VPRS 13453 Register of Applications, Bairnsdale Section 65 Land Acts 1884, 1890 and 1898 and Section 103 Land Act 1901 (Occupation Branch)

VPRS 13453 Register of Applications, Bairnsdale Section 65 Land Acts 1884, 1890 and 1898 and Section 103 Land Act 1901 (Occupation Branch)) was created by the 'Bairnsdale District Office' at the Occupation Branch of the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538). It is duplicated by Register of Applications, Bairnsdale Section 65 Land Acts 1884, 1890 and 1898 and Section 103 Land Act 1901 (Bairnsdale District Survey Office) (VPRS13454) which is the register created by the District Survey Office in Bairnsdale.VPRS 13453 / P1 was previously registered as unit 9 of VPRS 446 / P Application Registers, Land Act 1884.Sections of an Act that were less common were often recorded 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 65 of the Land Act 1884 (and Section 103 Land Act 1901) provided for the annual licensing of auriferous (gold-bearing) lands. Areas licensed were to be of no more than 20 acres with only one license being allowed for each individual. There was to be no sale of these lands. This section was amended by Section 90 of the Land Act 1898 providing for the appraisal of these lands. If the value of the land was appraised to be more than the rent already paid on them, the subsequent rental was to be no more than two shillings and sixpence per annum with no annual license fee.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 position 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 Land and Works (VA 744) was then recorded in the register of applications. The registers also record the date of the licence or lease issue 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 65 of the Land Act 1884 was registered as application number 324 then the selection or occupation file number would be 324/65.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.

VPRS 13453《申请登记簿》（贝恩斯代尔区1884年、1890年、1898年土地法第65条及1901年土地法第103条，占地管理科）由官有土地与测量部（档案编号VA 538）占地管理科贝恩斯代尔区办事处编制。其副本为VPRS 13454《申请登记簿》（贝恩斯代尔区1884年、1890年、1898年土地法第65条及1901年土地法第103条，贝恩斯代尔区测量办事处），由贝恩斯代尔区测量办事处编制。VPRS 13453/P1原登记为VPRS 446/P《1884年土地法申请登记簿》第9单元。
较为小众的法案条款通常会被归集至同一登记簿中，1884年《土地法》的多项条款便属于此类情况。这些条款在1890年与1901年的《土地法》修订版中得以保留，但条款编号发生了变更。后续出台的《1891年土地法》《1898年土地法》及《1890年金合欢种植法》新增的小众条款也被纳入该登记簿。
1884年《土地法》第65条（对应1901年《土地法》第103条）规定了产金土地的年度许可制度：获批许可的土地面积不得超过20英亩，且每人仅可申领一份许可，此类土地不得进行买卖。1898年《土地法》第90条对该条款进行了修订，新增了土地估值要求：若经估值后土地价值超出已缴租金，则后续年度租金不得超过2先令6便士，且无需缴纳年度许可费。
当官有土地申领申请提交至该部门后，会被登记至申请登记簿中。申请登记簿的内容按字母顺序排列，申请编号按字母表顺序分批次连续分配。
为优化官有土地管理流程，在测量助理总监H·拜伦·摩尔的推动下，该部门于1874年设立了占地管理科，负责处理所有与官有土地占地相关的事务。该州被划分为15个土地管辖区，分别为：阿拉拉特、巴拉瑞特、比奇沃思、贝纳拉、卡斯尔梅恩与达诺利、伊丘卡、吉朗-瓦南布尔与坎珀当、哈密尔顿、霍舍姆、墨尔本、塞尔与贝恩斯代尔、桑德赫斯特（本迪戈）、西摩和圣阿尔诺。每个土地管辖区在墨尔本的占地管理科均设有对应的“区土地办事处”。
每个区土地办事处设有双人办公桌，供办事员与绘图员共同办公，各类档案、地图与图纸均摆放于随手可取之处。同一批工作人员全权负责官有土地从受理到处置的全流程业务。区土地办事处的人员配置最初仅为一名办事员与一名绘图员，仅负责对应土地管辖区的业务，其核心职责为熟悉辖区情况并处理所有相关土地事务。至1877年，每个区土地办事处的人员配置已扩充至：区办事处主任、租金办事员、绘图员及若干普通办事员。
1874年占地管理科设立并完成全州土地管辖区划分后，申请按管辖区进行登记。各“区土地办事处”自行编制并维护专属的申请登记簿序列。1874年后该部门收到的所有新申请，均登记至对应管辖区的专属登记簿中，申请编号从1开始依次分配。不同管辖区可使用相同的申请编号，例如巴拉瑞特与本迪戈两个土地管辖区均可存在申请编号1021/32，唯有管辖区名称与配套档案编号组合，方可作为唯一标识符。
申请人需在区测量办事处填写申请表，多数土地管辖区均设有区测量办事处。区测量员会将申请人的详细信息登记于区测量办事处留存的申请登记簿中，并为每位申请人分配编号。申请编号会被标注在土地申领申请表上，若申请获批，该编号即成为该土地申领的档案编号。
区测量员需在申请登记簿中登记以下信息：申请编号、申请接收日期、申请人姓名、职业与教区、申请地块编号及面积（英亩、路得与平方杆）。随后申请表会被转交至墨尔本占地管理科对应的区土地办事处，该办事处会将申请信息以相同的申请编号登记至副本申请登记簿中。区测量员还需一并转交申请地块的描图。
申请地块的位置会立即以铅笔绘制至工作草图上。随后描图会被送至矿产与供水部（档案编号VA 2720），以获取是否存在矿业异议的评估报告。若无矿业异议，申请将提交至地方土地委员会进行审议。地方土地委员会由当地社区代表与官有土地与测量部（档案编号VA 538）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地管理科对应的区土地办事处，并将决议内容登记至申请登记簿中。
作为官有土地管理的法定主管机构，土地工程委员会（档案编号VA 744）会依据地方土地委员会的建议，对土地申领申请作出最终批准。该委员会的决议会被登记至申请登记簿中。登记簿还会记录许可或租赁的颁发日期，以及该档案后续的所有相关操作。获批地块的申领人信息会由墨尔本占地管理科区土地办事处的绘图员标注至工作草图上，随后地块描图会被送交至负责对应土地管辖区的官有土地执达员。
申请登记簿管控着申领与占地档案。若官有土地申领申请获批，申请编号即转为档案编号。例如，若依据1884年《土地法》第65条提交的申领申请登记编号为324，则该土地申领或占地档案编号即为324/65。
若申请人满足所有条款条件并最终获得官有土地授予，则该申请编号将持续作为对应地块的申领档案编号。但多数情况下，初始申领人最终并未获得土地所有权，众多申领人因违约或主动放弃许可或租赁资格。出现此类情况时，该土地会重新开放申领，新申请人的信息会以新的申请编号登记至申请登记簿中，初始申领人的档案会被附至新申领人的档案中，新档案编号会被标注于登记簿中初始申领人的登记条目旁。
即便同一申领人就其此前已被没收的土地再次申请许可，仍会被分配新的申请编号，其档案也将拥有全新的申领档案编号。