United States. Bureau of Land Management

Congress encouraged the settlement of western lands by enacting a wide variety of laws, including the Homesteading Laws, the Mining Law of 1872, and the Desert Land Act of 1877. The late 19th century marked a shift in Federal land management priorities with the creation of the first national parks, forests, and wildlife refuges. By withdrawing these lands from settlement, Congress signaled a shift in the policy goals served by the public lands. Instead of using them to promote settlement, Congress recognized that they should be held in public ownership because of their other resource values. In the early 20th century, Congress took additional steps toward recognizing the value of the assets on public lands by enacting such legislation as the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934, and the Oregon and California (O&C) Act [re. timberlands] of August 28, 1937.

The General Land Office was created within the U.S. Dept. of the Treasury in 1812. In 1946, following the absorption of the Grazing Service, the renamed Bureau of Land Management was moved under the Dept. of the Interior.