Convert Township (township) to Square Mile (US Survey) (mi² (US)) instantly.
About these units
Township (township)
A township, as used in the U.S. Public Land Survey System (PLSS), is an area equal to 36 square miles, arranged as a 6-mile × 6-mile square. It is a cornerstone unit of American land division, originating during the late 18th-century settlement of the American frontier. Townships standardized how land was surveyed and sold, allowing the federal government to systematically divide territory for settlement, homesteading, and revenue generation. They were subdivided into 36 sections, each one square mile in area. This grid-based system profoundly shaped American geography. Roads, property lines, agricultural fields, and county boundaries in much of the Midwest and West follow township geometry. Even today, PLSS townships remain legally relevant in land deeds, zoning regulations, and cadastral surveys.
Square Mile (US Survey) (mi² (US))
The US survey square mile is extremely close to the international square mile but is defined using the US survey foot, a slightly different value than the international foot historically used in land surveying. This unit appears in American land deeds, cadastral maps, and federal land management documents. The Public Land Survey System (PLSS), which divided much of the western United States into townships and sections, relied heavily on survey-based square miles. Although the modern US has transitioned to the international foot (as of 2023), historical land descriptions remain legally tied to the survey-based definition, ensuring its continued relevance.