Texas General Land Office

The Republic of Texas Congress established the General Land Office in 1836 shortly after Texas won its independence from Mexico. The General Land Office was originally responsible for managing the public domain by collecting and keeping records, providing maps and surveys and issuing land titles. Since then the GLO's duties have evolved, but its core mission is still the management of state lands and mineral-right properties totaling 20.3 million acres. Included in that portfolio are the beaches, bays, estuaries and other "submerged" lands out to 10.3 miles in the Gulf of Mexico, institutional acreage, grazing lands in West Texas and timberlands in East Texas.

In addition to its oil and gas activities, land office responsibilities now cover many other areas. As the oldest state agency in Texas, the GLO's Archives and Records division houses original Spanish, Mexican, and Republic of Texas land grants and associated documentation. The Recycling, Adopt-A-Beach, Coastal, and Oil Spill Prevention and Response programs work to protect our natural resources. The land office triggers economic development through its natural gas marketing initiatives and loan programs offered to veterans through the Texas Veterans Land Board (VLB).