Surveyor General Resources

• Surveyor General’s Report – [March 2024]
• Surveyor General’s Report – [October 2023]
• Surveyor General’s Report – [March 2023]
• Surveyor General’s Report – [October 2022]
• Surveyor General’s Report – [Link Magazine, April 2022]
• Surveyor General’s Report – [Link Magazine, December 2021]

Please note operational information contained in these archived articles may now be out of date. For current practice guidance, please visit Submissions to Surveyor General.

• Provincial Government Records Digitized and Made Available Electronically in GATOR by Dave Swaile
• Extent of Title and Extent of Ownership by Cristin Schlossberger – [Link Magazine, August 2020]
• The River Has Moved by Jeff Beddoes – [Link Magazine, August 2019]
• Returning Lands to the Crown by Dave Swaile – [Link Magazine, August 2018]
• E&N Grants by Katie Hannah – [Link Magazine, December 2018]
• Joseph Pemberton’s Journey by Calvin Woelke – [Link Magazine, December 2018]
• Land Act Right of Way Titles by Cristin Schlossberger – [Link Magazine, August 2017]
• Post Renewal Forms by Dave Swaile, Jeff Beddoes and Calvin Woelke – [Link Magazine, April 2017]
• Role of the Surveyor General by Jeff Beddoes – [Link Magazine, December 2017]
• Showing Coordinates in ISAs – [Link Magazine, December 2017]
• Elk Pass Boundary Restoration Survey by Dave Swaile – [Link Magazine, August 2016]

History of Survey Systems
In the earlier years of BC’s development, various Crown land survey systems were used to define raw Crown land. View a 1975 paper on the History of Crown Land Survey Systems, prepared by W.A. Taylor, a former Surveyor General of BC.

History of E&N Land Grant, Railway Belt and Peace River Block
In BC’s history, there were several major grants of Crown land to railway companies to facilitate settlement. View an account of the History of the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Crown Land Grant, Railway Belt and Peace River Block, prepared by W.A. Taylor, a former Surveyor General of BC.

Descriptions of Land
This publication provides guidelines for writing and interpretation of legal descriptions. View Crown land descriptions.

Land Districts of British Columbia
This publication outlines the land districts in the Province of British Columbia. View the land districts of British Columbia.

Canadian Generally Accepted Land Surveying Principles
Published by the Canadian Council on Geomatics, this document outlines the major principles that guide the land surveying practice in Canada:

• Principles to guide the development of land surveying governance models and legal boundary frameworks.
• Principles for providing Canadians access to qualified Land Surveying professionals.
• Principles that guide the role of a Land Surveyor in Canada.