Every deed, fixed to the ground it describes.
For more than two centuries, land in the American West has been described by townships, ranges and sections, measured from monuments set by hand. Unisition (you-nih-SISH-un) keeps that record and adds what it lacks: surveyed coordinates for every corner, a Universal Positioning Number for every parcel, and documents sealed so any later change shows.
What the PLSS left to chance
The Public Land Survey System, begun by the Land Ordinance of 1785, divided the public domain into townships six miles square, each of 36 one-mile sections. It made the West sellable, and a legal description such as NE¼ Sec. 14, T35N, R49E, P.M.M. still opens most Montana deeds. But the description points at corners in the ground, and the record is only as good as those corners. Even today, a Montana corner record is a written description and a sketch; coordinates are optional.
| PLSS | Unisition | |
|---|---|---|
| Where a corner is | A monument in the ground, found again by searching for it | The monument plus its surveyed coordinates, height, datum and stated accuracy |
| When a corner is lost | Re-established by proportionate measurement from other corners | Its coordinates stay in the record, so a surveyor can stake it again |
| Name of a parcel | A legal description in words, unique only within its county | A Universal Positioning Number, unique everywhere and readable by machines |
| The deed itself | Paper or a scan at the clerk and recorder | A reference to the recorded deed, with each file's fingerprint sealed in a chain |
| Who can check it | Whoever pulls the abstract | Anyone: the seal chain can be recomputed at any time |
| Where it reaches | The public domain of the United States | Any surveyed place, on Earth and beyond |
How a parcel is unisitioned
- The landowner claims the parcel and uploads its deed, surveys and plats. Each file is fingerprinted (SHA-256) the moment it arrives.
- A licensed surveyor enters the corners: coordinates of each monument, with method, accuracy and license number.
- Title plants add documents across many parcels at once: easements, mineral deeds, title opinions.
- A county reviewer approves each item. Approved items join the county's seal chain, where every entry's hash covers the one before it.
- The parcel gets its grade: from "state parcel line only" up to "surveyed (centimetre)" when every corner is a licensed, approved, 10 cm-or-better fix.
A Universal Positioning Number
Daniels County, Montana, parcel 34480417309050000:
The first thirteen numbers place the parcel in the universe: our supercluster, galaxy and star, then Earth, the third planet. Next come the country, state and county. Last is the county's own parcel number, so the UPN never replaces the record; it locates it. Read any UPN.
A Unisition record refers to the recorded documents and does not replace them. The county clerk and recorder's record governs, and only a licensed land surveyor establishes a boundary.
On the ground now
Unisition records are open for Montana counties through eCounty Montana. These counts come live from those records.
The pilot corners
The first four monuments located for the system, on and around Ridenour Ranch in Daniels County. They were located in 2019 with no accuracy recorded, so they stand as pilot points until a licensed survey replaces them.
| Corner | Latitude | Longitude |
|---|
For surveyors, landowners and title plants
Surveyors
Enter monument coordinates parcel by parcel: latitude, longitude, height, accuracy, method and your license. Each fix shows its offset from the state's parcel line, and approved fixes earn points.
Landowners
Claim your parcels and upload their deeds and surveys. Your parcel gets a UPN, a barcode and a record anyone can check, without changing what is recorded at the courthouse.
Title plants
Upload documents on many parcels at once. Every file is fingerprinted and sealed, so an abstract built on Unisition can show exactly what it relied on.
Roles are by invitation from each county. To join in your county, write to provedup@gmail.com.
Beyond the county line
The same number that locates a Montana parcel can locate a body in orbit: the Moon, a satellite of Earth, an asteroid. As robots survey and work places no person stands on, their positions need a record a court can rely on. That is where Unisition is headed.