07/31/2026
FAQ: How can I find out if my property was ever surveyed?
Plats & surveys are recorded in our office. However, while subdivision & town plats must be recorded, not all surveys are required to be recorded under Missouri law.
If your property is in a subdivision - for instance, Cole Turkey Acres, Mack's Grand River Development, Lakeview Heights OR in city limits such as Warsaw, Lincoln, or Cole Camp, we will have the original plat of that in our office. The original plat is the drawing signed & recorded by the developer showing the size & location of each lot in that subdivision or town. Those are indexed by the name of the subdivision or city, so can be found rather quickly.
Surveys are the measurements of a particular piece of property (subdivision or section-township-range) done by a surveyor at the request of an individual, bank, realtor, etc. These are a bit trickier to find since our records back to 1839 were primarily indexed by name. Since this would be the name of the owner at the time of the survey, the current owner doesn't always have that information. There are a few different ways we can help - first of all, I can usually tell by the legal description whether it (or a surrounding property) was surveyed, as it will contain directions such as "N 36 degrees W". IF you have any info at all about a survey being done, knowing the approximate year &/or owner's name helps A LOT. I can also check with other sources - such as the Missouri Department of Ag - to see if they're aware of a survey. Even then, as I mentioned earlier not all surveys have to be recorded.
So, if this is something you're inquiring about, contact us with all the info you have at [email protected]. Please keep in mind that it may take a couple of days to find the info. Copies are $1 per page, but most plats/surveys are only 1 or 2 pages.
