List of Commissioners of the General Land Office


The General Land Office was an independent agency of the United States government responsible for public domain lands in the United States. It was created in 1812, and it merged with the United States Grazing Service in 1946 to become the Bureau of Land Management. The official in charge of the agency was called the Commissioner of the General Land Office, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
CommissionerImageDate of CommissionResidenceNotes
Edward TiffinMay 7, 1812Ohio
Josiah MeigsOctober 11, 1814Georgia
John McLeanSeptember 11, 1822Ohio
George GrahamJune 26, 1823District of Columbia
Elijah HaywardSeptember 30, 1830Ohio
Ethan Allen BrownJuly 24, 1835Ohio
James WhitcombOctober 21, 1836Indiana
Elisha Mills HuntingtonJuly 2 or 3, 1841New York
Thomas H. BlakeMay 19, 1842Indiana
James ShieldsApril 16, 1845Illinois
Richard M. YoungJanuary 6, 1847Illinois
Justin ButterfieldJuly 1, 1849Illinois
John WilsonSeptember 16, 1852District of Columbia
Thomas A. HendricksAugust 8, 1855Indiana
Samuel Axley SmithOctober 13, 1859Tennessee
Joseph S. WilsonFebruary 23, 1860District of Columbia
James M. EdmundsMarch 16 or 19, 1861Michigan
Joseph S. WilsonSeptember 1, 1866District of Columbia
Willis DrummondFebruary 4, 1871Iowa
Samuel S. BurdettJuly 1, 1874Missouri
James A. WilliamsonJune 24, 1876Iowa
Noah C. McFarlandJune 17, 1881Kansas
William A. J. SparksMarch 26, 1885Illinois
Strother M. StockslagerMarch 27, 1888Indiana
Lewis A. GroffSeptember 16, 1889Nebraska
Thomas Henry CarterMarch 31, 1891Montana
William M. StoneNovember 18, 1892Iowa
Silas W. LamoreauxMarch 28, 1893Wisconsin
Binger HermannMarch 25, 1897Oregon
William A. RichardsJanuary 26, 1903Wyoming
Richard A. BallingerJanuary 28, 1907Washington
Fred DennettJanuary 14, 1908North Dakota
Clay TallmanJune 5, 1913Nevada
William SpryMarch 22, 1921Utah
Charles C. MooreMay 9, 1929Idaho
Fred W. JohnsonMay 20, 1933Wyoming