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Permalink Reply by Harry L. Breski, PLS on October 5, 2011 at 6:30am

Falcon in Hawthorn just above New Bethlehem,PA

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Permalink Reply by George Brown on October 5, 2011 at 8:19am

You might want to take a crack at doing the search yourself.  It is not rocket science, but it does require a lot of time.  Go to the Clarion County Courthouse and ask for assistance.  I don't know about Clarion County, but the folks working for Venango County were very helpful and friendly.  You start with your title and work your way back.  If you bought it from John and Mary Smith, then look in the records for John and Mary Smith to see who they bought it from and so on.  You can also find out if John and Mary Smith entered into any leases for the oil and gas, coal, timber, etc.  Like I said, it can be a little tricky, especially if one of the prior owners had a common name like mine. You might find lots of George Browns in there that have nothing to do with your property but you'd have to find the lease and read it just to be sure.

 

I know in Venango County, oil was discovered there in August of 1859.  This means you might have to go a long way back to make sure the oil & gas rights were not severed from the surface.  You might find they were leased somewhere along the way, but then read that lease carefully.  It probably had a termination date, just like the leases being offered today.  If nothing else, you'll find the search both tedious but also interesting.

 

Rule of Thumb: If you enjoy watching the history channel, you'll probably enjoy the title search.

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