区土地办公室，并在该处的副本申请登记簿中按相同编号登记。地区测量员还会提交申请地块的描图。

申请地块的位置会立即用铅笔标注在工作图上。描图随后被送至矿业与供水部（Department of Mines and Water Supply，VA 2720），以获取有关采矿异议的报告。若无采矿异议，申请将由地方土地委员会（Local Land Board）审理。地方土地委员会由当地社区代表及皇家土地与测量部（VA 538）代表组成，负责听取某地块所有申请人的陈述并决定向谁授予许可证或租赁权。记录地方土地委员会决定的明细表会被转至占用处相应的地区土地办公室，并将决定录入申请登记簿。

土地与工程委员会（Board of Land and Works，VA 744）作为皇室土地管理的法定机构，会根据地方土地委员会的建议对土地选取给予最终批准。该委员会的决定随后被录入申请登记簿，登记簿还会记录许可证或租赁权的签发日期及与该文件相关的后续行动。占用处地区土地办公室的绘图员会将获授地块的选取人信息记录在工作图上。地块描图随后被送至负责该土地区的皇室土地法警处。

申请登记簿对选取和占用文件起管控作用。若皇室土地选取申请获批，申请编号将成为文件编号。例如，根据1898年《土地法》第29条提交的选取申请若登记为324号，则其选取或占用文件编号为324/29。

若满足所有条款与条件，申请编号将一直作为某块特定土地的选取文件编号。许多选取人会放弃或终止其许可证或租赁权，此时该土地将重新开放选取。新申请人会在申请登记簿中以新编号登记，原申请人的文件会附在新选取人的文件后，新文件编号会标注在登记簿中原选取人的条目旁。

即使同一选取人申请其此前放弃的土地许可证，仍会被分配新的申请编号，文件也会有新的选取文件编号。