Wirlwind,
I made a post this morning in re: Randy's search, on how to trace land titles. (link someone please)
The land patent is only issued once by the BLM. After that it is gone from them, it is out of BLM's hands. They do not track any more owners. You can assert your rights to the patented land without doing the full trace but don't take a vacation. There will likely come a day when you will need that unbroken chain of title. So go get it. Besides, it sounds like it is your family history. Make it fun!


Jim