General Land Office

White Pigeon, United States

Exterior only

Visible from the street; the inside is private.

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The White Pigeon Prairie Land Office in Michigan is a Greek Revival office building constructed in 1830 and the oldest surviving land office in the state. Situated on the Chicago Road (Sauk Trail) in what was the largest village west of Jackson, the office operated from 1831 to 1834, serving as the third federal land office to open in Michigan. During its brief four-year existence, it processed the sale of over a quarter million acres at $1.25 per acre, distributing public lands to western-bound settlers following the 1821 Treaty of Chicago. Notable early purchasers included Louis Campau, the first settler in Kent County, who bought land there in October 1833. The office closed in 1834 when its register and receiver relocated to a newly established land office in the Kalamazoo area. Recognized as the oldest building in Southwest Michigan, the structure was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989 and designated a Michigan State Historic Site.