Tier or Township

In addition to range lines, surveyors created horizontal lines that run east and west. These are called township lines, and they are placed every six miles parallel to the base line (BL).These township lines divide the land into horizontal strips that are six miles wide. Each of these strips is called a tier, or simply a township. Tiers are located on both sides of the base line. A helpful way to remember this is to think of the layers (tiers) of a wedding cake, which are stacked horizontally.Tiers are numbered starting at the base line and moving outward:The first strip of land north of the base line is called Township 1 North (T1N).The next tier farther north is T2N, then T3N, and so on.The same numbering system is used south of the base line:The first tier south of the base line is Township 1 South (T1S).The numbers continue to increase as you move farther south. Do you see T2N, R2W and T2S, R2E? T2N? Try to locate T3S, R3E, for example.