VPRS 13473 Register of Applications, Seymour, Other Sections Land Acts 1884, 1890, 1891, 1898 and 1901 (Occupation Branch)

This series was created by the 'Seymour District Office' at the Occupation Branch of the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538). It is duplicated by Register of Applications, Seymour, Other Sections Land Acts 1884, 1890, 1891, 1898 and 1901 (Seymour District Survey Office) (VPRS13474) which is the register created by the District Survey Office inSeymour.VPRS 13473 / P1 was previously registered as unit 84 of VPRS 458 / P Application Registers, Land Act Unknown. VPRS 13473 / P2 was previously registered as Unit 128 of VPRS 458 / P Applications Registers, Land Act Unknown.Sections of an Act that were less common were often recorded together in the one register. This was the case with a number of sections of the Land Act 1884. These sections remained in consolidations of the Land Act (1890 and 1901), but with a change in number of section. Other lesser sections were added and also entered in the same register from subsequent acts such as the Land Act 1891, Land Act 1898 and the Wattles Act 1890.Section 67 of the Land Act 1884 allowed for the annual licensing of no more than 1000 acres for grazing on auriferous (gold bearing) lands. This was allowed to continue for five years and with the right to mine the land remaining. Under Section 91 of the Land Act 1898, (later Section 105, Land Act 1901) this term was extended to 21 years and the right to fence the land extended to licensees with the land able to be treated as rateable property.The Land Act 1890 Amendment of 1891, in Section 22 (later Section 106 of the Land Act 1901), provided for worked out auriferous lands to be proclaimed and licensed for occupation. No individual could occupy more than five acres for a period not exceeding seven years. Rent was to be no less than one shilling per acre.Section 93 and Section 91 of the Land Act 1884 (later Section 99, Land Act 1890 and Section 145, Land Act 1901) provided for the licensing or leasing of Crown lands for a multitude of purposes such as rural businesses, the removal of raw materials and other purposes, none of which were to be agricultural or grazing. Licenses were renewable annually at a fee to be set. Leases under the 1884 Act for these purposes were to be of no more than three acres at an annual rental of five pounds.Section 119, Land Act 1884 provided for the issuing of grazing licenses for Crown lands not otherwise held. This provision continued as Section 123, Land Act 1890 and Section 187, Land Act 1901.Section 147 of the Land Act 1901 allowed the licensing of bee-keeping establishments of not more than one acre for one year on any Crown land including that held under an agricultural license or lease or a grazing lease.The Wattles Act was passed to encourage the commercial exploitation of certain acacia species. Under Section 10, Wattles Act 1890 a lessee under Section 32 of the Land Act 1884 could cancel that lease and obtain a lease for the cultivation of wattle trees.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.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 42 of the Land Act 1884 was registered as application number 324 then the selection or occupation file number would be 324/42.The application number remained the selection file number for a particular piece of land if all terms and conditions were met and the selection resulted in a Crown Grant. However, often the original selector did not end up owning the land. 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.

本档案系列由官有土地与测量部（Department of Crown Lands and Survey，VA 538）占用分支的西摩区办事处（Seymour District Office）编制。该系列的副本为《西摩区其他法案条款土地法申请登记册（1884、1890、1891、1898及1901年）》（西摩区测量办事处，VPRS13474），该登记册由西摩区测量办事处编制。VPRS 13473 / P1此前被登记为VPRS 458 / P《未知土地法申请登记册》第84单元；VPRS 13473 / P2此前被登记为VPRS 458 / P《未知土地法申请登记册》第128单元。

部分不常用的法案条款常被整合至同一本登记册中，《1884年土地法》的多项条款便是如此。这些条款在后续合并修订的《1890年土地法》与《1901年土地法》中仍被保留，但条款编号发生了变更。其他次要条款则被新增至该登记册中，源自后续出台的法案，包括《1891年土地法》《1898年土地法》及《1890年金合欢树法》。

《1884年土地法》第67条规定，可对含金（含黄金）土地上不超过1000英亩的区域颁发年度放牧许可证，该许可有效期为五年，且保留土地的采矿权。根据《1898年土地法》第91条（后为《1901年土地法》第105条），该许可期限延长至21年，且许可持有人获得围栏土地的权利，土地可被评定为应纳税财产。

1891年修订的《1890年土地法》第22条（后为《1901年土地法》第106条）规定，可对已开采完毕的含金土地进行公告并颁发占用许可。单个主体占用土地不得超过5英亩，期限不超过7年，租金不得低于每英亩1先令。

《1884年土地法》第93条与第91条（后为《1890年土地法》第99条及《1901年土地法》第145条）规定，可就多种用途颁发官有土地许可或租赁，包括乡村经营、原材料外运及其他非农业或放牧用途。许可每年可续期，费用另行设定。根据1884年法案颁发的此类许可，土地面积不得超过3英亩，年租金为5英镑。

《1884年土地法》第119条规定，可就未作其他处置的官有土地颁发放牧许可证，该条款在《1890年土地法》中保留为第123条，在《1901年土地法》中保留为第187条。

《1901年土地法》第147条允许在任何官有土地上（包括持有农业许可、租赁或放牧租赁的土地）颁发不超过1英亩的养蜂场年度许可证。

《金合欢树法》旨在推动特定金合欢属物种的商业化开发。根据《1890年金合欢树法》第10条，持有《1884年土地法》第32条项下租赁权的承租人可终止原有租赁，转而申请用于种植金合欢树的租赁权。

当土地部门收到官有土地选地申请后，会将其登记至申请登记册。申请登记册按申请人姓名首字母排序，并为字母表中每个字母对应的申请人分配连续的申请编号块。

为合理规划官有土地管理工作，1874年在助理测量总监H·拜伦·摩尔（H Byron Moore）的推动下成立了占用分支。该分支负责处理所有与官有土地占用相关的事务。

该州被划分为15个土地区，分别为：阿拉拉特、巴拉瑞特、比奇沃思、贝纳拉、卡斯尔梅恩与杜诺利、伊丘卡、吉隆-瓦南布尔与坎珀当、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。每个土地区在墨尔本的占用分支设有「区土地办事处」作为代表。

每个区土地办事处设有双人办公桌，办事员与绘图员在此办公，文件、地图与规划图均放置于随手可取之处。同一批工作人员负责官有土地从受理到处置的全流程业务。区办事处的人员配置最初仅为一名办事员与一名绘图员，专门负责对应土地区的事务。他们需熟悉本区情况，处理所有相关土地业务。至1877年，每个区土地办事处的人员已增至区官员、租金办事员、绘图员及若干普通办事员。

1874年占用分支成立并将全州划分为土地区后，申请按区进行登记。每个「区土地办事处」自行编制并维护其申请登记册系列。1874年后土地部门收到的所有新申请，均登记至独立的区登记册中，申请编号从1开始连续分配。不同土地区可使用相同的申请编号，例如，巴拉瑞特与本迪戈土地区均可存在申请编号1021/32。唯有结合区名称与附带的档案编号，才能构成唯一标识符。

申请人在区测量办事处填写申请表。多数土地区均设有区测量办事处。区测量员会将申请人信息登记至区测量办事处保存的申请登记册中，并为每位申请人分配申请编号。申请编号会被标注在选地申请表上，若申请获批，该编号将成为其土地选地档案编号。

区测量员需在申请登记册中记录：申请编号、申请接收日期、申请人姓名、职业与教区、申请的地块编号与面积（英亩、路得、杆）。随后，申请会被转交至墨尔本占用分支对应的区土地办事处，并以相同的申请编号登记至该处的副本申请登记册中。区测量员还需转交申请地块的绘图描件。

申请地块的位置会立即以铅笔绘制在工作规划图上。绘图描件随后会被送至矿产与供水部（Department of Mines and Water Supply，VA 2720），以获取采矿异议相关报告。若无采矿异议，申请将提交至地方土地委员会审理。地方土地委员会由当地社区代表与官有土地与测量部（VA 538）的代表组成。委员会会听取所有地块申请人的陈述，并决定许可或租赁的授予对象。记录地方土地委员会决议的清单会被转交至墨尔本占用分支对应的区土地办事处，决议内容会被登记至申请登记册中。

土地管理法定机构土地工程委员会（Board of Land and Works，VA 744）会根据地方土地委员会的推荐，对土地选地申请作出最终批准。土地工程委员会（VA 744）的决议会被记录至申请登记册中。登记册还会记录许可证或租赁证的颁发日期，以及该档案后续的所有相关操作。获得地块分配的选地人信息，会由墨尔本占用分支的区土地办事处绘图员登记至工作规划图上。申请地块的绘图描件随后会被送至负责对应土地区的官有土地执行官。

申请登记册管控选地与占用档案。若官有土地选地申请获批，申请编号将成为档案编号。例如，若根据《1884年土地法》第42条提交的选地申请登记为编号324，则该选地或占用档案编号为324/42。若申请人满足所有条款与条件且最终获得官有土地授予状，则申请编号将始终作为该特定地块的选地档案编号。然而，多数情况下初始选地人最终并未获得土地所有权。许多选地人丧失或放弃了其许可或租赁权。若出现此类情况，该土地将重新开放供选地。新申请人将以新的申请编号登记至申请登记册中，原申请人的档案会被附加至新选地人的档案中。新档案编号会被注释至登记册中原申请人的条目旁。即便同一选地人就其此前丧失的土地再次申请许可，也会被分配新的申请编号，档案将拥有新的选地档案编号。