Our leasing agent tell us during his research for our mineral rights' heirs in Oklahoma he has seen our family name numerous times as unknown respondents for wells dating as far back to the 80's some of which could be still producing.
Does anyone know where we would start a search for this type of info? We know that our ancestors purchased mineral rights in 1943.
Thanks
Thanks, Ron, Nothing there. I was hoping for maybe some type of online database. Now I'm thinking it will take searching at County Courthouses.
Replying to my own post.....
Found this at the Oklahoma Mineral Rights Registry:
The only way to verify mineral rights ownership is to do a title search at the county courthouse where those rights are located. To do this you must review all deeds and conveyances for the subject tract back to 1907.
Mineral rights ownership information is not available online, on any website. You must physically go to the courthouse and look through the deed books and real property records.
If that is not possible, then you will need to hire a local landman, title attorney or abstractor to do the research. To do a title search, fees typically range from $50 to $200 per hour.
County offices do not provide research services. However, they should be able to point you to a local person who can do this - so you may want to call them for a referral.
Oil companies spend tens of millions of dollars each year researching mineral ownership in Oklahoma. It is a very complex and often tedious process.
Most people only find out about mineral rights they own after oil companies have done this research and are making contact for drilling activity. That's why it's important to make sure you're listed in the registry so they can contact you when your name shows up on a title report.
And an excellent article:
http://www.mineralhub.com/2010/04/how-can-i-locate-who-owns-the-mineral-rights-under-my-land/
I know that Pangaea Data offers this service, but I'm not sure how far back it goes, it's a little pricey for an individual to subscribe to, maybe perhaps someone that you know has it or maybe someone on this site would be generous enough to help you. Unfortunately I do not have a subscription to Pangaea but I could put you in touch with someone that does have a subscription.